The Conversation: Recycling Asphalt Pavement Can Help the Environment − Now Scientists Are Putting the Safety of Recycled Pavement to the Test
More than 90% of paved roads in the U.S. are made of asphalt, which is constructed with nonrenewable materials such as petroleum. One way to make paving more sustainable is to recycle old pavement. When roads break down and need repaving, transportation agencies can recycle their old pavement into a reusable material called reclaimed asphalt pavement, or RAP. This method reduces carbon emissions and conserves natural resources.
Nearly 95% of new asphalt pavement projects in the U.S. incorporate RAP.
However, researchers don’t know as much about the long-term safety and durability of RAP as they do about new pavement.
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and CTR Affiliated Faculty member Baoshan Huang and graduate student Jongtao Zhong are working with the Tennessee Department of Transportation to see if engineers can make roads more sustainable without compromising safety. Read more about their research at The Conversation.