MODIFICATION OF BITUMENS WITH PLASTIC AND RUBBER WASTE

In this paper, the use of rubber-polymer composites ELTC (End of Life Tire Compound) for modification of BND 70/100 bitumen was investigated. ELTC contains not only devulcanized rubber from used automobile tires, but also used plastics (polymers), such as polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP). ELTC was obtained by applying the method of rubber devulcanization using a selective catalyst, which allows selective decomposition of sulfide bonds at relatively low temperatures, while preserving most of the macromolecular chains. The characteristics of the asphalt binder were improved after modification by ELTC. After modification, the base asphalt binder became more uniform, and the thermal stability of the base asphalt binder increased. ELTC is uniformly distributed, the compatibility between the components of the modified asphalt binder is good, which proves the homogeneity of the modified asphalt binders. The results show that all ELTC formulations improve their softening point and increase their resistance to plastic deformation in summer. The results of the needle penetration test at 25°C show that the addition of modifiers reduces the penetration value. This means that at this test temperature, the modified bitumen becomes harder compared to the unmodified bitumen.