Biofuel co-product uses for pavement geo-materials stabilization : final report, April 2010.

Final reportPDFTech ReportIHRB Project TR-582InTrans Project 08-316Biomass fuelsPavementsSubgrade (Pavements)Soil stabilizationSustainable developmentIowaIowa. Dept. of TransportationGopalakrishnan, KasthuriranganCeylan, HalilKim, SunghwanIowa State University. Institute for TransportationIowa. Highway Research BoardIowa. Dept. of TransportationNTL-HIGHWAY/ROAD TRANSPORTATION-Pavement Management and PerformanceNTL-HIGHWAY/ROAD TRANSPORTATION-Soils and GeologyUS Transportation CollectionThe production and use of biofuels has increased in the present context of sustainable development. Biofuel production from plantbiomass produces not only biofuel or ethanol but also co-products containing lignin, modified lignin, and lignin derivatives. Thisresearch investigated the utilization of lignin-containing biofuel co-products (BCPs) in pavement soil stabilization as a new applicationarea. Laboratory tests were conducted to evaluate the performance and the moisture susceptibility of two types of BCP-treated soilsamples compared to the performance of untreated and traditional stabilizer-treated (fly ash) soil samples. The two types of BCPsinvestigated were (1) a liquid type with higher lignin content (co-product A) and (b) a powder type with lower lignin content (coproductB). Various additive combinations (co-product A and fly ash, co-products A and B, etc.) were also evaluated as alternatives tostand-alone co-products. Test results indicate that BCPs are effective in stabilizing the Iowa Class 10 soil classified as CL or A-6(8) andhave excellent resistance to moisture degradation. Strengths and moisture resistance in comparison to traditional additives (fly ash)could be obtained through the use of combined additives (co-product A + fly ash; co-product A + co-product B).Utilizing BCPs as a soil stabilizer appears to be one of the many viable answers to the profitability of the bio-based products and thebioenergy business. Future research is needed to evaluate the freeze-thaw durability and for resilient modulus characterization of BCPmodifiedlayers for a variety of pavement subgrade and base soil types. In addition, the long-term performance of these BCPs should beevaluated under actual field conditions and traffic loadings. Innovative uses of BCP in pavement-related applications could not onlyprovide additional revenue streams to improve the economics of biorefineries, but could also serve to establish green roadinfrastructures