Construction and Building Materials 139 (2017) 384–393

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Construction and Building Materials

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Evaluating the fatigue properties of hot mix asphalt reinforced by

recycled PET fibers using 4-point bending test
Zohreh Dehghan, Amir Modarres ⇑
Babol Noshirvani University of Technology, Babol, Iran

h i g h l i g h t s

Fatigue response of HMA containing recycled PET fiber was investigated.

PET fiber compared with crumb PET which widely used in HMA.

Based on microscopic analysis the fiber content was 2% by weight of bitumen.

Both PET fiber and crumb PET resulted in lower stiffness than control HMA.

PET fiber increased the fatigue life of HMA up to 70%.

2 cm long PET fiber was more effective than 1 cm fiber.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: This research evaluates the effect of recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fibers on the fatigue prop-
Received 30 July 2016 erties of hot asphalt mix. Based on micro-structural analysis, fiber contents were taken into account as
Received in revised form 25 January 2017 equal to 0.0 (i.e. reference mix), 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0% by weight of bitumen. Fibers used with two lengths
Accepted 16 February 2017
of 1 and 2 cm and an average diameter of 30 mm. For comparison, crumb PET with the particle size of
0.425–1.180 mm was used at the rate of 1 and 2% by weight of bitumen. Slab-shaped specimens were
compacted by laboratory roller compactor to achieve 4 ± 0.2% air void. After that, the specimens were
Keywords:
removed from the mold and sawed to obtain beam-shaped specimens. 4-Point bending test was per-
Recycled PET
PET fiber
formed to evaluate the fatigue response of the modified and unmodified specimens considering
Fatigue behavior EN12697-24 standard. The fatigue tests were performed at 20 °C and initial strain levels of 300, 500
Flexural stiffness and 700 microstrain using universal testing machine (UTM-14). Based on the obtained results, the flex-
ural stiffness of mixes containing both additives was lower than the reference mix. The reduction in the
flexural stiffness continued as the fiber and crumb PET content increased. The fatigue life of fiber rein-
forced mixes was higher than the reference one. At initial strain of 300 microstrain, the most increase
in the fatigue lives of fiber reinforced mixes containing 1 and 2 cm fibers were equal to 149 and 177%
of the reference mix, respectively. Also, at 700 microstrain the fatigue lives of aforementioned mixes were
138 and 163% of the reference mix, respectively. Likewise, the most increases in the fatigue lives of mod-
ified specimens with 1 and 2% crumb PET were 148 and 163% of the reference one, respectively. Based on
the obtained results and performed analyses, the optimum fiber and crumb PET contents were 1 and 2%
by weight of bitumen, respectively.
Ó 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction Numerous factors could affect the fatigue resistance of asphalt

mixes. Some of these factors include asphalt mix design specifica-
Fatigue cracking is considered as one of the main structural tions, climatic conditions and traffic. Modification and improve-
distresses in asphalt pavements. Controlling and restricting these ment of behavioral characteristics of asphalt have always been
cracks during the pavement service life is a big challenge for attended by several researchers [1–3].
pavement experts and engineers. The main effort in the majority of studies was focused on using
additives to increase the bitumen flexibility and tensile strength of
⇑ Corresponding author. asphalt [3–5]. Reinforcing asphalt with fiber is one of useful ways
E-mail addresses: a.modarres@nit.ac.ir, amirmodarres2003@yahoo.com utilized to improve the asphalt resistance against the detrimental
(A. Modarres). effects of repeated traffic loadings.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.02.082
0950-0618/Ó 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
 Z. Dehghan, A. Modarres / Construction and Building Materials 139 (2017) 384–393 385

Asphalt reinforcing fibers have been usually used in two differ- adding binder to aggregates or mix of aggregate and bitumen after
ent forms. In the first form fibers are used as a network having a adding binder to aggregate blend. On the contrary, during the wet
regular form. This form of reinforcement is a component of a big process at first the additive is mixed with bitumen and the pro-
group of geosynthetics that have multiple applications in civil duced modified bitumen is added to aggregates. In most cases,
engineering projects [1]. The second form includes the single dry procedure was followed and PET was added to asphalt mixture
strand of fibers randomly distributed throughout the mixture [1,2]. as a part of the solid materials. This has been attributed to a higher
Due to several effective parameters including fiber dimension melting point of this material than other polymer additives. Due to
(i.e. diameter and length), fiber appearance and so on, the second high melting point, it is not possible to achieve a homogenous mix
form, i.e. randomly distribution of fibers in the mixture, is less- while adding this additive in a wet process into the bitumen. As
known than the first one from the aspects of reinforcement mech- mentioned in different research reports, the melting point of PET
anism and optimizing fiber properties [4]. is usually between 250 and 300 °C. Since the bitumen temperature
So far, various types of fibers have been used as reinforcing ele- during the mixing time is considerably less than these values, it is
ments in asphalt mixes. However in a general classification, these not usually possible to achieve a uniform distribution of PET using
fibers could be divided into natural and synthetic fibers. The the wet process [22,24]. As indicated in literature, the use of crumb
important features of fibers that can affect the final result include PET in asphalt mixes could improve the mechanical properties of
their chemical, physical and mechanical properties. Specifically asphalt. The obtained results from many researches showed that
some features such as the fiber type, the rate of its reactivity or adding this material increases resistance to permanent deforma-
impressibility from asphalt or aggregate at high mixing and com- tion and rutting [25,26]. Also the previous results showed that add-
paction temperatures, fiber dimensions and fiber content could ing this material to asphalt decrease tensile strength, stiffness
be mentioned. Apart from the aforementioned features the uni- modulus and increase flexibility and fatigue resistance [22,23].
form distribution of fibers throughout the asphalt mixture is one Apart from the aforementioned studies that have been per-
of the most important parameters affecting the final quality [4,5]. formed on crumb PET, very few studies were conducted about
Thereupon, some fibers are used to reinforce asphalt and others the use of PET fibers in HMAs. This study was performed to inves-
have more impact on physical and chemical properties of bitumen. tigate the effect of PET fibers on fatigue response of HMA. To
So far, great deal of researches have been performed associated achieve this purpose, the effect of different parameters such as
with the use of fibers as reinforcement elements in asphalt mixes. fiber length, fiber content, and strain level were studied. Further-
Mineral fibers are the most natural fibers that have been used in more, the effect of PET fiber was compared with crumb PET.
asphalt reinforcement [6,7]. Because of their high sensitivity to
rupture and long term durability, the use of unmodified herbal
2. Research methodology
and animal fibers in asphalt has not been given much attention
[8–10].
In order to evaluate the impact of PET fibers on fatigue resis-
In contrast, synthetic fibers are given more attention by
tance of HMA, four different fiber values with two lengths were
researchers because of their suitable tensile strength and durabil-
added to asphalt mix containing optimized bitumen content.
ity. Some of synthetic fibers that have been used in reinforcing
The main laboratory test that was performed in this research
asphalt, include polypropylene, polyester, asbestos, cellulose, car-
was 4-point bending test which was accomplished to evaluate
bon, glass and nylon fibers [11–15].
the fatigue response of modified and unmodified mixes.
The beneficial effects of aforementioned fibers on different
Initially, slab-shaped specimens were made by laboratory roller
technical properties of hot mix asphalt (HMA) such as stability,
rutting resistance and especially fatigue behavior have been compactor. Afterward, prepared slabs were cut using special saw to
achieve beam-shaped specimens. Finally, prepared specimens
approved in several research studies [12–19].
The economic justification of using these fibers in road con- were tested using UTM-14 equipment. Further details about the
study and the test methods have been presented in the followings.
struction projects is one of the main challenges encountered,
regardless of the beneficial effects of them on the technical proper-
ties of HMAs. 2.1. Materials and mix design
In recent years, the use of waste materials as second-hand
materials has been highly taken into consideration. In addition to 60/70 pen grade bitumen which was provided from Tehran oil
being inexpensive and economical, the environmental benefits of refinery was used to prepare HMA mixes. The basic properties of
using such materials will encourage the engineers to use them in studied bitumen are presented in Table 1. In this research granite
engineering structures such as road pavements. Many developed aggregates were used to prepare HMA mixes. The aggregates were
and developing countries have to deal with the problems associ- prepared from material processing depot of an asphalt production
ated with waste materials. In recent decades, plastic have become plant. According to Table 2 designed HMA had a continuous
the most common material which the modern life is unthinkable 0–19 mm aggregate gradation. Other physical characteristics of
without it. Unfortunately, what makes it so useful, such as its dura- aggregates have been presented in Table 3.
bility, light weight and low cost, also makes it problematic when it
comes to end of its life phase. These wastes, which are from the
Table 1
family of polyethylene polymer, are composed of polyethylene
Basic properties of original bitumen.
terephthalate or PET.
PET is a thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and Property(unit) Standard Specification Value
is widely used in the production of plastic bottles. In recent years, Specific gravity ASTM D70 – 1.01
several studies have been performed regarding the use of PET in Penetration (0.1 mm) ASTM D5 60–70 63
HMAs [20,21]. Most of these studies have incorporated this recy- Softening point (°C) ASTM D36 49–56 52
Ductility (cm) ASTM D113 Min. 100 >100
cled material in form of crumb PET with specified gradation in Flash point (°C) ASTM D92 Min. 232 284
HMA [22,23]. Mass loss (%) ASTM D6 Max. 0.8 0.1
Fibers are usually added into the asphalt mixture or bitumen Penetration ratio ASTM D1754 Min. 54 72
which are known as dry and wet process, respectively. In the dry Viscosity at 135 °C (cSt) ASTM D2170 – 263
Penetration Index – – 0.4
process, the additive can be added to mix of aggregate blend before
386 Z. Dehghan, A. Modarres / Construction and Building Materials 139 (2017) 384–393
PET fibers were produced from waste plastic bottles with melt-
ing point of 290 °C and specific gravity of 1.35 gr/cm3. Their tensile
strength and fracture strain were 910 MPa and 20%, respectively.
Also, the Young’s modulus of studied fibers equaled to 10.2 GPa.
Fig. 1 shows images of studied PET fibers (Fig. 1a) compared to
crumb PET (Fig. 1b). Fig. 2 shows the scanning electron microscope
(SEM) micrographs of PET fibers with the magnification level of
5000 (left micrograph) and 170 (right micrograph). As it can be
seen in the left micrograph, the average diameter of PET fibers
was equal to 30 ± 2 lm. Because PET fibers were customized in
the factory they had a round cross section with smooth surface tex-
ture and the surface area of 0.35 m2/g. Based on these specifica-
tions it could be inferred that the reinforcement effect of studied
PET fibers would be more pronounced that their stabilizing effect,
since bitumen stabilization needs high surface area. However,
compared to literature studied fibers had higher surface area than
other synthetic fibers such as carbon fibers [27]. After several trial
and errors, PET fibers were used with two lengths of 1 and 2 cm.
Also, these fibers were incorporated into HMAs with four different
contents of 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0% by weight of bitumen. The fiber
length and contents were selected based on literature [11], labora-
tory observations and micro-structural analysis performed in this
study. During the laboratory observations parameters such as
fibers agglomeration and their rupture during mixing with aggre-
gates were considered for selecting fiber content and fiber length,
respectively. Apart from the laboratory trial and errors the fiber
content was controlled by micro-structural analysis. In order to
evaluate the micro-structure of fiber reinforced HMAs, tinny sam-
ples of these mixes were prepared and analyzed by inverted met-
allurgical microscope (IMM). Fig. 3, shows the IMM images of HMA
samples containing 0.5 (Fig. 3a) and 1% (Fig. 3b) PET fiber. Uniform
distribution of fibers is a key parameter for achieving higher rein-
forcement efficiencies. As it can be seen in Fig. 3a, fibers were uni-
formly distributed but they were far from each other and could
hardly posse bridging and reinforcing effect in HMA containing
0.5% fiber. In such cases fibers have weak stabilizing effect as well.
For sample with 1% fiber (Fig. 3b), fibers constitute strong network
with good reinforcing effect. Fibers have proper distance and no
agglomeration was detected. Figs. 4a and b, show the IMM images
of HMAs containing 2 and 4% PET fiber, respectively. According to
Fig. 4-a, a more compacted network was established by fibers with
lightly agglomerated zones. Still appropriate reinforcement will
achieve at this fiber content but as mentioned in literature the
agglomeration zones have considerable effect on fiber reinforce-
ment efficiency and specially the HMA stiffness and its rutting
resistance [4,6,11]. At higher fiber contents several agglomeration
zones were detected in IMM image (Fig. 4b). Therefore, considering
the technical and economic aspects the maximum PET fiber con-
tent was restricted to 2% by weight of bitumen.
For a better comparison crumb PET which its beneficial effect
on HMA fatigue behavior has been approved in previous studies
[22–26] was also used as a modified additive. Fig. 1b shows an
image of studied crumb PET. This additive had a uniform grada-
tion with the particle size ranging from 0.425 to 1.18 mm. Based
on the previous studies, the optimum content of crumb PET was
equal to about 2% by weight of bitumen [23]. Therefore, in order
to compare with PET fiber two different crumb PET contents
including 1 and 2% by weight of bitumen were considered in this
research.
Table 2
Aggregate gradation used to prepare studied HMAs.
Sieve size (mm) 19.0 12.5
Finer (%) 100 95
Specification 100 90–100
In order to determine the optimum bitumen content, Marshall
mix design procedure was followed. Based on the results, the opti-
mum bitumen content was equal to 5.3%. At this bitumen content
other mix properties were examined. Accordingly, designed HMA
had an air void content of 4.1%, void filled with bitumen (VFA) of
69%, void in mineral aggregates (VMA) of 14.6%, Marshal stability
of 1350 kg, and Marshal flow of 3.1 mm. Therefore, designed
HMA, containing 5.3% bitumen, met all the criteria of Marshall
mix design instructed by Asphalt Institute (AI).
For other studied mixes containing PET fiber and crumb PET the
Marshall mix design criteria were controlled at bitumen content
selected for reference mix. For each mix three parallel specimens
were prepared and tested to control the agreement between the
criteria and mix properties. Table 4 presents the obtained results
in comparison with Marshall mix design criteria. As presented in
this table selected bitumen content satisfied the mix design criteria
for all studied HMAs.
2.2. Preparation of beam-shaped specimens
To prepare 4-point bending test specimens, initially the materi-
als were precisely mixed in a mechanical drum mixer. In order to
prevent the accumulation of fibers dry mixing procedure was uti-
lized. In this procedure first, the aggregates were blended in mixer.
Afterward, fibers were added to the aggregate and mixed to obtain
a homogeneous distribution for about 6–7 min. After ensuring the
proper distribution of fibers, the bitumen was added into mixture
and mixed with other materials for about 2–3 min. For each batch
the total time of mixing process was approximately about 10 min.
The mixing and compaction temperatures were determined con-
sidering viscosity-temperature curve. Fig. 5 shows the viscosity-
diagram curve obtained by performing the viscosity test at various
temperatures. The viscosity of bitumen during the mixing process
has been recommended between 150 and 190 cSt. On the basis of
this criterion the mixing temperature was selected as equal to
140 ± 3 °C.
After the mixing process, prepared mixtures were compacted in
slab-shaped molds using a rolling wheel compactor. The viscosity
of bitumen during compaction should be between 250 and
310 cSt. Therefore, according to Fig. 5 the compaction temperature
was 131 ± 3 °C. During compaction a fixed load of 500 kg was
applied 50 times while the compactor going back and forth.
Aforementioned compaction procedure achieved an air void of
4 ± 0.2% which is the average of criteria specified for surface course
asphalt. After finishing the compaction process, specimens were
removed and sawed to achieve the beam-shaped specimens with
50 mm height, 480 mm length and 60 mm width as shown in
Fig. 6. For each fiber content, fiber length and strain level two par-
allel specimens were prepared (i.e. 48 beam-shaped specimens for
fiber reinforced HMAs). Likewise, for each crumb PET content and
strain level, two parallel specimens were prepared (i.e. 12 beam-
shaped specimens). Therefore, considering six specimens for the
reference HMA, totally 66 beam-shaped specimens were prepared
by sawing 17 compacted slabs. Table 5, presents the air void con-
tent of each slab as well as the average values obtained after com-
pacting by roller compactor. It should be noted that for each slab
the bulk specific gravity was measured twice and the air void con-
tent was determined considering the theoretical maximum specific
gravity obtained for HMAs.
4.75 2.36 0.30 0.075
56 36 13 5
55–85 32–67 7–23 2–10
 Z. Dehghan, A. Modarres / Construction and Building Materials 139 (2017) 384–393 387

Table 3
Basic physical characteristics of the aggregates used to prepare HMAs.

Property Standard Unit Specification Value

Coarse aggregate
Los Angeles abrasion ASTM C131 % Max. 25 13
Soundness ASTM C88 % Max. 8 1.7
Elongated particles ASTM D4791 % Max. 15 10
Flat particles ASTM D4791 % Max. 15 7
Water absorption ASTM C127 % Max. 2.5 1.8
Bulk specific gravity ASTM C127 g/cm3 – 2.475
Apparent specific gravity ASTM C127 g/cm3 – 2.593
Fine aggregate
Water absorption ASTM C128 % Max. 2.5 2.4
Soundness ASTM C88 % Max. 12 2.2
Bulk specific gravity ASTM C128 g/cm3 – 2.424
Apparent specific gravity ASTM C128 g/cm3 – 2.607
Filler
Specific gravity ASTM D854 g/cm3 – 2.655
Plastic index ASTM D4318 % Max. 4 NP*
*
Non-plastic.

Fig. 1. Images of studied additives a-PET fiber, b-crumb PET.

Fig. 2. SEM micrograph of PET fiber at 5000 (left) and 170 (right) magnification levels.

2.3. Fatigue testing standard procedure, all specimens were tested at 20 °C [28].
Samples were placed in the temperature control chamber at
The fatigue test was performed using a UTM-14 testing least 5 h before starting the test to reach the desired
apparatus according to EN 12697-24 standard. Based on the temperature.
388 Z. Dehghan, A. Modarres / Construction and Building Materials 139 (2017) 384–393

Fig. 3. Microscopic images captured by IMM a- HMA containing 0.5% PET fiber, b- HMA containing 1% PET fiber.

Fig. 4. Microscopic images captured by IMM a- HMA containing 2% PET fiber, b- HMA containing 4% PET fiber.

Table 4
Marshall mix design parameters obtained for different studied mixes containing 5.3% bitumen compared with design criteria.

Parameter Reference 0.5% PET fiber 1.0% PET fiber 1.5% PET fiber 2.0% PET fiber 1.0% crumb PET 2.0%crumb PET Criteria
Air void (%) 4.1 4.1 4.2 4.4 4.5 4.0 4.3 3–5
Stability (kg) 1350 1381 1408 1382 1327 1321 1297 Min 800
Flow (mm) 3.1 2.8 2.6 2.5 2.3 2.9 2.7 2–3.5
VMA (%) 14.6 14.6 14.9 15.5 15.8 14.6 15.3 Min 12
VFA (%) 69 71 69 66 62 67 63 60–75

Fig. 5. Viscosity-compaction relationship used to determine the mixing and

compaction tempearures.

In this research, a haversine loading with the frequency of 10 Hz

was used and the experiment was conducted by constant strain
mode at three strain levels of 300, 500 and 700 microstrain. Fig. 6. Beam-shaped specimens prepared for performing 4-point fatigue test.
 Z. Dehghan, A. Modarres / Construction and Building Materials 139 (2017) 384–393 389

Table 5
Air void content of slabs compacted by roller compactor.

Slab no. 1st test (%) 2nd test (%) Average (%)
1 4.12 4.07 4.10
2 3.89 3.95 3.92
3 3.85 3.91 3.88
4 4.02 3.95 3.99
5 4.11 4.03 4.07
6 4.02 4.10 4.06
7 3.87 3.91 3.89
8 3.94 4.01 3.98
9 3.86 3.93 3.90
10 4.07 4.19 4.13
11 4.09 4.04 4.07
12 4.17 4.09 4.13
13 4.08 4.20 4.14
14 3.82 3.93 3.88 Fig. 7. Flexural stiffness curve in 4-point fatigue test.
15 3.95 3.99 3.97
16 4.18 4.08 4.13
17 4.07 4.17 4.12
almost constant without considerable reduction for a long period
of time [30]. For this reason, usually the stiffness reduction up to
In this method, the amounts of maximum tensile stress and a percentage of the initial stiffness is defined as the failure or fati-
strain were calculated using Eqs. (1) and (2), respectively. gue life of specimen. EN 12697-24 standard defined this value at
50% of the initial flexural stiffness that measured after 50 loading
P
rt ¼ 0:357 2
ð1Þ cycles [28].
bh Fig. 8 represents the graphs of flexural stiffness changes for con-
trol specimen and those containing 1% fiber with 1 and 2 cm length
12dh
et ¼ ð2Þ at the initial strain of 300 microstrain. According to Fig. 8, the spec-
3L2  4a2 imen containing 2 cm PET fiber had higher fatigue resistance than
where: two other specimens during the entire loading cycles. The refer-
rt: maximum tensile stress (Pa) ence specimen had relatively better fatigue behavior than the spec-
et: maximum tensile strain (microstrain) imen containing 1 cm fiber at the initial cycles.
P: amount of the applied load (N) By increasing the number of loading cycles and after approxi-
b: average sample width (m) mately 100,000 loading cycles, fiber reinforced specimens behaved
h: average sample height (m) better than the reference one. Finally the reference specimen
d: maximum deformation at the center of beam (m) showed lower fatigue life than the fiber reinforced specimens.
a: the distance between the inside clamps of loading frame that EN 12697-24 standard defines the initial flexural stiffness as
was equal to 0.119 m equal to the amount of flexural stiffness which calculated by Eq.
L: the distance between the outside clamps of loading frame (3) at 50th loading cycle. With regard to this definition, the initial
that was equal to 0.356 m flexural stiffness was calculated for tested specimens at different
strain levels. The obtained results have been shown in Fig. 9.
By calculating the maximum tensile stress and maximum ten- According to the figure, at initial strain of 300 microstrain, except
sile strain the flexural stiffness was calculated using Eq. (3). for the specimen containing 2%, 1-cm fibers, reinforced HMAs
showed a decrease in the flexural stiffness in comparison with
rt
S¼ ð3Þ the reference one. Overall, similar results were obtained for 2-cm
et fibers at this strain level except for specimen containing 1% fiber
where: which showed an increase in the flexural stiffness. In spite of the
S: is flexural stiffness (Pa) low dispersion, similar trend could be found at the initial strain
levels of 500 and 700 microstrain. Apart from some exceptions
3. Results and discussion (e.g. specimen containing 2%, 1 cm fiber and 1%, 2 cm fiber at initial
strain of 300 etc.), overall the flexural stiffness of studied HMAs
Fig. 7 shows the changes in flexural stiffness by increasing the
number of loading cycles for a tested specimen at initial strain
level of 700 microstrain. As seen in this figure, the curve usually
has 3 zones in constant strain mode. In this zone, stiffness modulus
rapidly decreases upon increasing the loading cycles. Based on pre-
vious studies, this zone includes about 10 percent of real fatigue
life of specimen [29]. In the second zone, flexural stiffness
decreased linearly accompanied by the formation of micro-cracks
in the specimen. At the end of this zone, the specimen will reach
to about 90% of its fatigue life.
The third zone of the curve manifests itself by the sudden
reduction in the flexural stiffness upon increasing the loading
cycles. In this zone, the primary cracks will develop considerably
which leads to complete failure especially under constant stress
mode [29].
In the constant strain mode, because of significant reduction in Fig. 8. Comparison between the flexural stiffness curve of reference and PET fiber
applied stresses in the third phase, the flexural stiffness can remain modified specimens at initial strain of 300 microstrain.
390 Z. Dehghan, A. Modarres / Construction and Building Materials 139 (2017) 384–393
Fig. 9. Effect of strain level on the initial flexural stiffness at different PET fiber
contents and lengths.
reduced by increasing the PET fiber content. However, 2 cm fibers
produce less reduction in the flexural stiffness than 1 cm fibers.
As it has been mentioned in literature, the replacement of a part
of aggregates by PET particles which is a softer material resulted in
the stiffness reduction in asphalt mixes. Based on the presented
reports in the previous studies, the reduction in stiffness of mate-
rial to an acceptable limit could increase the HMA flexibility and
improve its resistance against the destructive effects of repetitive
loadings and ultimately increase the fatigue life of reinforced
HMA [22,23]. As discussed earlier the fiber agglomeration at higher
fiber contents (e.g. 2 and especially 4% as shown in Fig. 4a and b)
creates weak zones in fiber reinforced HMA which could result in
lower flexural stiffness compared to the reference mix.
The effect of PET fiber addition on initial flexural stiffness
reduction was more noticeable for higher strain levels. On average,
the ratio of flexural stiffness after fiber reinforcement to initial
flexural stiffness was equal to 0.968, 0.919 and 0.867, for initial
strain levels of 300, 500 and 700 microstrain, respectively. As
reported in literature, higher strain levels induce higher tensile
strains in fibers which could have detrimental influence on fiber
modulus and therefore the flexural stiffness of fiber reinforced
HMA [6,7,11]. The latter issue might be the main reason for higher
stiffness reduction in PET fiber reinforced specimens at higher ini-
tial strain levels.
Table 6 presents the results of fatigue tests for the reference and
PET fiber reinforced specimens. In this table the results of each test
and the average of results were included. As presented the CV
parameter was mostly less than 15% and all CVs were less than
20%. Therefore the average of two replicates was used to develop
the fatigue laws and evaluate the fatigue response of studied
HMAs.
Fig. 10 shows the effect of 1 & 2-cm fibers on the fatigue life of
HMAs at initial strain level of 300 microstrain. With regard to fig-
ure, for both studied lengths the addition of fiber content up to
1.5% increased the fatigue life of reinforced HMA. However, the
increase of fiber content to 2.0% had an opposite effect and led to
a reduction in fatigue life. For 2-cm fibers, the fatigue life of spec-
imens containing 2% fiber was about 70% more than the reference
specimen.
The obtained results at the initial strain of 500 microstrain are
depicted in Fig. 11. According to this figure to a high extent similar
trends were found for both 1 & 2 cm fibers. At this strain level, the
maximum fatigue life was obtained at 1% fiber content. Therefore,
considering the fatigue criterion at medium strain levels the opti-
mum fiber content was about 1%.
As it has been shown in Fig. 12, the fatigue life of all fiber rein-
forced specimens at initial strain of 700 microstrain was higher
than the reference one. At this strain level, the maximum fatigue
life for 1&2-cm long fibers obtained at 1.5 and 1% fiber content,
respectively. For these mixes the fatigue life was 1.62 and 1.38
times more than the reference mix, respectively.
Fig. 13 shows the fatigue laws obtained for different fiber con-
tents. Data were plotted on a semi-logarithmic scale with logarith-
mic horizontal scale and normal vertical scale. The figure shows
the coefficient of determination (R2) that were used as an indica-
tion for the quality of the fit. According to the figure, the minimum
R2 value was 0.947 which indicates strong correlation between ini-
tial strain and fatigue life for studied HMAs.
With regard to this figure, the reference specimen had the low-
est fatigue life for all examined strain levels. It could be inferred
that compared to the reference HMA at a constant strain level
using the fibers increased the fatigue life regardless of the PET fiber
content.
At higher strains than about 550 microstrain, the HMA rein-
forced by 2% fiber showed superior fatigue behavior than that con-
taining 1.5% fiber. However, at lower strain levels, the reverse was
true and the fatigue life of specimen containing 1.5% fiber was
more than the HMA containing 2% fiber. Therefore, reinforcing
the studied HMA by 1% PET fiber revealed the preferable fatigue
response than other mix combinations for strain range of 300–
700 microstrain. Several studies in literature intended the benefi-
cial effects of fibers on fatigue response of asphalt mixes. The fiber
efficiency could be related to several variables such as fiber type,
fiber dimension (i.e. length and diameter) and fiber content
[6,11]. In this research the fatigue laws obtained for reinforced
HMAs (Fig. 13) showed improved fatigue resistance for all studied
strain levels, while at higher PET fiber contents than 1% the fiber
efficiency was to some extent reduced. The strain level was not
realized as an effective variable since the obtained fatigue lines
were almost parallel. However, there are some reports in literature
that indicated the significant effect of initial strain level of fiber
reinforcement efficiency [31]. It has been shown that the fiber
effect was more pronounced at lower initial strain levels than
200 microstrain. At higher strain levels no significant changes were
found for fiber reinforced HMA compared to control HMA [31]. In
contrast to above-mentioned analysis the obtained results in this
research proved the beneficial effect of PET fiber on fatigue life of
studied HMA at high strain levels up to 700 microstrain. The shift
in obtained fatigue life for reinforced HMA suggests that the PET
fiber reinforced mix will perform properly in road pavements with
heavy traffic loadings. Fracture strain in tension is a key parameter
for evaluating the fatigue resistance of a material. The resistance to
fatigue cracking is greater as fracture strain and therefore dissi-
pated energy increase [32]. Studied PET fiber had a fracture strain
of 20% which was considerably higher than that for conventional
HMA. The latter property warrants proper reinforcement effect of
fiber [6,7,32].
Fig. 14 compares between the initial flexural stiffness of speci-
mens containing PET fiber and crumb PET. In this figure, specimens
containing 1 and 2% crumb PET have been shown by 1% CRPET and
2% CRPET abbreviations, respectively. Compared with PET fiber, the
use of crumb PET reduced the flexural stiffness of studied HMA as
well. There are indications in literature that the addition of crumb
PET reduces the stiffness of HMA [20–25]. In Fig. 14 it is clear that
for 1% PET, 2 cm PET fibers had more flexural stiffness than crumb
PET and 1 cm PET fibers had less flexural stiffness than crumb PET
for all initial strain levels. For 2% PET, the opposite trend occurs,
with the exception of the initial strain of 500 microstrain.
Fig. 15 compares between the fatigue laws obtained for HMAs
containing PET fiber and crumb PET. According to the figure, all
 Z. Dehghan, A. Modarres / Construction and Building Materials 139 (2017) 384–393 391

Table 6
Results of 4-point bending test for the reference and fiber reinforced specimens.

Strain level (Microstrain) Fiber content (%) Fiber length (cm) Specimen 1 Specimen 2 Average CV (%)
300 – – 151658 170846 161252 8.4
300 0.5 1 160254 140090 150172 9.5
300 1.0 1 188975 229267 209121 13.6
300 1.5 1 264185 220211 242198 12.8
300 2.0 1 114286 136597 125441 12.6
300 0.5 2 221354 257740 239547 10.7
300 1.0 2 301254 251638 276446 12.7
300 1.5 2 303438 277984 290711 6.2
300 2.0 2 294331 248525 271428 11.9
500 – – 20978 18312 19645 9.6
500 0.5 1 38974 30664 34819 16.9
500 1.0 1 42351 37035 39693 9.5
500 1.5 1 18097 21037 19567 10.6
500 2.0 1 25152 20538 22845 14.3
500 0.5 2 22347 27717 25032 15.2
500 1.0 2 34567 45061 39814 18.6
500 1.5 2 24369 21721 23045 8.1
500 2.0 2 31255 26629 28942 11.3
700 – – 5221 4785 5003 6.2
700 0.5 1 5417 4661 5039 10.6
700 1.0 1 5744 6440 6092 8.1
700 1.5 1 6155 7819 6987 16.8
700 2.0 1 6374 5682 6028 8.1
700 0.5 2 4521 3903 4212 10.4
700 1.0 2 8816 7238 8027 13.9
700 1.5 2 6128 8050 7089 19.2
700 2.0 2 7568 6610 7902 9.6

Fig. 10. Effect of PET fiber content on the fatigue life of studied HMA at initial strain
Fig. 12. Effect of PET fiber content on the fatigue life of studied HMA at initial strain
of 300 microstrain.
of 700 microstrain.

Fig. 11. Effect of PET fiber content on the fatigue life of studied HMA at initial strain
of 500 microstrain.
Fig. 13. The fatigue laws obtained for different PET fiber contents.

modified specimens showed higher fatigue resistance than the ref-

erence HMA. 480 microstrain, the composition containing 2% fiber showed
The fatigue behavior of the HMA with 1% crumb rubber and 2% higher fatigue life than that with 1% crumb PET, while at lower
PET fiber were very close to each other. At higher strain levels than strain levels the reverse was true.
392 Z. Dehghan, A. Modarres / Construction and Building Materials 139 (2017) 384–393
Fig. 14. Comparison between the initial flexural stiffness of HMAs containing PET fiber and crumb PET.
Fig. 15. Comparison between the fatigue curves of HMAs containing PET fiber and
crumb PET.
With regard to figure, the addition of 1% PET fiber resulted in
the best fatigue performance for all examined strain levels. At
low strain levels, (i.e. about 300 microstrain), the fatigue life of
HMA containing 2% crumb PET was close to that with 1% fiber. At
higher strain levels there was a considerable difference between
the fatigue responses of above-mentioned mixes. Overall at higher
strain levels fiber reinforced mixes revealed better fatigue resis-
tance than HMAs modified by crumb PET.
Finally it could be concluded that both PET fiber and crumb PET
if added in dry procedure with a proper content could improve the
fatigue resistance of HMA. The optimum content of these additives
was 1 and 2% by weight of bitumen for PET fiber (both 1 and 2 cm
long) and crumb PET, respectively. Furthermore, at a constant fiber
content except for 0.5% fiber content at initial strain levels of 500
and 700 microstrain, the fibers with 2 cm long had a better perfor-
mance than the 1-cm fiber. Therefore it is recommended to per-
form further studies on other fiber lengths (i.e. more than 2 cm)
to have a precise idea about the proper fiber length.
4. Conclusion
In this research, the effect of polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
fibers produced from recycled plastics on the fatigue characteris-
tics of hot asphalt mix was analyzed by 4-point bending procedure.
Four fiber contents including 0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2% by weight of the
bitumen were considered with two lengths of 1 and 2 cm. The
effect of fibers was compared with uniformly graded crumb PET
with a 0.425–1.180 mm gradation. Based on the obtained results
and performed analysis, the following conclusions can be made:
1- Based on micro-structural analysis the maximum amount of
PET fiber content restricted to 2% by weight of bitumen. At
higher contents the constitution of agglomeration zones
weakens the fiber efficiency.
2- Adding recycled PET fibers reduced the flexural stiffness of
asphalt. This issue was more obvious for specimens contain-
ing the highest amount of fibers, 1.5 and 2%.
3- The effects of the recycled crumb PET which was added with
the rate of 1 and 2% by weight of bitumen was highly similar
to fibers. On average, the flexural stiffness of specimens con-
taining crumb rubber was more than specimens containing
2% PET fibers and less than specimens containing 1% fibers.
4- The flexural stiffness reduction to 50% of the initial value
was considered as the occurrence of fatigue in the specimen.
According to this criterion, all fiber contents improved the
fatigue resistance of reinforced HMA in comparison with
the reference one.
5- Comparison between the fatigue laws revealed the predom-
inant fatigue behavior of HMA containing 1% PET fiber for all
studied strain levels. At initial strain level of 300 microstrain
adding 1.5% PET fiber achieved comparable results to that of
1% with slightly lower fatigue lives. At initial starin level of
700 microstrain the same trend was found for HMAs con-
taining 2% PET fiber. At a constant fiber content the fibers
with 2 cm long had a better performance than the 1-cm
fiber.
6- Given the performed analysis, the use of 2 cm long PET fiber
at the rate of 1% by weight of bitumen was more effective
than 1 cm long fiber.
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