Material Property Testing of Asphalt Binders Related to Thermal Cracking in a Comparative Site Pavement Performance Study

Chromatographic fractions of asphalt binders, where some of the binder materials were obtained during the construction of a comparative performance field site constructed in Rochester, Minnesota, USA, where transverse (thermal) crack survey data had been obtained annually since construction were investigated in terms of compositional properties, specifically average molecular size of the wax-oil fraction. This compositional property measured or previously reported for eight SHRP asphalts was subsequently compared to binder dilatometric properties previously reported for the same materials. This compositional property was also compared to transverse (thermal) crack survey data for four binders. Results from these investigations suggested that binders of high wax content where the wax is of a comparatively higher average molecular size may lead to more extensive thermal cracking.