LABORATOTY INVESTIGATIONS OF STONE MATRIX ASPHALT BY USING NATURAL FIBRES

Road network is important to the economic development, social integration and trade of a country. Inadequate transportation facilities could have an effect on socio-economic and cultural development of a country. In India, increase in the volume of traffic and significant loading conditions requires a huge development for better, durable, and more effective roads that prevents or reduces the distress of bituminous asphalt. In Indian highways, the wearing coat is laid by dense graded bituminous mixtures; hence the major distress is due to moisture induced damages. The SMA mixture is used to restrain the distresses and provide better durability in the bituminous pavements. In this study, it is proposed that the effect of various natural fibres on the behaviour of the SMA mixes as stabilizing additives. Natural fibres for instance coir, sisal and banana are applied as stabilizing to determine Marshall test and indirect tensile test to evaluate properties if the asphalt mix. The percentage of fibres added in the present work is 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%, and 0.4% by the weight of the mix. The test results illustrates that, the optimum fibre content of the mix is 0.3% by the weight of mix for all the fibre mixes irrespective of type of the mix. Among all the fibres, coir fiber shows better results where as sisal and banana fibers show same properties on stabilization.