Simple Performance Tester for Superpave Mix Design: First-Article Development and Evaluation

This report presents the findings of a research project to develop a practical, economical simple performance tester for use in routine Superpave mix design and possibly in the characterization of hot mix asphalt (HMA) materials for pavement structural design. In the phase of the work reported here, first-article simple performance testers (SPTs) procured from two different manufacturers were evaluated, and both units were found to meet the requirements of the performance-based purchase specification. Based on these results, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is coordinating a pooled-fund purchase of production units for evaluation by the state highway agencies. Four of these units will be immediately purchased in the next phase of this project for use by state highway agencies and FHWA to test the ruggedness of candidate simple performance tests. Thus, the report will be of particular interest to materials engineers in state highway agencies, as well as to materials suppliers and paving contractor personnel responsible for design and production of hot mix asphalt and the specification and purchase of laboratory test equipment.