Construction and Building Materials 214 (2019) 475–483

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Construction and Building Materials

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Strength and durability of dry-processed stone matrix asphalt containing

cement pre-coated scrap tire rubber particles
Fangyuan Gong a,b, Shuaicheng Guo b,⇑, Siyu Chen b, Zhanping You b,⇑, Yu Liu a, Qingli Dai b
a
School of Highway, Chang’an University, South Erhuan Middle Section, Xi’an City, Shaanxi Province 710064, China
b
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Michigan Technological University, 1400 Townsend Dr., Houghton, MI 49931-1295, United States

h i g h l i g h t s

 Asphalt mixtures were prepared with different factors for performance tests.
 Improve the strength and durability of dry-processed asphalt mixture.
 Enhance the bonding between rubber and asphalt binder by cement coating methods.
 Performance of stone matric asphalt mixture improves with pre-coated rubber.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Application of rubber particle from the scrap tire through dry-process is a practical and economical effi-
Received 31 August 2018 cient way to resolve the recycling problem and environmental concern of the disposed tires. However,
Received in revised form 28 March 2019 the added rubber aggregate reduces both the strength and durability of the rubberized asphalt mixture.
Accepted 17 April 2019
This study aims to improve the strength and durability of dry-processed asphalt mixture by using the
cement (Portland Type Ⅰ) coating methods and gap-gradation system (Stone Matrix Asphalt (SMA)).
The cement coating was applied to enhance the bonding performance between rubber aggregate and
Keywords:
asphalt binder, and limits its expansion due to swelling in hot asphalt binder. The SMA mixtures were
Strength
Durability
prepared with different sizes and proportions of mineral aggregates. The samples with conventional
Dry-process aggregate and untreated rubber aggregate both serve as control samples for the sample evaluation.
Cement pre-coated tire rubber Finally, tests on tensile strength, moisture susceptibility, rutting resistance, anti-stripping resistance, fati-
Stone matrix asphalt gue cracking resistance, and bonding between rubber particles and asphalt binder of SMA mixtures were
conducted. The results showed that SMA mixture with pre-coated rubber aggregate owns similar perfor-
mance comparing to the samples prepared with conventional aggregate and also has higher strength and
better performance than that of the mixture with untreated rubber aggregate. Results also clearly indi-
cated that the asphalt mixtures with 50% of No.16 mineral aggregates replaced by pre-coated rubber
aggregates performed the best-satisfied performances; while, with a further increase in replaced size
or proportion, the satisfied performances of SMA mixtures would be degenerated.
Ó 2019 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

1. Introduction
It is reported the production of the used tires has reached 3.6
million tonnes in Europe in 2013 [1], 4.2 million tonnes in the Uni-
ted States in 2017 [2]. It is estimated the annually generated used
tires can reach 1.5 billion in the whole world [3]. In 2017, the U.S.
Tire Manufactures Association (USTMA) reported that over 106
million of tires were used as tire-derived fuel (TDF), over 62 million
⇑ Corresponding authors.
E-mail addresses: fgong1@mtu.edu (F. Gong), sguo3@mtu.edu (S. Guo),
siychen@mtu.edu (S. Chen), zyou@mtu.edu (Z. You), yul@chd.edu.cn (Y. Liu),
qingdai@mtu.edu (Q. Dai).
of tires were used as ground rubber, about 19 million of tires were
used in civil engineering, and other areas [2]. However, about 15%
of the total scrap tire rubber is still disposed in the landfill [2]. The
scrap tires can need more 100 years to be naturally degraded [4],
and the accumulated scrap tires in the landfill can lead to pressing
environmental issues, including the pollution of the groundwater
[5] and fire hazardous [6]. Recycling the scrap tire as aggregate
or modifier in infrastructure construction can well resolve this
issue [7]. Specifically, the crumb rubber has already been widely
applied in the asphalt mixture to improve its performance [8]. This
study aims to improve the performance of the rubberized asphalt
mixture through both cement coating methods and gradation opti-
mization (using gap-graded stone matrix asphalt).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2019.04.151
0950-0618/Ó 2019 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
476 F. Gong et al. / Construction and Building Materials 214 (2019) 475–483
The current practice mainly applied crumb rubber to modify
asphalt binder to enhance its high-temperature viscosity [9–11]
and resistance to plastic deformation [12–14], which is called the
wet process. Besides that, another protocol called dry process [15]
consider the crumb rubber as aggregate and directly mix rubber
with mineral aggregate for the compaction. Currently, both the
study and field practices are dominated by the wet process while
the application on the dry process is limited [8]. Compared to the
wet process, the advantage of the dry process is the simplicity of
its protocol [16], and the coarse rubber aggregate can also be
applied. However, the mixture prepared through the dry process
also has several drawbacks, including the volume instability [17]
and decreased strength due to added rubber aggregate [15]. These
drawbacks have limited the broad application of the dry process.
Specifically, the interaction between fluid state asphalt binder and
rubber particle can lead to the expansion of rubber aggregate [18]
due to the swelling of the small molecular content in asphalt binder
[19]. It has been reported that these phenomena could lead to rav-
eling problems [20]. The volumetric expansion test has been con-
ducted to quantitatively examine the expansion behavior of dry
mixed asphalt concrete with rubber aggregate [21]. Farouk, Hassan
[17] detailed examined the interaction between the rubber particles
and asphalt binder in the mixture through the designed Basket Drai-
nage Method. The results indicated the finer rubber particle can lead
to enhanced swelling of rubber aggregate due to increased surface
area. Furthermore, it is also found that pre-swelling the rubber par-
ticle in hot asphalt binder can help to mitigate the expansion in rub-
ber asphalt mixture. Shen, Li [22] investigated the interaction
between dry processed rubber aggregate (30 mesh size) and asphalt
binder. It was found the large size molecular can be released from
the rubber aggregate, which is similar to that of the wet process.
Besides that, the decreasing strength is another issue prohibiting
the broad application of mixture produced by the dry process
[23]. The results in reference indicated 3% added rubber can reduce
about 40% indirect tensile strength compared to the conventional
asphalt concrete [23].
Aiming at the mechanical performance issues and volume insta-
bility of the dry processed asphalt mixture, various methods have
been proposed to resolve these issues. The study by Feiteira Dias,
Picado-Santos [24] demonstrated that increasing the mixing tem-
perature (to 190 °C) and reducing the rubber particle size (to 0–
0.6 mm) can resolve the issues in asphalt mixture produced with
the dry process. The performance of the mixture obtained from this
protocol can behave like the samples prepared with wet process
protocol. The study by Arabani, Tahami [25] demonstrated the
added nanomaterial could mend the reduced mechanical strength
caused by added rubber aggregate. The weak bonding strength is
also an issue in Portland cement concrete containing rubber aggre-
gate. It can be confirmed pre-coating the rubber aggregate with
cement paste layer can effectively improve the mechanical perfor-
mance of the Portland Cement Concrete containing recycled rubber
aggregate. Guo, Dai [26] applied the cement pre-coated rubber par-
ticles to prepare rubberized concrete. It was found the pre-coating
can enhance the compressive strength and reduce the permeability
compared to the rubberized concrete with as-received rubber
aggregate. Similarly, the study by Onuaguluchi and Panesar [27]
also demonstrated the pre-coating could significantly enhance
the mechanical performance of rubber concrete. Huang, Shu [28]
further applied the silane coupling agent to enhance to bonding
between rubber and the pre-coating cement layer, which can fur-
ther enhance the mechanical performance of rubberized concrete
[29]. Currently, the application of cement pre-coated rubber aggre-
gate in asphalt mixture is still very limited. Also, the application of
rubber aggregate in gap-graded stone matrix asphalt is also very
limited. Xie and Shen [30] evaluated the performance of the
rubberized stone matrix asphalt mixtures using both wet and dry
process. It was found that the sample produced using the wet pro-
cess has better durability performance compared to the specimen
prepared with the dry process.
Besides the study on mechanical performance, the investigation
on durability potential of the dry mixed rubberized asphalt con-
crete has also been investigated. The study by Lastra-González,
Calzada-Pérez [16] demonstrated the added rubber (0–1 mm)
through dry mixing methods can enhance the resistance to fatigue
crack and plastic deformation. Similarly, the study done by da
Silva, Benta [31] demonstrated the added rubber (0–1 mm) could
improve the resistance to both fatigue cracking and rutting for
the open-graded asphalt concrete. Furthermore, the field test
[32] also demonstrated the dry-mixed asphalt mixture could have
better rutting resistance compared to conventional asphalt con-
crete. The study by Ranieri, Costa [33] demonstrated the water sen-
sitivity could also be improved for the asphalt mixture with
recycled plastic aggregate produced through the dry process. How-
ever, the study by Rahman, Airey [34] indicated that dry mixed
rubber asphalt mixture was more susceptible to the moisture dam-
age compared to the conventional concrete. The samples with
higher rubber content showed a more obvious reduction of stiff-
ness after the moisture-conditioning process.
As mentioned above, the two major issues in the current pre-
pared dry mixed asphalt mixture have limited its wide application.
This study aims to improve the performance of the rubberized
asphalt concrete with the cement coating technique and gap-
gradated aggregate system (SMA). The rubber aggregate was first
pre-coated with cement paste layer before adding into asphalt
mixture. The cement layer can act as a barrier to prohibit the
expansion of the rubber aggregate due to swelling and enhance
the bonding strength between the rubber aggregate and asphalt
binder. Then the coated rubber aggregate will replace the fine part
(No.16 and No.8) in the SMA gradation system. Finally, perfor-
mances of asphalt mixtures were investigated through indirect
tensile (IDT) strength, Hamburg wheel track (HWT), four-point
bending beam fatigue, and environmental scanning electron
microscope (ESEM) tests. The specific objectives of this study are
as follows: (1) Explore the potential application of pre-coated rub-
ber aggregate to replace part of the mineral aggregate in SMA mix-
tures. (2) Determine the replaced sieve size and proportion of
recycled rubber particles in SMA mixtures. (3) Evaluate and ana-
lyze the performance of SMA mixtures with pre-coated rubber
aggregate through laboratory tests. The success of this study will
provide a suitable protocol to produce the dry processed asphalt
mixture with appropriate mechanical and durability performance.
2. Experiment
2.1. Materials
The asphalt mixture in this study was prepared with asphalt
binder, rubber aggregate, and normal mineral aggregate. The PG
70-22 asphalt binder was applied for the sample preparation.
And the content of the asphalt binder was 5.8% by the weight of
the mixture. The technical properties of PG 70-22 asphalt binder
were shown in Table 1. The basalt aggregates were used as normal
mineral aggregate, and the properties were shown in Table 2. The
hydrated lime was used as a filler, and the content was 8% by the
weight of aggregates. The spongy morphology of the as-received
rubber particle was shown in Fig. 1. And the chemical composi-
tions of the rubber particle were shown in Table 3.
2.2. Sample preparation
The as-received rubber aggregate shown in Fig. 1 was pre-
coated with a cement-paste layer before adding into the asphalt
 F. Gong et al. / Construction and Building Materials 214 (2019) 475–483 477

Table 1
Technical properties of asphalt binder PG 70-22.

Test properties Test Result Specification Method

Specific gravity 1.030 – AASHTO T 228
Rotational viscosity at 135 °C (Pa S) 0.3 3.0 AASHTO T 316
Dynamic shear of the original binder, 2.3 1.0 AASHTO T 315
G*/sin d at 70 °C (kPa)
Dynamic shear of RTFO residue,G*/sin d at 70 °C (kPa) 3.9 2.2 AASHTO T 315

Table 2 Table 3
Properties of aggregates. Chemical compositions of rubber.

Properties Test Value Standard Chemical composition Percentage (wt.%)

L.A. abrasion loss value (%) 15
Angularity index 43.0
Aggregate wear index (AWI) value #16 339
Soft particles (%) 0.50
Flat and elongated (%) 0.90
*
MTM-Michigan Test Methods;
**
ASTM-American Society for Testing and Materials
mixture. The coated samples with a sieve size of No. 16 and No. 8
were shown in Fig. 2a). The detailed pre-coating process was
shown in Fig. 2b). The mass ratio between the asphalt rubber
and cement powder was selected as 1:1 based on the trial test.
The water-cement ratio of the cement paste was selected as 0.35.
The cement rubber ratio was selected based on the trial test to
guarantee the rubber particles can be fully covered with cement
paste. The relative low water-cement ratio was selected to reduce
the needed heating time to dry the samples. The mixing process
was conducted in Humboldt mixer based on the procedure recom-
mended by ASTM C305-14 [35]. The mixing was conducted for
3 min and its evenness was virtually examined during the process
to guarantee fully mixed. After mixing, the coated rubber aggregate
was further dried in a conventional oven at 110 °C for 24 h to
remove the water content. The samples after the drying process
would be sand-like and can easily be separated and sieved for
the further tests.
As mentioned above, two procedures were applied to enhance
the performance of the rubberized asphalt mixture through dry-
process. Besides the pre-coating of the rubber aggregate with a
cement-paste layer, a specially designed gradation (nominal max-
imum size of 12.5 mm) of SMA mixture was also used in this study.
The detailed gradation curve of mineral aggregates used in this
study was shown in Fig. 3. The No.16 or No.8 mineral aggregates
were replaced by equal volume of uncoated rubber (UCR) aggre-
MTM* 102 Ash 5.11
MTM* 118 Carbon black 28.43
MTM* 112 Acetone extract 9.85
MTM* 110 Volatile matter 0.56
ASTM** D 4791 Hydrocarbon 56.05
gate and pre-coated rubber (PCR) aggregate. Three different
replacement ratios were applied in this study, 25%, 50%, and
100%. Specifically, the specific gravity ratios of UCRA and PCRA to
mineral aggregates were 0.51 and 0.60, respectively. Thirteen
groups of SMA mixtures with varying proportions were designed
and tested in this study as shown in Table 4: Control group (with
only mineral aggregate), 16UCR-25, 16UCR-50, 16UCR-100,
16PCR-25, 16PCR-50, 16PCR-100, 8UCR-25, 8UCR-50, 8UCR-100,
8PCR-25, 8PCR-50, and 8PCR-100. The Superpave gyratory com-
pactor (SGC) and Liner kneading compactor were used to prepare
uniform cylindrical specimens and slabs in the laboratory [36].
Each testing group included in six or three replicates.
2.3. Experimental approach
2.3.1. Indirect tensile (IDT) strength test
The strength reduction is one of the most severe shortcomings
for the rubberized asphalt mixture through dry-process [23].
Hence the strength performance of the prepared samples should
be first examined. The IDT strength test is also widely used to mea-
sure the change of diametrical tensile strength of compacted
asphalt mixtures after water saturation and accelerated water con-
ditioning, with a freeze-thaw cycle [37]. The long-term stripping
susceptibility of asphalt mixtures could be predicted by comparing
the IDT results before and after the saturation and freeze-thaw
cycles. According to AASHTO T283 [37], the cylindrical specimens
100 mm in diameter and 63.5 ± 2.5 mm thick are used. For each

(a) Uncoated rubber (UTR) particles (b) Spongy morphology

Fig. 1. Uncoated rubber particles and surface morphology.
478 F. Gong et al. / Construction and Building Materials 214 (2019) 475–483
Fig. 2. Surface treatment of tire rubber. a) Tire rubber and cement-treated tire rubber; b) Treating processes of rubber particles.
Fig. 3. Combined gradation of SMA mixtures and cycled tire rubber.
testing set, at least six specimens should be made and divided into
two subsets, one subset is tested dry, and the other subset is tested
after 70–80% saturation and accelerated water conditioning with a
freeze–thaw cycle. The load is applied along the diameter of the
specimen, with displacement ratio controlled at 50 mm/min. The
indirect tensile strength ratio (TSR) for the samples before and
after moisture and freeze–thaw conditioning could be calculated
and used to quantify the moisture susceptibility. Thirteen groups
of SMA mixtures with differently replaced proportions as shown
in Table 4 were prepared for IDT strength test.
2.3.2. Hamburg wheel tracking (HWT) test
The rutting and moisture susceptibility of hot mix asphalt
(HMA) can be evaluated by HWT test. In order to mimic the
short-term aging during production and compaction, the loose
mixtures are placed into a forced-draft oven at 135 °C for 4 h after
mixing. According to AASHTO T324 [38], the target air void content
is 7 ± 1% for laboratory-compacted specimens. In this study, the
compacting cylindrical specimens (diameter of 150 mm and thick-
ness of 60 ± 1 mm) were used in the HWT test, which was set
together in high-density polyethylene mold by cutting a small part.
Five types of SMA mixtures as shown in Table 4 with differently
replaced proportions of rubber particles were compacted in the
laboratory for the HWT test: Control group, 16PCR-50, 16PCR-
100, 16UCR-50, and 8PCR-50. Testing samples were submerged
in 50 °C water. The SmarTacker Hamburg Wheel Tracker was used
and the 203.2 mm diameter, 47 mm wide steel wheel with a
705 ± 4.5 N at a speed of 52 passes per minute was applied to
the samples. A linear variable differential transducer (LVDT) was
used to measure the rut depth along the length of the wheel’s path.
When either the rut depth reached 20 mm, or the 20,000 wheel
passes occurred, the HWT test was stopped. The typical curve of
rut depth versus the number of passes is demonstrated in Fig. 4,
which can be divided into three main stages [39]: (1) Post-
compaction stage: usually this stage appears at the first 1000
passes with the visibly increasing of rut depth and the decreasing
of air voids. (2) Creep stage: due to the viscous flow of asphalt mix-
ture, a constant growth rate of the rut depth versus the number of
passes appears in this stage. (3) Stripping stage: in this stage, the
visible damages and degeneration occur between the aggregate
and asphalt binder with the increasing number of passes. The strip-
ping inflection point (SIP) is an index of anti-stripping performance
and usually defined as the intersection of the slopes from creep
stage to stripping stage of the rut depth versus the number of
passes [40]. After SIP, the rut depth grows rapidly. A higher SIP
illustrates a better anti-stripping performance of asphalt mixtures.
2.3.3. Four-point bending beam fatigue test
A long-term performance under repeated traffic load at a spec-
ified temperature is defined as fatigue performance of asphalt mix-
tures. Four-point beam test is used in this study to evaluate the
fatigue performance of asphalt mixtures. The fatigue life and fati-
gue energy could be determined by applying repeated flexural
bending on asphalt mixtures. According to AASHTO T321 [41],
the specimens (length of 380 mm, width of 63 mm and height of
50 mm) were tested under 25 condition [41,42]. Five types of
SMA mixtures as shown in Table 4 with different proportions of
rubber particles were prepared in the laboratory for the beam fati-
gue test: Control group, 16PCR-50, 16PCR-100, 16UCR-50, and
 F. Gong et al. / Construction and Building Materials 214 (2019) 475–483 479

Table 4
Designed testing groups and test methods.

Group names Details Testing methods

IDT strength test HWT test Four-point bending fatigue beam test ESEM Test

Control without rubber

16UCR-25 25% No.16 uncoated rubber
16UCR-50 50% No.16 uncoated rubber
16UCR-100 100% No.16 uncoated rubber
16PCR-25 25% No.16 pre-coated rubber
16PCR-50 50% No.16 pre-coated rubber
16PCR-100 100% No.16 pre-coated rubber
8UCR-25 25% No.8 uncoated rubber
8UCR-50 50% No.8 uncoated rubber
8UCR-100 100% No.8 uncoated rubber
8PCR-25 25% No.8 pre-coated rubber
8PCR-50 50% No.8 pre-coated rubber
8PCR-100 100% No.8 pre-coated rubber

Note: mineral aggregates replaced by different sizes and proportions of UCR and PCR; Each testing group included in three replicates.

3. Results and discussions

3.1. Tensile strength and moisture susceptibility

It has been mentioned the reduction of the indirect tensile

Fig. 4. Analysis of the rut depth curve of HWT test.
8PCR-50. The data is recorded every 10 loading cycles, and the flex-
ural stiffness is obtained as the initial flexural stiffness at the 100th
loading cycle. When the flexural stiffness was reduced to 50% of
the initial value, the data collection was terminated, and then the
loading cycles were regarded as fatigue life of the asphalt mixtures.
2.3.4. Environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM) test
The microstructure of the cement paste layer was also exam-
ined to understand the coating mechanism. The test was con-
ducted with a Philips XL 40 ESEM as shown in Fig. 5 a) under
3.0 nm@30 kV resolution. The ESEM is a type of scanning electron
microscope and generates the micrographs through scanning the
surface with the use of a focused beam of electrons. ESEM can be
optioned with wet, dry or a gaseous environment in the specimen
chamber [43]. Before the ESEM test, as a kind of non-conducting
material, the rubber particles are pre-coated with an ultrathin
coating of electrically conducting material to obtain high-quality
images as shown in Fig. 5b). The surface texture of UCR and PCR,
and the cement hydration products could be observed and ana-
lyzed through ESEM test.
strength of the rubberized asphalt mixture with dry-process can
reach 40% with 3% added rubber aggregate [23]. The significant
decrease in strength has limited the wide application of the dry-
process and the major purpose for this study is to improve the
strength performance of the rubberized asphalt mixture through
the dry process. The obtained indirect tensile strength is shown in
Table 5 for thirteen groups of SMA mixtures as mentioned in Table 4.
The strength loss for the 16PCR-25 and 16PCR-50 samples are only
0.8% and 2.5% respectively, which is much smaller than the reported
results in reference [23]. It can also be observed that the tensile
strength of all the testing groups with pre-coated rubber (PCR) par-
ticles are larger than that of testing groups with as-received
uncoated rubber (UCR) particles under the same replaced propor-
tions. These results indicated the surface coating had enhanced the
bonding performance between rubber aggregate and asphalt binder.
The indirect tensile strength ratio (TSR) values have also been
calculated by comparing the indirect tensile strength before and
after the accelerated water conditioning as indicated in Table 5. It
is clear that all the testing groups with PCR are larger than 1.0, which
indicates that the tensile strength of the conditioned subset with
PCR is larger than that of the dry subset. The increased tensile
strength of the conditioned subset with PCR might be due to the
cement hydration products. It could promote the adhesion of
asphalt improved potentially and the growing bond between the
rubber and asphalt binder. For the moisture susceptibility, under a
certain replaced proportion, the groups of 16PCR and 8PCR have
higher TSR value than that of 16UCR and 8UCRR testing groups. It
also illustrates that the SMA mixtures with PCR have better mois-
ture damage resistance than that of SMA mixtures with UCR parti-
cles due to better asphalt-aggregate interaction. However, using
larger than 50% of No.16 or No.8 rubber particles to replace part of
mineral aggregates resulted in a dramatic decrease of tensile
strength occurred. It might be caused by the change of internal
structure change and poor bonding strength between rubber aggre-
gate and asphalt binder. Hence, both the replacement size and ratio
should be controlled when producing the rubber asphalt mixture.
480 F. Gong et al. / Construction and Building Materials 214 (2019) 475–483

Fig. 5. Overview of ESEM and pre-coated rubber samples. a) Demonstration of the Philips XL 40 ESEM for microscale examination; b) Indication of the pre-coated rubber
samples with a metal conductive layer.

Table 5
Tensile strength and TSR values of dry and conditioned subsets.

Testing Groups Tensile strength (kPa) TSR value

Dry subset Conditioned
C 1211 1282 0.94
16UCR-25 983 993 0.99
16UCR-50 824 909 0.91
16UCR-100 559 784 0.71
16PCR-25 1204 1119 1.08
16PCR-50 1178 1081 1.18
16PCR-100 784 684 1.15
8UCR-25 695 723 0.96
8UCR-50 476 598 0.8
8UCR-100 114 267 0.43
8PCR-25 908 790 1.15
8PCR-50 728 617 1.18
8PCR-100 566 521 1.09

3.2. Rutting resistance and anti-stripping performance

After the IDT strength test, five groups of asphalt mixtures were
selected based on the indirect tensile strength results and further
examined with the Hamburg wheel track (HWT) test. According
to the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) specification,
the value of rut depth should be less than 12.5 mm at 15,000
passes at 50 °C water temperature [44]. All testing groups of SMA
mixtures meet the requirement and the curves of rut depth versus
the number of passes as shown in Fig. 6. It shows that the rut
depths of asphalt mixtures with 16PCR-50 and 16UCR-50 are obvi-
ously smaller than that of 16PCR-100 and 8UCR-50. The rut depth
of SMA mixtures with 16PCR-50 is slightly larger than that of the
Control group. The final rut depths of Control group, 16PCR-50,
16UCR-50, 8PCR-50, and 16PCR-100 were 6.56 mm, 7.00 mm,
7.42 mm, 11.35 mm, and 12.71 mm, respectively.
As previously mentioned, three stages (post-compaction stage,
creep stage and stripping stage) exist in the development process
of rut depth during the HWT test. At the post-compaction stage,
the growth of rut depth for 16PCR-100 and 8PCR-50 are much fas-
ter than that of the other groups as shown in Fig. 6. A larger pro-
portion and size of mineral aggregates were replaced by rubber
particles, that would lead the asphalt mixtures to be compacted
easier resulting from the compressibility of rubber and structure
change of mixture. At the creeping stage, the creep slopes of Con-
trol, 16PCR-50, and 16UCR-50 are significantly smaller than that of
16PCR-100 and 8PCR-50. This is especially true for the asphalt mix-
ture with 16PCR-50 which has a similar development of creep
slope with that of the Control group. Fig. 6 also shows that the
Fig. 6. Rut depth curves versus the number of passes.
creep slopes of asphalt mixtures with 16UCR-50, 8PCR-50,
16PCR-100, and some part of 16PCR-50 are more significant than
that of Control group. It implies that the rutting resistance of
SMA mixtures could be reduced due to the mineral aggregate
replaced by rubber particles. For the rutting resistance of asphalt
mixture with 16PCR-50 and 16UCR-50 are much better than that
of 16PCR-100 and 8PCR-50, particularly 16PCR-50 has higher rut-
ting resistance than that of Control group at varying parts of the
creeping stage. Therefore, the improvement of rutting resistance
under a specified proportion of rubber may be due to the higher
elasticity existing in rubber particles. With continued passes, no
visible SIP occurred in SMA mixtures with 16PCR-50, 16UCR-50
and Control groups. The SIP presented in 8PCR-50 and 16PCR-
100 testing groups are at 14,739 and 16,183 passes, respectively.
It indicates that 16PCR-50, 16UCR-50 and Control testing groups
have better anti-stripping performance than that of 8PCR-50 and
16PCR-100. It could also be found that the SMA mixture with
16PCR-50 rubber particles has satisfied rutting resistance and
anti-stripping resistance with a comprehensive assessment of rut
depth, creep slope and SIP as well as the Control group.
3.3. Fatigue resistance performance
For the fatigue resistance performance of asphalt mixture, two
methods could be used to evaluate the fatigue life: (1) Record
 F. Gong et al. / Construction and Building Materials 214 (2019) 475–483
the load cycle when the flexural stiffness is reduced to 50% of its
initial stiffness. (2) Use the normalized modulus to estimate the
fatigue life [45]. In this study, the first method is used to obtain
and analyze the fatigue life of five testing groups. Testing samples
experienced a repeated-constant level sinusoidal four-point bend-
ing loading (maximum peak to peak micro-strain = 100 m/m) at a
10 Hz frequency, and the test results are shown in Fig. 7. The aver-
age fatigue lives of Control, 16PCR-50, 16PCR-100, 16UCR-50, and
8PCR-50 testing groups were 4210, 6019, 7734, 4745, and 5640,
respectively. The 16PCR-100 has the highest fatigue cracking resis-
tance followed by 16PCR-50, 8PCR-50, 16UCR-50, and the Control
group. It shows that the fatigue lives of all the testing groups with
rubber particles (PCR and UCR) are longer than that of the Control
group. It indicates that the rubber particles have an active influ-
ence on increasing the fatigue performance resulting from the
compressibility and elasticity. Furtherly, all testing groups with
PCR (16PCR-50, 16PCR-100, and 8PCR-50) have longer fatigue lives
than that of testing groups with UCR (16UCR-50) and those with-
Fig. 7. Fatigue life of testing groups.
Fig. 8. ESEM image of uncoated rubber (UCR) and pre-coated rubber (PCR) particles.
481
out rubber particles (Control). It also illustrates that the SMA mix-
tures with PCR have better fatigue cracking resistance than that of
SMA mixtures with UCR. The reason may be that the cement
hydration products promote the improvement of fatigue cracking
resistance of SMA mixtures. Some previous studies have reported
that the PCR in concrete can present a higher fatigue life with
the increasing cement content [46]. Generally, a lower initial flex-
ural stiffness corresponds to a better fatigue performance [14]. The
results of initial flexural stiffness for five testing groups from high
to low are Control, 16UCR-50, 8PCR-50, 16PCR-50, and 16PCR-100
testing groups.
3.4. Microstructure analysis
The microscale analysis was conducted to examine the mecha-
nism of the enhanced moisture resistance for the samples with
pre-coated rubber (PCR) aggregate. As mentioned in Section 2.2,
the moisture content of the cement paste layer will be removed
through the oven dry at 110 °C. It can be assumed most cement
particles on the rubber aggregate surface will remain unhydrated
after the designed treatment. These unhydrated cement particle
can get hydrated when contacting the moisture during the water
conditioning mentioned in Section 2.3.1.
Fig. 8 shows the surface morphology of the as received and pre-
coated rubber aggregate scanned by ESEM. Particularly, the pre-
coated rubber aggregate (PCR) before and after the water condi-
tioning test was both examined. And the PCR after the water con-
ditioning test was directly obtained from the crack surface of the
specimen, which has been washed with asphalt solvent to remove
the surrounding asphalt binder. For the uncoated rubber particle, it
can be found that the rubber particle has spongy morphology with
abundant internal porosity [47], which might lead to extra asphalt
binder consumption and stronger bonding between rubber parti-
cles and cement. For the PCR before the water conditioning, it
can be observed that the rubber surface is evenly covered by
cement particles after the coating process. For the PCR after the
482 F. Gong et al. / Construction and Building Materials 214 (2019) 475–483

water conditioning, it can be observed the space between cement
particles has been filled with hydration product. The hydration
can further enhance the contacting area between the asphalt bin-
der and pre-coated aggregate, which can then improve the bonding
performance and could be the primary factor causing tensile
strength to increase after a freeze-thaw cycle.
3.5. Discussion on the performance evaluation results
The test results indicated the dry-mixed rubberized asphalt
mixture using gap-gradation can achieve appropriate both
strength (Indirect tensile strength) and durability performance
(Resistance to moisture damage, freeze-thaw cycles, and fatigue).
The enhanced strength can possibly be generated by the improved
bonding between the rubber aggregate and asphalt binder through
the cement coating. The cement cell of the pre-coated rubber
aggregate has the similar chemical composition compared to the
normal mineral aggregate [48]. Hence, the bonding strength
between the pre-coated rubber and asphalt binder can be similar
to that between conventional aggregate and asphalt binder.
The primary hydration product of the cement paste is Calcium
silicate hydrate (CSH) gel, and the interlayer pore size of CSH gel
is around 0.5 nm [49]. It has been supported by the ESEM scanning
results that the hydration product can lead to a denser coating
layer. It has been reported the molecular size of the asphalt is
around 1–2 nm [50]. Hence the large asphaltene molecular cannot
transport through the CSH gel. This will guarantee the barrier
effect of the coated cement on the asphalt. Furthermore, the possi-
ble leaching of the heavy metals [51] or the volatile organic [52]
from the scrap tire will also be prohibited.
Under the wet process, high temperature (Around 170 °C [30])
and long mixing time (Around 45 min [30]) are both needed to
achieve evenly mixed rubber modified asphalt. It has been
reported the rubber aggregate under the high-temperature condi-
tion (wet process) can possibly lead to hazardous emission [53],
which can lead to serious environmental concern. In this study,
the rubber aggregate has been covered by the cement paste, and
the interaction between liquid asphalt and rubber will then be lim-
ited. Furthermore, the interaction time between rubber and
asphalt will also be limited. Also, the dry process can reduce the
energy consumed for pre-processing asphalt binder.
Based on the analysis above, it can be concluded that the dry
process using pre-coated rubber aggregate and gap-gradation can
lead to an asphalt mixture with appropriate mechanical strength
and durability performance. Furthermore, the built protocol in this
study can lead to a cleaner and greener construction materials
compared the mixture prepared using the energy consuming wet
process.
4. Summary and conclusions
In order to explore the potential utilization of pre-coated rubber
aggregate in place of mineral aggregate in SMA mixtures, the fol-
lowing steps were taken: the as-received uncoated rubber aggre-
gate (UCR) was pre-coated with a Portland Type Ⅰ cement paste
layer. Then a specially designed gradation system was used to pre-
pare the SMA mixtures with both uncoated rubber aggregate and
pre-coated rubber aggregate. Finally, the performances of tensile
strength, moisture resistance, anti-stripping resistance, fatigue
cracking resistance, and the bonding between rubber particles
and asphalt binder were analyzed according to the experimental
results of IDT strength, HWT, four-point bending fatigue beam,
and ESEM tests. According to the testing results and discussions
presented in this study, the following main conclusions can be
drawn:
(1) The pre-coating with a cement paste layer could signifi-
cantly reduce the strength loss of the rubberized asphalt
mixture through the dry process. The strength loss for the
samples with 25% and 50% replaced No. 16 pre-coated rub-
ber aggregate were 0.8% and 2.5% respectively compared to
the control samples with only normal mineral aggregate.
(2) The tensile strength obviously for the SMA mixtures with
pre-coated rubber aggregate could obviously increase after
freeze-thaw cycles. The calculated indirect tensile strength
ratio indicated the added pre-coated rubber aggregate can
enhance the resistance to both moisture damage and
freeze-thaw cycles. The ESEM scanning results indicated
the improved resistance could be due to the further cement
hydration during the water-conditioning and freeze-thaw
cycles.
(3) For the fatigue resistance performance, the SMA mixtures
with pre-coated rubber aggregate had better fatigue crack-
ing resistance than that of mixtures with untreated rubber
aggregate. Under the same replaced proportion, the smaller
size of rubber particle it had, the better fatigue resistance
performance was presented. Under the same replaced size,
the higher replaced proportion of rubber particles it had,
the better fatigue resistance performance it appeared.
(4) According to comprehensive testing results, the 50% propor-
tion (by volume) of No.16 pre-coated rubber aggregate was
recommended to replace mineral aggregate in SMA mixtures
with satisfied performances of moisture resistance, anti-
stripping resistance, fatigue cracking resistance and bonding
between rubber particle and asphalt binder.
Evidently, the tensile strength and the rutting resistance of SMA
mixture would slightly decrease when a part of the mineral aggre-
gates was replaced by rubber particles. Therefore, further studies
will be conducted to analyze how to avoid the decreasing tensile
strength and rutting resistance of SMA mixture with better perfor-
mances in the on-going work. This study can possibly lead to a
cleaner and greener construction materials for the pavement
construction.
Conflict of interest
None.
Acknowledgements
This material is based in part upon work supported by the
National Science Foundation of the United States of America under
Grant CMMI 1300286. This material is also supported by the Fun-
damental Research Foundation of the Central Universities, Grant
Numbers: 310821162011 and 310821175003. Fangyuan Gong is
supported by the China Scholarship Council under No.
201606560004 and Michigan Technological University. Shuai-
cheng Guo acknowledges the financial support from the China
Scholarship Council under No. 201406370141 and the Doctoral
Finishing Fellowship from the Graduate School of Michigan Tech-
nological University. Tests were conducted with the lab assistants
Isaac Pantti and Brock Rudlaff. Any opinion, finding, and conclu-
sions or recommendations expressed in this paper are those of
the authors and do not necessarily represent the view of any
organization.
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