A review of using porous asphalt pavement as an alternative to conventional pavement in stormwater treatment

Purpose Porous asphalt has been used for than 50 years, but it was originally developed in 1970 at Franklin institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. By 1974 the first formalized procedure was created by the federal highway administration to design mixtures. Many researches on porous asphalt mixture have been conducted for the past two decades. However, there remains some concern about the potential adverse impacts of infiltrated surface water on the underlying groundwater. The purpose of this paper is to presents a short review on the application of porous asphalt pavement stormwater treatment. Design/methodology/approach In this paper, a critical review on history and benefits is presented followed by review of general studies of using porous asphalt pavement, and some recent scientific studies that examine potential contamination of soil and groundwater because of infiltration systems. Findings This paper indicates that porous asphalt pavement is more efficient than conventional pavements in terms of retaining pollutants, improving the quality of water and runoff while maintaining infiltration. Originality/value This paper may also help reduce land consumption by reducing the need for traditional storm-water management structures. However, on the other hand, the priority objectives which is minimizing increased flooding and pollution risks while increasing performance efficiency and enhancing local environmental quality-of-life is achieved.