Quality Enhancement of Bituminous Concrete Using Cenosphere Fillers

Bituminous concrete is used these days as the main ingredient for the manufacturing of high-strength roads and highways. However, due to high heat in the atmosphere, roads are severely affected due to water surpassing into the pavement. Regular maintenance and heavy traffic can cause damage to the road. In this context, the present work highlights the use of better quality material to enhance the strength of the bituminous concrete for roads. Cenosphere is part of the fly ash and due to its spherical shape and hollow structure, it is named as cenosphere. The cenosphere can be effectively utilized in the concrete to improve its quality as it helps in reducing stress due to water and heat, rutting and cracking. The modification in ingredients of the material mix of bituminous and cenosphere can effectively improve the quality of the road. In the present work, an experimental analysis of the material mix has been studied and validated. The evaluations were carried out using the Marshall stability test (MST). Both modified and conventional tests are done for validation in these experiments. This experimental study with proper laboratory validation can effectively help the researchers to further study the tensile strength and stability of the density in coal-based fly ash products such as the cenosphere-enhanced bituminous concrete material for roads.