Compaction and volumetric analysis of cold in-place recycled asphalt mixtures prepared using gyratory, static, and impact procedures

Compaction is one of the most important factors to be considered while manufacturing laboratory samples of cold in-place recycled (CIR) mixtures. In this study, the effect of three laboratory compaction procedures (static, gyratory, and impact) on the volumetric performance of CIR mixtures was investigated. CIR specimens were manufactured with the same proportion of added water and bitumen emulsion, and using several levels of compaction, varying the number of gyrations and blows. The volumetric properties were evaluated by different procedures, both before and after curing. A comparison between the laboratory results of the different tests, the design target values, and actual in-field values was performed. It was observed that gyratory compaction proved to be the most versatile and one that best represented the real compaction. The bulk density procedure by dimensions was useful for laboratory design; however, it overestimated the sizes of the air void content by more than 10% compared to the field values.