Effect of Water on the Strength of Bituminous Mixes with Waste Concrete Aggregates

Highly porous cement mortar attached onto Waste Concrete Aggregates (WCA) contributes to the variation in the quality of the WCA. Dense bituminous mix using WCA as coarse aggregate is a feasible option from the standpoint of stability and stiffness. The durability of compacted bituminous mix can be reduced by the loss of adhesive bonds resulting from the action of water, called stripping. This paper presents some of the results of an investigation on the effect of water on the strength of bituminous mixes with WCA. The research program concentrated on the test of unconfined compressive strength and indirect tensile strength of compacted bituminous mixes as per AASHTO T165-86 and T283-89 respectively. It was found that the bituminous mixes with WCA were more moisture susceptible. However, some of these experimental values were within the acceptable recommended limits for the bituminous mixes with WCA sample used in this study.