Development and evaluation of cenospheres/polyethylene glycol composite microcapsule for temperature-regulation of asphalt pavements

ABSTRACT

In this study, a phase change material microcapsule was produced by using cenospheres as the microcapsule shell, polyethylene glycol 2000 as the phase change material, and silica sol as the sealing material. The produced CenoPCM microcapsule was analyzed using scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The thermal properties and stability of the CenoPCM were evaluated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TG), and a thermal cycling test. The results showed that the phase change temperature and enthalpy of the CenoPCM were 55.7°C and 101.4 J/g, respectively, with a mass loss of 2.35% at 200°C. After 200 thermal cycles, the mass change remained stable at 2.05%. An outdoor test was conducted to assess the impact of CenoPCM on the thermal performance of asphalt mixtures. In comparison with conventional asphalt mixture specimens, the maximum temperature differences at depths of 2, 5, and 8 cm below the surface of the phase change asphalt mixture specimens were 4.9°C, 6.4°C, and 5.9°C, respectively. Finally, the influence of CenoPCM on the performance of asphalt mixtures was evaluated, revealing a promising future for its use in asphalt pavements.

KEYWORDS:

• Cenospheres
• polyethylene glycol 2000
• asphalt mixtures
• thermal performance
• road performance

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Gansu Construction Science and Technology Key Project: [Grant No. JKR2021-07]; the Lanzhou Talent Innovation and Entrepreneurship Project: [Grant No. 2018-RC-57]; the National Natural Science Foundation of China: [Grant No. 52068043].