Effect of polymer modifiers on the properties of bitumen

Abstract

This article presents an investigation about the polymer-modified bitumens (PMBs) containing styrene–butadiene–styrene (SBS) block copolymers with different structures, linear (SBS-L) and radial (SBS-R), semicrystalline copolymer ethylene–vinyl acetate (EVA), and terpolymer ethylene–butyl acrylate–glycidyl methacrylate, Elvaloy AM and Elvaloy 4170. The aim of the study was to establish the influence of the polymer type and content on the properties of PMBs for engineering applications and to evaluate the effectiveness of polymer modifiers. The results indicated that the polymer modification improved the rheological properties of bitumen, increased critical temperature, that is better resistance to permanent deformation was achieved as well as a wider temperature range in service. The degree of improvement generally increased with the polymer content but varied with the polymer type.