Rheological Characterization of Asphalt Concrete Using a Shear Box

Abstract Pavement deformation in bituminous layers is mainly caused by shear deformations. There is a need for a practical shear test for routine use, which can be used to evaluate the shear properties of bituminous materials. Shear properties are related to pavement performance and needed in viscoelastic pavement evaluation models. The main objective of this work is to determine the rheological properties of asphalt concrete materials for use in viscoelastic models and performance evaluation of bituminous pavement layers. This paper describes an asphalt concrete shear box test for determining the shear modulus and phase angle of asphalt mixtures and estimating their viscosity. The sensitivity of the test method was determined by testing cylindrical asphalt concrete specimens of varying mix composition. A procedure is presented for rheological characterization of asphalt concrete materials for use as a performance indicator. It is also concluded that the asphalt concrete shear box is reliable for measuring the shear modulus, phase angle and viscosity of asphalt concrete at different temperatures and frequencies for use in evaluating pavement models and discriminating between asphalt mixes.