Municipal incinerated bottom ash (MIBA) characteristics and potential for use in road pavements

•Assessment of global data on the use of MIBA in road construction.•MIBA use as capping, fill and sub-base material in unbound form.•MIBA as aggregate in hydraulically bound subbase and roadbase layers.•MIBA use at low contents as aggregate in bituminous bound layers.

The characteristics of municipal incinerated bottom ash (MIBA) and its performance in road pavement applications is assessed through systematic analysis and evaluation of the global experimental data. MIBA has been used in unbound, hydraulically and bitumen bound forms. As unbound material, after processing, MIBA exhibits suitable mechanical properties for use as capping, fill and sub-base material, which has been successfully demonstrated in field testing. In hydraulically bound form, MIBA can be a viable aggregate component in subbase and roadbase layers at low to moderate contents, depending on the performance requirements and binder content. As bituminous bound aggregate in roads, the material can be fit for use at low contents, which is reinforced by a number of completed case studies, with the allowable MIBA fraction controlled by the voids contents, abrasion resistance and bitumen content requirements.