Center for Transportation Research and Education

About the research

The overarching goal of this work is to develop a guidebook for the application of polymer-modified asphalt cement (PMA) overlays and thereby promote the adoption of this novel, cost-effective, and robust pavement preservation technique.The purpose of this guidebook is to ensure that PMA overlays are chosen when they are the most viable or most efficient technique, and appropriate implementation practices are taken considering the performance targets. To this end, the existing knowledge related to PMA overlays, polymer-modified asphalt materials, and pavement management is agglomerated and utilized to develop guidelines for decision-making, design, and construction aspects associated with PMA overlay application. Considering the successful experience of Iowa DOT in using PMA overlays, the researchers deem the objectives pursued by this work extremely timely and expect the final product to significantly facilitate this technology’s implementation in Iowa as well as other states.