Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
260003 | Construction and Building Materials | 2011 | 7 Pages |
The life cycle of hot mix asphalt (HMA) depends on the material density. Bulk specific gravity and air void content are crucial factors for quality control and quality assurance (QC/QA) procedures used to evaluate contract specifications. Densities measured in the laboratory are reliable and accurate but are obtained very slowly. On-site measurements are made using non-nuclear portable devices and are often considered biased and unreliable. The object of this work was to evaluate a proposed theoretical framework for interpreting in-lab and on-site measurements and to propose strategies for using non-nuclear portable devices in QC/QA. A decrease in porosity yielded in-lab specific gravities that converged. In contrast, due to the high dielectric constant of water the divergence of in-site measures was observed. A conceptual framework and two practical equations are provided.