Practical test methods for measuring the zero shear viscosity of bituminous binders

摘要

When the zero shear viscosity (ZSV) is derived from a creep test, the creep time should be sufficiently long to obtain a steady state with a constant shear rate. The creep test works well for most conventional binders. Unfortunately, for polymer modified binders (PmBs), the long waiting times required to obtain a steady state are not always acceptable from a practical point of view and there are problems concerning the repeatability. This paper compares the steady state creep test to alternative test methods for the determination of the ZSV. One method is a short time creep/recovery test, with a short creep period and a longer recovery period, where the ZSV is derived from the recovery part. The other method is an oscillation test at low frequencies, where the complex viscosity is extrapolated to zero frequency to obtain the ZSV. Measurements are presented on a pure 70/100 binder and on a highly SBS-modified binder. While all methods give comparable and repeatable results for the case of the pure binder, complications occur for the highly modified binder. The oscillation method seems to be the most promising method.