Webinar: Replacing Asphalt Binder with Waste Agricultural Residue Component
Wednesday, April 16th, 2025
2:00 P.M. - 3:15 P.M. (CT)
ABSTRACT
The pavement industry is looking for viable alternatives to totally or partially replace costly asphalt binder. Utilizing lignin as a partial replacement for binder presents an attractive and environmentally conscious solution as it is abundant in nature. In this present study, the feasibility of using lignin derived from local agricultural waste, namely rice husks, as a partial replacement of asphalt binder was investigated. The effect of the addition of lignin on the properties and performances of asphalt binder and asphalt mixes were explored. The modification of asphalt binder with lignin exhibited an increase in the rutting resistance in comparison to the neat binder. The low-temperature properties of the asphalt binder were slightly impacted by the addition of lignin. The stability of the binder was found to be significantly enhanced by reducing the lignin particle size along with styrene Butadiene Styrene (SBS) modification. Satisfactory moisture-induced damage resistance was observed in asphalt mixes with lignin-modified binders. The indirect tensile strengths and failure energies of asphalt mixes were observed to increase with an increase in lignin content.
BIOS
Dr. Joan Lynam
George and Jean Baldwin Professor
Program Chair
Louisiana Tech University
Department of Chemical Engineering
Dr. Joan Lynam, the program chair for Chemical Engineering at Louisiana Tech University and the George and Jean Baldwin Professor, will describe her methods for converting waste biomass from food processing into products. She and her Biomass Team have worked with mayhaw jelly wastes, hibiscus wastes, rice husks, sugarcane bagasse, and coffee silverskins. Using hydrothermal carbonization and deep eutectic solvents, these wastes can be converted lignin-rich materials for use in cement and asphalt. Other creative solutions are being investigated or have been found for these secondary agricultural residues that are already transported to processing centers.
Dr. Syed Ashik Ali
Research Assistant Professor
University of Oklahoma
Department of Civil and
Environmental Engineering
Dr. Syed Ashik Ali is a Research Assistant Professor in Civil Engineering at the University of Oklahoma. He received his Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Civil Engineering from the University of Oklahoma, Norman in 2021 and 2016, respectively. Also, he served as a Postdoctoral Research Associate at OU for three years. Dr. Ali has led a number of externally funded projects as PI and Co-PI. His research projects have been instrumental in enhancing mechanistic understanding of performance and distresses of asphalt pavements as well as developing guidelines and specifications for Oklahoma Department of Transportation. Also, he has disseminated his research findings through publishing in peer-reviewed journals and presenting at different national and international conferences. He has received several prestigious awards including the University Gold Medal for the highest GPA in his civil engineering (B.S.) program. He was named a Dolese Fellow during his Ph.D. study
