Investigations described in this doctoral thesis concern material behaviour related to
asphalt recycling. More in detail, the thesis describes development and application of methods for characterisation of the rejuvenation process, in which old and new binders are mixed. The thesis also includes a state-of-the-art report on asphalt recycling focusing on material-related aspects. As the rejuvenation process involves diffusion of bituminous binders, a method for measuring rate of diffusion based on FTIR-ATR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy by Attenuated Total Reflectance) was developed. The method was employed for studying influence of parameters such as temperature, size and shape of the diffusing molecules as well as the viscosity of the medium in which the diffusion takes place. Well-defined substances, referred to as markers, were used in some of these investigations. By aid of the FTIR-ATR method, influence of degree of binder ageing on the rate of diffusion was analysed. Diffusion in bituminous binders was also characterised by rheological measurements. Finally, knowledge on structural stability of recycled binders was obtained by solubility studies using turbidimetric titrations and three different titrants showing widely different solubility parameters (iso-octane, iso- octanol and methyl-ethyl-ketone). The literature review shows that there are numerous publications related to asphalt recycling, but few investigations can be characterised as fundamental, which illustrates the complexity of the research area. The results presented show, among other things, that the influence of degree of ageing is in principle negligible. A possible explanation for this behaviour could be that diffusion takes place in the maltene phase, which is relatively unaffected by ageing. The change in recorded rheological parameters correlated fairly well with the rates of diffusion observed using FTIR-ATR, which indicates that chemical diffusion is accompanied by changes in binder stiffness. Nothing in the results presented regarding structural stability of mixtures of old and new binder suggests that binder stability should be a limiting factor in asphalt recycling, on condition that the old and new binder are compatible. The doctoral thesis is based on the following papers, which will be referred to by their Roman numerals: I. Karlsson R., Isacsson U. Material-Related Aspects of Asphalt Recycling State-of-the-art Submitted for publication in ASCE J of Transportation Eng. II. Karlsson R., Isacsson U. Application of FTIR-ATR to Characterisation of Bitumen Rejuvenator Diffusion Accepted for publ. in ASCE J of Materials in Civil Eng. III. Karlsson R., Isacsson U. Bitumen Rejuvenator Diffusion as Influenced by Ageing Intl J of Road Materials and Pavement Design. 3(2) 2002 IV. Karlsson R., Isacsson U. Laboratory studies of diffusion in bitumen using markers Submitted for publication in J of Materials Science. V. Karlsson R., Isacsson U., Ekblad J. Rheological Characterisation of Bitumen Diffusion Submitted for publication in J of Rheology. VI. Karlsson R., Isacsson U. Bitumen Structural Stability Characterisation using Turbidimetric Titration Submitted for publication in Energy and Fuels.