Preliminary investigations of epoxy bitumen for resilient and sustainable chipseal (sprayed seal) road surfaces

A laboratory study into possible benefits of epoxy bitumen in chipseals has suggested several that may result in reduced on-going costs due to improved performance of the chipseal. Using epoxy bitumen as the binder in a chipseal produces strong chip-binder adhesion (bond) that is resistant to water infiltration and may reduce the incidence of chip stripping. The epoxy bitumen binder layer has significant integral strength producing self-support, which may allow the thin chipseal layer to resist chip embedment. The epoxy bitumen layer has high internal cohesion which may resist bitumen pick-up and tracking and will ultimately resist chipseal flushing. This project sought to determine if epoxy bitumen can be used to effectively construct long-life, high-grip chipseal surfaces that are resistant to flushing, chip stripping and embedment.