ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Mater.
Sec. Structural Materials
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmats.2025.1594920
Synthesis of Trackless Emulsified Asphalt Tack Coat with Gradient Distribution of Polyurethane Via Self-migration and Its Performance Evaluation
Provisionally accepted
- 1Guangxi Land and Resources Planning and Design Group Co, Ltd, Nanning, China, Nanning, China
- 2Guangxi Land and Resources Planning and Design Group Co, Ltd,, Nanning, China
- 3Research Institute of Highway, Haidian, China
- 4Guangxi Xinfazhan Communication Group Co., Ltd., Guangxi, China
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A new type of trackless emulsified asphalt (TEA) tack coat with gradient distribution of polyurethane (PU) was prepared via self-migration technology to solve the problems of tracking and poor bonding in common tack coats. The PU distribution in vertical section of tack coat was characterized by electron microscope, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR)and contact angle tests. The basic performance of TEA, such as penetration, ductility, softening point, rheological properties and storage stability were studied. The pavement performance of TEA tack coat was evaluated by track-free time, tracking resistance and shearing resistance tests. The results suggest that the gradient distribution of PU (PU content increasing from bottom to apparent) was formed in tack coat. Based on tests regarding tracking resistance, non-tracking time, and storage stability, the optimal dosage of 3% polyurethane latex modifier was determined. For TEA -3 (with 3% polyurethane latex modifier), the non-tracking time at 35 °C was decreased to under 30 minutes. This substantial reduction significantly enhances the construction efficiency. Mechanical performance evaluations of TEA-3 demonstrated exceptional temperature resistance, maintaining shear strength exceeding 1 MPa at 60 °C while remaining trackfree at 70 °C. The uniform dispersion of PU within the TEA tack coat matrix contributed to substantial improvements in both track-free characteristics and interfacial shear resistance, even at minimal PU modification levels. Due to the material combines excellent road performance and environmentally friendly preparation process, providing a promising technical solution for the application of tack coat in the field of road engineering.
Keywords: Tack coat, Emulsified asphalt, polyurethane, Self-migration, Tracking resistance, Shearing resistance
Received: 18 Mar 2025; Accepted: 13 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Feng, Zhou, Wang, Lv, Qin, Ma, Li and Huang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Gaowei Zhou, Research Institute of Highway, Haidian, China
Qing Ma, Research Institute of Highway, Haidian, China
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