CARBON FIBER REINFORCED ASPHALT CONCRETE

Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. For many years, they have been utilized extensively in numerous applications in civil engineering. Fiberreinforcement refers to incorporating materials with desired properties within some other materials lacking those properties. Use of fibers is not a new phenomenon, as the technique of fiber-reinforced bitumen began as early as 1950. In all industrialized countries today, nearly all concretes used in construction are reinforced. A multitude of fibers and fiber materials are being introduced in the market regularly. The present paper presents characteristics and properties of carbon fiberreinforced asphalt mixtures, which might improve the performance of pavements. To evaluate the effect of fiber contents on bituminous mixtures, laboratory investigations were carried out on the samples with and without fibers. During the course of this study, various tests were undertaken, applying Marshall test, indirect tensile test, creep test, and resistance to fatigue cracking by using repeated load indirect tensile test. Carbon fiber exhibited consistency in results, and as such it was observed that the addition of fiber does affect the properties of bituminous mixtures, i.e. an increase in its stability and a decrease in the flow value as well as an increase in voids in the mix. Results indicate that fibers have the potential to resist structural distress in pavement, in the wake of growing traffic loads, and thus improve fatigue by increasing resistance to cracks or permanent deformation. On the whole, the results show that the addition of carbon fiber will improve some of the mechanical properties like fatigue and deformation in the flexible pavement