Abstract
PURPOSES : The objective of this study is to evaluate the performance properties of chip seals and fog seals with polymer-modified emulsions. METHODS : The performance of chip seals and fog seals was evaluated on the basis of common issues in surface treatments. Granite aggregate and four types of asphalt emulsions (one of the unmodified and three of the modified emulsions) were used considering the usage in field. A Vialit test was performed to determine the aggregate retention, and the MMLS3 (Third Scale Model Mobile Load Simulator) test was conducted to determine the aggregate retention, bleeding, and rutting. In addition, the fog seal specimens were tested by the BPT (British Pendulum Test) to evaluate skid resistance. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS : Overall, the polymer-modified emulsions (PMEs) showed better aggregate retention and bleeding resistance for both chip seals and fog seals. When comparing the performance of the PMEs, the difference was not considerable. In addition, PMEs present significantly better rutting resistance than unmodified emulsions. For skid resistance, if the recommended mix design is applied, the specimens do not cause issues with skid resistance. Although all of the fog seal specimens were over the criteria for skid resistance, the specimen fabricated by the high emulsion application rate (EAR) of the unmodified emulsion was nearly equivalent to the skid value criteria. Therefore, the use of an unmodified emulsion with a high EAR should be carefully applied in the field.
