Bitumen
Bitumen
Penetration Grade
Viscosity Grade
Performance Grade
Cutback Bitumen
Bitumen
Bitumen is a product of Crude oil Distillation. It is a semi-solid hydrocarbon product produced by removing the lighter fractions from heavy crude oil.
Bitumen is commonly mixed with aggregate materials to create asphalt concrete to pave roads and highways. Bitumen is also used in the roofing industry as a waterproofing shingles, roll roofing, or built-up roofing systems.
Additionally, bitumen has other industrial applications, including in the manufacturing of paints, sealants, adhesives and corrosion protection.
Penetration Grade
Penetration Grade Bitumen is commonly used in road surfacing, and some industrial applications. Penetration grading’s basic assumption is that the less viscous the asphalt, the deeper the needle will penetrate.
Additional processing yields other grades of bitumen products and their application.
Penetration grades are listed as a range of penetration units (one penetration unit = 0.1 mm) such as 120-150. Penetration grades specified in AASHTO M 20 and ASTM D 946 are listed in below table
Penetration Grades:
Bitumen 40/50 (Hardest Grade).
Bitumen 60/70 (Typical grades used in the U.S.)
Bitumen 85/100
Bitumen 120/150
Bitumen 200/300 (Softest grade. Used for cold climates such as northern Canada)
Viscosity Grade
Viscosity is a key property of Bitumen that is closely related to its consistency and flowability. It is important because it determines its ability to be pumped, mixed, and applied in various industrial applications, including road construction, waterproofing, and roofing.
Viscosity grades Bitumen are categorized according to Viscosity (degree of fluidity) grading and are strongly dependent on temperature, with higher temperatures generally resulting in lower viscosity values.The higher the grade, the stiffer the Bitumen.
In Viscosity Grade, Viscosity tests are conducted at 60°C and 135°C, which represents the temperature of road surface during summer and mixing temperature respectively. The penetration at 25°C, which is the annual average pavement temperature, has been also retained in Specifications.
Viscosity Grades:
VG-10
VG-20
VG-30
VG-40
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Performance Grade
Performance Grade (PG) bitumen is bitumen which is graded based on its performance at different temperatures. Superpave performance grading (PG) is based on the idea that an HMA asphalt binder’s properties should be related to the conditions under which it is used.
For asphalt binders, this involves expected climatic conditions as well as aging considerations.A wider PG range means higher resistance and more favorable specifications.
Performance Grades:
PG 46
PG 52
PG 58
PG 64
Cutback Bitumen
Cutback Bitumen is by adding controlled amounts of petroleum solvent such as Kerosene, Gasole and Gasoline and it depends on type and amount of solvent in the pure bitumen. The more solvent in Cutback bitumen, leads to the more viscosity in bitumen.
Cutback bitumen is used when there is limited access to heating equipment, bitumen decomposition in high temperature, bitumen cooling throughout working, workers safety, fire and time consuming. This type of bitumen is used in road operations for surfacing and pavement.
Cutback bitumen is classified based on viscosity grade. It is divided into three categories:
Rapid-Curing (RC)
Medium-Curing (MC)
Slow-Curing (SC)
