Highly Modified Asphalt (HiMA) binders have garnered significant attention due to their superior resistance to rutting, fatigue cracking, and thermal distress under heavy traffic loads and extreme environmental conditions. While elastomeric polymers such as Styrene- Butadiene-Styrene (SBS) have been extensively used in HiMA applications, the potential of plastomeric polymers, including Polyethylene (PE) and Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA), remains largely unexplored. This study aims to evaluate the performance of reference binder (RB) modified with plastomeric HiMA asphalt in comparison to SBS-modified binders and determine the optimal polymer dosage for achieving an optimal balance between rutting resistance and fatigue durability. The experimental program involved modifying a base asphalt binder with SBS, PE, and EVA at dosages of 6%, 7%, and 8% by weight of binder. A comprehensive evaluation was conducted, including conventional tests (penetration, softening point, viscosity, mass loss, storage stability, and specific gravity) and rheological characterization using the Dynamic Shear Rheometer (DSR). The Multiple Stress Creep Recovery (MSCR) test was employed to assess high-temperature performance, while the Linear Amplitude Sweep (LAS) test evaluated fatigue behavior. Additionally, an Overall Desirability (OD) analysis was performed to integrate multiple performance criteria and establish a ranking for each modification. The results demonstrated that SBS-modified binders exhibited the most balanced performance, with SBS8 achieving the highest elastic recovery (52.87%) and superior fatigue life, exceeding 1,017,904 cycles at 2.5% strain. PE8 exhibited exceptional rutting resistance, reaching the lowest Jnr 3.2 value (0.0078 kPa−1); however, its limited elasticity (15.7% recovery) indicated reduced flexibility. EVA modifications demonstrated marginal improvements in fatigue resistance but failed to meet the AASHTO M332 criteria for high-traffic applications. The OD analysis ranked SBS8 as the most effective HiMA binder (OD score = 0.715), followed by SBS7 (0.588) and SBS6 (0.509). PE7 (0.354) and PE6 (0.337) demonstrated moderate performance, whereas EVA had the lowest desirability score (0.000). Based on these findings, SBS-modified binders are recommended for applications requiring a balance between fatigue and rutting resistance, whereas PE-based HiMA is more suitable for high-temperature regions where rutting is the primary concern. Further field studies are necessary to validate the long-term durability of plastomeric HiMA binders and optimize their use for specific pavement conditions.
Abstract
The research aims to determine the impact of the strategy performance evaluation and of the Standards (leadership, people, knowledge, processes, financial) in the achievement of organizational effectiveness in accordance with the dimensions (planning and setting goals, Exploitation of the Environment, achieve the goals, the ability to adapt, information management and communications) and the relationship between them, the problem of the research in the growing interest in the process of performance evaluation for organizations, the erroneous belief that the performance evaluation activity is useful, and the fact that performance evaluation process is one of the main tasks of the work of the Office of the Inspecto
... Show MoreInsurance Companies perform a prominent role in providing services and bolstering national economy, and they contribute in achieving the aims of the economic development plans in addition to many other social and economic benefits. So it is necessary to evaluate the activity of these companies continuously to define performance level and its nature. Financial analysis is one of the important instruments that helps in analyzing and explanation of data in such a way that enable administration to define performance level and diagnosing strength and weakness points. This study tackles the state of affairs of the Iraqi Insurance Company which is considered as one of the active national institutions, due to its distinguished role in collecting
... Show MoreThe study aims to evaluate the removal of sulfur content from Iraqi light naphtha produced in Al-Dora refinery by adsorption desulfurization DS technique using modified activated carbon MAC loaded with nickel Ni and copper Cu as single binary metals. The experiments were carried in a batch unit with various operating parameters; MAC dosage, agitation speed, and a contact time of 300 min at constant initial sulfur concentration 155 ppm and temperature. The results showed higher DS% by AC/Ni-Cu (66.45)% at 500 rpm and 1 g dosage than DS (29.03)% by activated carbon AC, increasing MAC dosage, agitation speed, and contact time led to increasing DS% values. The adsorption capacity of MAC results was recorded (16, 15, and 20) mg sulfu
... Show MoreThe study aims to evaluate the removal of sulfur content from Iraqi light naphtha produced in Al-Dora refinery by adsorption desulfurization DS technique using modified activated carbon MAC loaded with nickel Ni and copper Cu as single binary metals. The experiments were carried in a batch unit with various operating parameters; MAC dosage, agitation speed, and a contact time of 300 min at constant initial sulfur concentration 155 ppm and temperature. The results showed higher DS% by AC/Ni-Cu (66.45)% at 500 rpm and 1 g dosage than DS (29.03)% by activated carbon AC, increasing MAC dosage, agitation speed, and contact time led to increasing DS% values. The adsorption capacity of MAC results was recorded (16,
... Show MoreObjective(s): To evaluate students’ communication skills and their academic performance; to compare between the students relative to communication skills and their academic performance in the University of Baghdad and to identify the relationship between students’ communication skills, academic performance and their socio-demographic characteristics of age, gender, grade and socioeconomic status. Methodology: A descriptive design, using the evaluation approach, is carried through the present study to evaluate colleges’ students’ communication skills and their academic performance in the University of Baghdad for the period of January 7th 2019 to August 28th 2019. A non-probability, purposive sample, of (80) university students, i
... Show MoreThe migration from IPv4 to IPv6 can not be achieved in a brief period, thus both protocols co-exist at certain years. IETF Next Generation Transition Working Group (NGtrans) developed IPv4/IPv6 transition mechanisms. Since Iraq infrastructure, including universities, companies and institutions still use IPv4 protocol only. This research article tries to highlight, discuss a required transition roadmap and extend the local knowledge and practice on IPv6. Also, it introduces a prototype model using Packet tracer (network simulator) deployed for the design and implementation of IPv6 migration. Finally, it compares and evaluates the performance of IPv6, IPv4 and dual stack using OPNET based on QoS metrics such as throughput, delay and point to
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This Research aims to define role of the system of evaluating the performance for higher leadership in determining the level of institutional work quality in the Ministry of Agriculture, by measuring system efficiency of evaluating the performance for higher leadership and its effect in institutional work quality, the searcher reached through the theoretical framing and involved studies to build default plan define the relation between Research variables formed from system of evaluating leadership performance as independent variable contains six subsidiary dimensions: (Polarization, evaluating the performance of personnel, training, motivation, se
... Show MoreAbstract: In this research, nanofibers have been prepared by using an electrospinning method. Three types of polymer (PVA, VC, PMMA) have been used with different concentration. The applied voltage and the gap length were changed. It was observed that VC is the best polymer than the other types of polymers.
In this research, nanofibers have been prepared by using an electrospinning method. Three types of polymer (PVA, VC, PMMA) have been used with different concentration. The applied voltage and the gap length were changed. It was observed that VC is the best polymer than the other types of polymers.