Welcome to Ann Arbor, where some streets are made with recycled rubber.
Though they look like ordinary pavement, crews recently paved Northbrook Place and Oakbrook Drive with a specialized asphalt mix containing recycled tire rubber, according to MLive.
The rubberized asphalt is designed to resist cracking by stopping cracks from propagating or redirecting them, potentially extending pavement life by 30 to 40%.
The recycled rubber is ground into a fine powder — averaging about one-fiftieth of an inch in diameter — before being blended into the asphalt mix. Each batch contains roughly 100 million grains of rubber.
Illinois-based Asphalt Plus LLC developed the technology and has helped expand the use of rubberized asphalt across Asia, Europe and Central America, according to MLive.
For the Ann Arbor project, Asphalt Plus collected recycled tires throughout the region and incorporated into asphalt produced at Cadillac Asphalt’s plant.
From the contractor’s perspective, placing rubberized asphalt is no different than laying conventional pavement and requires no specialized paving equipment. The primary difference occurs at the asphalt plant, where separate equipment is used to introduce rubber into the mix.
Cadillac Asphalt also completed a rubberized asphalt project for the Washtenaw County Road Commission last year that recycled approximately 7,000 scrap tires.
According to Asphalt Plus President Redmond Clark, Ann Arbor produces an estimated 75,000 scrap tires annually, with roughly one-third potentially reusable in future roadway projects.
The recycled rubber can also remain in circulation through future pavement recycling, extending the useful life of the material for generations.
Beyond improved durability, rubberized asphalt creates a quieter ride, enhances traction during wet conditions and contributes to smoother pavement surfaces that can improve vehicle fuel economy and reduce tire microplastic generation, MLive reported.
While conventional asphalt pavements typically have a service life of about 40 years, rubberized asphalt has the potential to last up to 60 years.
Sources: MLive
