Asphalt Alternative May Offer Cost and Environmental Benefits
Asphalt Alternative May Offer Cost and Environmental Benefits, Pigment Can Be Added for Bicycle Lanes and Other Special Purpose Lanes; Terra Pave Working with University of Texas on Pavement Products Members of the Pflugerville City Council are the latest Texans to put a new asphalt alternative to the test. The city joins Austin and the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) in deciding to experiment with Terra Pave for jobs where asphalt would have been used in the past. Joe Graff, Director of Marketing for Terra Pave, says the Terra Pave products have several qualities that make them better than asphalt. The products are water based and include no volatile organic com- pounds (VOCs). As Graff explains, “Only water is evaporated into the atmosphere, therefore, they are very safe and good for the environment.” In addition, he notes that since the products are placed at ambient temperatures and do not need to be heated, “they save the cost of heating and keeping them hot.” Terra Pave says its products are “much stronger” than asphalt and stay flexible at most temperatures. That allows them to “remain strong and resistant to deformation by both traffic loading and environmental forces such as heat, cold, rain and freezing.” Finally, Graff points out that no special equipment is necessary to apply Terra Pave. It can be placed with conventional paving equipment. Because the polymers used in Terra Pave are clear when they dry, the products can take on the color of any pigment added. Graff says carbon black is added to many of the Terra Pave products to make them look like conventional asphalt pavements and give them good UV light resistance. However, the company expects to develop some material in blue or green in the near future for a test bicycle lane. Earlier this year, Pflugerville voted to go with Terra Pave to save money on the construction of 37 new parking spaces and test its spirit of innovation by taking a risk on what it viewed as a more environmentally friendly product. Austin is currently testing Terra Pave in one of its parking lots, too, and TxDOT applied it last year on SH195. Terra Pave’s products are developed and patented by the Center for Transportation Research at the University of Texas at Austin, and Graff points out “that certainly gives them great credibility.” However, because of the great variety of ways in which asphalt is used, Terra Pave cannot currently be used to replace asphalt in all situations. Graff says more experience will be necessary and additional research on the products still needs to be done. Though the company did not offer specifics on its pricing, it says Terra Pave costs are “very competitive” with asphalt and in many cases less costly. In addition, it expects its prices to remain more stable because costs are not based on the more “volatile” asphalt market. It also anticipates that Terra Pave will last “as long or longer” than asphalt. Graff sees a broad market for Terra Pave. It can be used worldwide on large projects by transportation agencies or small projects by homeowners. The first sections of Terra Pave products were installed about two years ago, and Graff says the reaction to all test sections and installations has been promising. http://www.urban-transportation-monitor.com/ View full article...
read moreCity Plans to Use Top-Seal White at Lake Pflugerville
Recently on the City of Pflugerville website, plans were announced for the paving of 37 new parking spaces around Lake Pflugerville. Terra Pave International’s Top-Seal White will be used to cover parking spaces.
read moreCity of Pflugerville Chooses Terra Pave Products
Article by Christina Peña, Austin Community Newspapers Staff: Pflugerville has recently prided itself in cutting the city tax rate for 10 years in a row and with recent construction projects, city staff is showcasing how the city cuts spending while maintaining quality of life. The Pflugerville City Council awarded a construction contract at its Jan. 14 meeting to Terra Pave International, which will construct 37 new parking spaces at Lake Pflugerville. The company specializes in a water-based polymer alternative to asphalt, which saved the city $20,000. The $129,000 project will begin Feb. 3 and is funded by the General Capital Reserve budget. The company, sponsored by the University of Texas, has sold its product to multiple Texas municipalities, including Austin, which is testing the product in a parking lot. The Texas Department of Transportation is also testing the product on a section of state Highway 195 in Florence. Pflugerville Assistant City Manager Trey Fletcher said the lake parking lot was an ideal location for the new product because of the parking lot’s predictable traffic pattern without high traffic or heavy loads. “There’s always a risk in trying something new, but we are working regionally to look at innovative ways to construct,” he said. “The city maintains many parking lots and this provided an opportunity to use a more innovative product in a lower-risk environment.” Pflugerville Engineer Dan Franz learned about the product through a presentation by Terra Pave at a Capital Area Pavement Engineering Council meeting. While the product is still fairly new, he said testing out new developments in engineering is an effective way to save money and stay in-the-know with engineering trends. “It is important to use and explore new products because engineering, development and construction are forever evolving,” he said. “Building methods used today are different than in years past. Private development has been using this type of product for years while government agencies like Pflugerville, TxDOT, Travis County and Austin are exploring its use with samples and test sections.” According to Terra Pave International, the product is non-petroleum-based and eco-friendly by “evaporating only water during the curing process and emitting no volatile organic compounds.” “(It) provides many of the same qualities of asphalt with less material and therefore a lower cost,” Franz said. “The polymer is water-based, which has many environmental benefits, compared to oil-based primers and asphalt.” The product also comes in multiple colors, which could be used by various organizations or schools. But the Lake Pflugerville parking lot will be a traditional black and white to mesh with the current theme in the area. View full article...
read moreEngineering Properties of Prime Coats Applied to a Granular Base
By: Gouri Mohan, Kenneth H. Stokoell, and Mustafa B. Erten This study measured the strength and permeability of six prime coats: MC-30, AEP, EC-30, CSS-1H, SS-1H, and Terra Prime. It also evaluated the effects of two application methods: mixing the prime coats into, and spraying them onto, the base course of crushed limestone. Additionally, it tested the penetration of the prime coats into reference sand. This study found that the best-performing prime coat is Terra Prime, followed by MC-30. This study concluded the following: • The dry strength of Terra Prime is five times greater than that of the other prime coats. Additionally, the wet strength of Terra Prime is not significantly lower than its dry strength, whereas the wet strength of the other prime coats is significantly lower than their dry strength. • Mixing the prime coat into, rather than spraying it onto, the base course decreased the permeability of water. MC-30 and Terra Prime exhibited the lowest permeability rates. • EC-30 achieved the greatest penetration into the reference sand, followed by MC-30 and Terra Prime. CSS-1H and SS-1H achieved significantly less penetration, instead forming a sticky surface coat. • Terra Prime performed the best overall, followed by MC-30....
read moreTerra Pave Featured in the Austin Business Journal
By Sandra Zaragoza, Austin Business Journal Photo: Austin Business Journal A University of Texas-backed startup has developed a more environment-friendly alternative to a common paving material, and it has raised $1.65 million from investors to help it crack the multibillion-dollar road construction industry. Terra Pave International Inc.—founded by Andres Jackson—is the company behind Terra Prime, the primary use of which bonds the loose bottom layer of road material before asphalt is laid. The founders are touting it to replace MC-30, a type of cutback asphalt prepared by mixing asphalt cement with a petroleum-based solvent. MC-30’s use has raised environmental concerns among engineers—including danger from breathing its fumes, water pollution, and fire—that has prompted some states to ban it and others, including Texas, to limit its use… View full article...
read moreResidential Urbanization in Coari, Amazonas, Brazil
Top-Seal Black proved to be an economical asphalt alternative for eliminating dust and mud on dirt roads applied in Coari, Amazons region of Brazil. The section was 1 km long and the cost was at a fraction of other alternatives. The application procedure is very simple. It is cold applied on compacted base soil and cures very fast....
read moreTexas Center Studies Prime Coat Weathering
By Gouri Mohan As featured in the Pavement Preservation Journal – Summer 2011 The prime coat is a coating of a binder onto a compacted granular base prior to application of subsequent courses. Prime coats are generally applied to improve pavement’s binding to the untreated aggregate base, and helps the performance of the base if it is going to remain exposed to the weather for at least seven days or if it is going to carry traffic before HMA paving. The main purpose of providing a prime coat is to prevent water from penetrating into the base, thus waterproofing the base and improve the strength of the base. A prime coat application is said to be cured once most of its carrier has evaporated. So, as expected, the time taken for curing will change considerably with the weather conditions. The time taken for curing will also depend on the type of prime coat, application method, application rate, rate of dilution of the prime coat, properties of the base and many more factors. The Texas Pavement Preservation Center is currently doing a study that aims to capture the effect of weather conditions, application method and type of prime coast on the curing time. To determine the time taken and verify the performance of prime coats, around 50 soil specimens were prepared and tested in three different seasons (summer, fall and winter) to capture the effects of weather. Prime coats which were included in this study were MC-30, AEP, EC-30, CSS-1H, SS-1H, and Top Seal Black. Limestone base soil which is most commonly found in the Texas region was used as base material throughout the testing program. Two different application methods were used namely, spray prime specimens and mixed-in prime specimens. For spray prime specimens, 16 oz circular cans of 4-in. diameter and 2.4-in. height were used. Soil was placed in three layers and each layer was compacted by giving 25 blows each using a wooden hammer. Once the sample was well compacted and ready, prime coat material was sprayed on top of the specimen in such a way that it covers the whole surface evenly. In case of mixed-in prime specimens the same method was followed except that instead of spraying, the prime coat was mixed with the top layer of soil and then compacted. After the samples were prepared, they were exposed to weather and were weighed each day to determine the decrease in weight with time. When all the solvent is almost evaporated or when the sample is cured the weight would become a constant. This was the basic principle behind determining the time taken for curing of each prime coat. The measurements taken by the weather station included air temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation, wind speed, wind direction and barometric pressure. Of these measurements that were taken the ones that will affect the curing time the most would be the air temperature, solar radiation, humidity and wind speed. The study will propose a formula based on the effect of each of the above mentioned weather components on the curing time of prime coats. A comparison will also be made between the strength and the permeability characteristics of different prime coats. View PDF...
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