ROADMAKING IN EXCESSIVE COLD CONDITIONS
The construction and maintenance of roads with flexible pavements in very cold regions where annual temperatures range between +30oC to -35oC has got its own challenges. The bitumen in the asphalt layer becomes hard at such low temperatures and thus become brittle. This results into cracks on the surface of wearing course. Moreover, the phenomena of Freezing and Thawing has a detrimental effect on the non-bituminous pavement layers, especially on the subgrade.
Vivek Singh, Founder, BuildStreet
Bitumen in Cold Weather
The bitumen used in asphalt layer is also important. Normally we use high viscosity low penetration bitumen in order to have better resistance to high temperatures. But these grades of bitumen become brittle at low temperatures. Therefore, bitumen having low viscosity and high penetration value is considered to be more suitable in extreme cold conditions. The IRC:37 recommends VG10 grade for cold conditions (equivalent to 80/100 penetration grade).
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NBM&CW March 2022
