5th Annual Asphalt Pavement Industry Survey on Recycled Materials and Warm-Mix Asphalt Usage

A shared goal of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA) is to support and promote sustainable practices, such as incorporating recycled materials in pavement mixtures and the use of warm-mix asphalt (WMA). The objective of this survey was to quantify the use of recycled materials, primarily RAP and RAS, and WMA produced by the asphalt pavement industry. This report documents the results of the 2014 industry survey, including the survey methodology,
results, trends, and changes from 2009 through 2014.

Highlight features & benefits

• Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement: The total estimated amount of RAP used in asphalt mixtures was 71.9 million tons in 2014, a 28 percent increase over the tons used in 2009 (56 million tons). This is a 6 percent increase over the tons used in 2013 (67.8 million tons). Assuming 5 percent liquid asphalt in RAP, this represents over 3.6 million tons (20 million barrels) of asphalt binder conserved.
  Reclaimed Asphalt Shingles: Use of both manufacturing waste and post-consumer shingles in asphalt mixtures increased to an all-time high of nearly 2 million tons in 2014, nearly a 20 percent increase from 2013 (1.6 million tons). Assuming a conservative asphalt content of 20 percent for the RAS that may be used to replace virgin binder, this represents 400,000 tons (2.2 million barrels) of asphalt binder conserved, along with 982,000 tons of aggregate.
• Warm-Mix Asphalt Technologies: Total tonnage of WMA was estimated at 113.8 million tons during 2014. This is nearly a 7 percent increase over 2013 WMA tonnage (106.4 million tons). As of 2014, WMA is now about one-third of the total asphalt mixture market. Plant foaming is used most often in producing WMA, with more than 84 percent of the market; additives accounted for about 16 percent of the market.