You know NuMIXER™ as the “GREEN” Bio-Oil that, among other things, improves asphalts low-temperature properties and acts as a rejuvenator for High RAP and RAS mixes. This rejuvenation property, namely the ability to rapidly penetrate old aged asphalt to restore balance to the properties of the asphalt, gave our friends at Vestal Asphalt (Vestal, NY—www.Vestalasphalt.com) the idea to check out NuMIXER’s™ performance in a driveway sealer!!
Traditional driveway sealers coat the existing surface to provide a great cosmetic improvement for aged and cracked asphalt pavement. Depending on the formulation, sealers can do some crack filling and add texture to slippery surfaces, but in the end, they are coatings on the asphalt pavement and do not affect the asphalt pavement itself. NuMIXER ™ does!!!
Vestal took NuMIXER™ and added it to their traditional driveway sealer formula just before their emulsion mill. Laboratory tests were performed based on ASTM D8099/D8099M-17 “Asphalt Emulsion Pavement Sealer.” Uniformity, wet film continuity, density, % solids, drying time, resistance to heat and resistance to water were all nominal. Finally, a test section of a driveway in distress was chosen. NuMIXER™ Sealer was applied with a squeegee in this formulation’s first in-practice trial.
The NuMIXER™ Sealer went down brown. As the emulsion broke and water evaporated, it turned the traditional black color expected by consumers. The material in this test section was concentrated, so some crack filling was observed.
Testing is now underway on the pavement sections. It is conjectured that the old pavement was penetrated., softened and minor cracks and fissures were healed. The pictures that follow are from 1.5, 2.5 and 4 hours after application.
Future work will examine the addition of various polymers, grit and other modifiers along with composition variations that might expand the products future use as well as optimizing finished properties and cost.
Got an idea on the new use of one of our products? (or even a question on the old uses for our products), give us a call at +1 800 562-6276 (overseas customers call +1 201 752-7562) or email info@sripath.com and let’s put our heads together to see how we can “Make Asphalt Better”.
