Optimum Use of Plastic Waste to Enhance the Marshall Properties and Moisture Resistance of Hot Mix Asphalt

The vast quantities of plastic waste resulting from the different types and sizes of bottles which are used to contain all types of liquid products such as (Mineral Water, Oils, and detergents ….etc) in municipal solid waste is increasing in the last years due to increase in population, development activities and changes in life style. Thus disposal of plastic waste is a menace and becomes a serious problem globally due to their non- biodegradability and unaesthetic view. This paper focused on Marshall test and index of retained strength to determine the properties of plastic waste particles such as (size, thickness, and percent of content) which provide the ultimate performance of hot mix asphalt. For this purpose plastic wastes were added by six different sizes of particles (passing sieve 3/4 (19.0 mm) to retaining on sieve No.50 (0.3 mm)), four thicknesses (0.2, 0.5, 0.8 and 1.0) mm, and five content percentages (5, 10, 15, 20 and 25) % by weight of total aggregate. On the basis of experimental results, it was concluded that adding plastic waste with fine particles size ,thin thickness and at 15% by weight of total aggregate resulted in improving the Marshall stability and resistance to water damage, as well as they can contribute to relieve some of the environmental problems caused by classical plastic waste disposal means.