GRAPHENE NANO-PLATELET (GNP) REINFORCED ASPHALT BINDERS AND MIXTURES Mihai Octavian Marasteanu 1, a , Jia-Liang Le 1, b , Mugurel Ioan Turos 1, c 1 Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo- Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, United States a maras002@umn.edu b jle@umn.edu c turos001@umn.edu Digital Object Identifier (DOI): dx.doi.org/10.14311/EE.2016.104 ABSTRACT Researchers at the University of Minnesota have developed a graphene nano-platelets reinforced asphalt binder that has superior mechanical properties over pavement service temperatures, compared to existing binder formulations. The costs of these materials are comparable to polymer modified binders that are considered as best performers in pavement construction. Examples will be presented to show that for some formulations, asphalt binder strength at low temperatures doubled compared to the original binder, and fracture energy increases significantly for asphalt mixtures. It was also found that the addition of graphene nano-platelets significantly reduces the compaction effort required to prepare asphalt mixtures. For some formulations, the reduction in compaction effort is more than half of the original mixtures. Results will be presented for mixture test samples prepared using traditional mixture preparation, as well as mixture test samples prepared from loose mix. The effect on rutting behavior is also discussed Keywords: Asphalt, Compaction, Complex Modulus, Fracture-toughness, Low-Temperature E&E Congress 2016 | 6th Eurasphalt & Eurobitume Congress | 1-3 June 2016 | Prague, Czech Republic