Investigation on the Performances of Esterified Waste Cooking Oil Rejuvenator and Recycled Asphalt

Waste cooking oil (WCO) recycled asphalt is facing issues regarding insufficient thermal oxidation stability and aging resistance. In this research, glycerol esterification was adopted to pretreat WCO, and the consequences of this treatment on the aging resistance and thermal stability of WCO were analyzed. The impacts of varying levels of esterification of WCO on the high-temperature, low-temperature performances, fatigue properties, and aging resistance of recycled asphalt were investigated. Furthermore, the mechanisms of regeneration and the anti-aging of deeply esterified WCO recycled asphalt were revealed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and gel permeation chromatography (GPC) tests. The results indicated that variations in the physical properties of WCO during the aging process were reduced, and its aging resistance was improved following glycerol esterification therapy. The initial thermal decomposition temperature was increased by approximately 115 °C, which resulted in the enhancement of thermal stability significantly. Recycled asphalt obtained from deeply esterified WCO exhibited superior high-temperature, low-temperature performances, and fatigue properties. Moreover, the thermal oxidation stability and aging resistance of recycled asphalt with deep-esterified WCO could be promoted by reducing the oxidation and volatilization of light components during the aging process, with the complex modulus ageing resistance index decreasing by 13.27% and the phase angle ageing resistance index increasing by 14.71%.