Reuse of deconstructed tires as anti-reflective cracking mat systems in asphalt pavements

• Deconstructed tires layers have been tested to be used as anti-reflective cracking mat.
• UGR-FACT test has been applied to evaluate the effectiveness of the systems developed.
• Layer-parallel direct shear test was used to evaluate the adhesion of the systems developed.

Fatigue cracking is one of the most common distresses that affect roads all over the world. The development of new techniques that allow minimizing the effect caused by this pathology is crucial to reduce road rehabilitation costs. For this purpose, a new product obtained from deconstructed tires has been designed and tested “anti-reflective cracking mats”. Manufactured from the resistant layers of the tyre (metallic and textile layers), it is used as a system placed between the courses of the pavement in order to reduce the effect caused by fatigue cracking processes. This article presents the characteristics of these products and resumes their mechanical performance in a pavement section tested in laboratory. The results obtained showed that the application of these anti-reflective cracking systems could be an interesting solution in order to reduce the impact caused by this pathology.