ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Mater.
Sec. Structural Materials
This article is part of the Research TopicChemical-Physical Interactions in Bitumen: Towards Environmentally Sustainable Road MaterialsView all 5 articles
Research and Application of High-Performance Artificial Aggregates Based on 3D Printing
Provisionally accepted
- 1Guangzhou Highway Co.,Ltd., Guangzhou, China
- 2Guangzhou Xiaoning Road Engineering Technology Research Office Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, China
- 3South China University of Technology School of Civil Engineering and Transportation, Guangzhou, China
- 4Guangdong Highway Construction Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, China
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
The inherent heterogeneity of natural aggregates often compromises the reproducibility of asphalt mixture performance evaluations. To mitigate this variability, a fabrication protocol for High-Performance Cementitious Artificial Aggregates (ACA) was developed, integrating 3D printing with mold grouting techniques. Initially, the cementitious matrix was optimized via single-factor experimentation, yielding a precise mass ratio of Cement: Fly Ash: Silica Fume: Sand: Superplasticizer: Expansive Agent: Water at 100:15:2:62.4:0.45:1:28.5. Subsequently, a standardized "3D printed master–silicone replication–vacuum grouting" workflow was established, successfully capturing the micron-scale textural features of natural diabase. Physical characterization revealed that the ACA exhibits an apparent density of 2.16 g/cm³ and a Los Angeles abrasion value of 15.2%, demonstrating robust physico-mechanical integrity. Pavement performance verification indicated that the ACA asphalt mixture achieves a dynamic stability of 5865 passes/mm, a residual stability of 86.5%, and a freeze-thaw splitting strength ratio (TSR) of 88.5%, all satisfying current specifications for high-grade highways. Critically, statistical validation utilizing Standard Deviation (SD) and Coefficient of Variation (CV) revealed that the impact toughness CV in ACA mixtures was minimized to 2.40%— significantly lower than the 16.17% observed in natural aggregates. Furthermore, an inter-laboratory study across seven facilities employing robust Z-score analysis demonstrated that ACA group Z-scores were consistently maintained within 2. This study substantiates that ACA effectively minimizes data discreteness, demonstrating its potential suitability as a candidate for a "Standard Reference Material" to enhance the standardization of road engineering testing.
Keywords: 3D printing, Artificial aggregate, asphalt mixture, Inter-laboratory comparison, Pavement performance, Standard reference material
Received: 27 Jan 2026; Accepted: 09 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Chen, Li, Luo, Cui and Li. 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: Jian Li
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.