Alternative to asphalt?

Weasel · Coal Joined: Jun 06, 2008 Posts: 1

Not sure if this is the right section Embarassed

Reading recently more about the rising prices of asphalt, what are any viable alternatives to asphalt in road construction?

Another question, can asphalt be recycled? Would it be possible to tear up unused roads (or airstrips Evil or Very Mad

) and reuse the asphalt somehow for more important areas?

Thanks for some enlightenment.

KingM · Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 10:01 am Post subject: Re: Alternative to asphalt?

Concrete, or, more technically, non-bituminous concrete, since asphalt is technically a concrete with bituminous materials replacing cement as a binder.

pstarr · Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 10:09 am Post subject: Re: Alternative to asphalt?

NeoPeasant · Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 10:16 am Post subject: Re: Alternative to asphalt?

I have read that asphalt is the world's most recyled material.

There won't be much need for additional roads or airstrips anyway. We will be turning our attention to maintaining what we still need and abandoning what we don't.
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socrates1fan · Heavy Crude Joined: Jun 04, 2008 Posts: 270

I've heard of tearing up asphalt and grinding it up but that requires a lot of power.
A few solutions to reduce need of asphalt.
Try to use things like concrete or even brick more. As the price of asphalt gets higher road maintenance will be harder.
Unfortunately concrete requires a lot of maintenance and brick does but not as much as concrete which cracks and crumbles.
The thing is, there is really no replacement for asphalt that is of as high quality and strength.
We can try to bear things like gravel or dirt roads more so and try to fill pot holes with concrete or gravel for now.
The expense of asphalt affects the ways of taking goods from point A to point B.
Semis and trucks can travel down roads covered in potholes or country roads. If it costs more for maintenance of trucks it will cuase not only food prices but store items in general to go up in price.
The US government needs to address this problem before highways and roads become covered with potholes.

emersonbiggins · Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 10:28 am Post subject: Re: Alternative to asphalt?

Concrete is phenomenally more expensive than asphalt, and there's no reason to think that would change anytime soon, despite asphalt prices running up at twice the rate of concrete right now.

Reed (great site for construction cost data)

^^^ Definitely check that site out. About the only product going down in price is lumber, due to the housing bust. Wooden roads, anyone? Surprised

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Fishman · Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 10:30 am Post subject: Re: Alternative to asphalt?

"The US government needs to address this problem, " thinking does not work anymore.

emersonbiggins · Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 10:50 am Post subject: Re: Alternative to asphalt?

Dreamtwister · Fission Joined: Feb 06, 2006 Posts: 2093

I think we just discovered the next big black market item: used asphalt!

I wonder how long it will be until the guys with broken noses start showing up in small towns in the middle of the night and ripping Main Street out...
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yesplease · Fission Joined: Oct 03, 2006 Posts: 2100

Starvid · Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 6:08 pm Post subject: Re: Alternative to asphalt?

In warm countries like Greece they don't use asphalt as the stuff melts and the oil seeps out of it and gets onto the road. Gets very slippery.

So they use concrete instead. If contemporary Greeks and 1930's Germans could afford concrete highways, anyone civilized can.
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Denny · Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 6:19 pm Post subject: Re: Alternative to asphalt?

I am not sure how much displacement there is of the petroleum content in glasphalt, but check this out, NY Times - Glasphalt

A great use for the surplus glass that is over and above the recycling demand.

cube · Fusion Joined: Mar 12, 2005 Posts: 3374

Starvid · Posted: Sun Jun 08, 2008 2:05 am Post subject: Re: Alternative to asphalt?

I didn't talk about about ancient Greeks, I talked about Greece today. They, the poorest people in EU-15, afford concrete roads.
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Peak oil is not an energy crisis. It is a liquid fuel crisis.

cube · Fusion Joined: Mar 12, 2005 Posts: 3374