Today, the transport network is one of the indicators of the level of economic development. High-quality road surface helps increase freight traffic and reduces transportation costs, and in urban infrastructure increases the throughput of congested streets. For over a hundred years, asphalt has been used as pavement.
Asphalt composition
This material may be of natural or artificial origin. In the first case, asphalt is a mixture of mineral materials with bitumen, the content of which can be up to 75%. Material of artificial origin, also called asphalt concrete, is made from a mixture of sand, gravel, mineral or polymer additives, bitumen. The content of the latter in it is usually 5-15%. At the present time, asphalt of natural origin is practically not used in paving.
Why do you need to know how many cubes per ton of asphalt?
When installing pavement , the volume of the required material is determined based on the asphalt area and layer thickness. But asphalt plants release the mixture in units of mass - tons. To get the right amount, you need to determine how many cubes in one ton of asphalt. A calculation error can be expensive. In case of insufficient amount of asphalt concrete the material will have to be ordered additionally. And this is not only unnecessary transportation costs, but also an unnecessary joint on the coating. If the ordered mixture is surplus, the excess material will remain unused.
In addition to the technical side of the issue, how many cubic meters per ton of asphalt, it is necessary to know for the preparation of estimates for construction.
Classification of asphalt mixtures
To answer the question “How many cubes per ton of asphalt?”, You need to know the density of the asphalt mix. Depending on the filler and additives used, the density of asphalt can vary significantly. Classification of asphalt mixtures takes into account the size and content of the filler.
Depending on the size of the filler, asphalt concrete is divided into:
- Coarse-grained, with a grain size of up to 40 mm.
- Fine-grained, fraction up to 20 mm.
- Sand, maximum size up to 10 mm.
The content of the filler distinguish the types of mixture:
- A - from 50 to 60% (only crushed stone);
- B - from 40 to 50% (gravel or gravel);
- B - from 30 to 40% (crushed stone or gravel);
- G - sand from screenings crushing;
- D - natural sand.
Convert cubic meters to tons of asphalt
In addition to the main characteristics, the specific gravity of asphalt concrete is affected by the content and grade of bitumen, the composition of mineral or polymer additives, and the temperature of the mixture. The specifics of local materials used in asphalt plants in each region are also taken into account. Therefore, the most correct decision is to call the nearest asphalt concrete plant and ask “1 cube of asphalt - how many tons?”.
Despite the variety of grades of asphalt, in VSN 14-95 “Instructions for the construction of road asphalt pavements” the following density values are given.
Fine-grained mixture:
- type "A" - 2 385 kg / m3;
- Type “B” - 2,370 kg / m3;
- type "B" - 2 343 kg / m3.
Given these values, in order to calculate how many cubes per ton of asphalt, it is necessary to divide one ton by the density of the mixture. For a fine-grained mixture of type “A”, 0.41 cubic meters of asphalt are in one ton.
Using old asphalt
In addition to installing a new pavement, it is often necessary to dismantle an existing asphalt layer. Dismantling is carried out by special equipment by the milling method. This material can be used to fill the lower layers of pavement, used to prepare a new asphalt mix, or simply taken to a landfill for disposal. In any case, you need to know the mass of the removed asphalt. Unfortunately, it is impossible to determine exactly how many cubes per ton of asphalt of the old pavement due to the heterogeneity of surfaces and differences in the sizes of the milling drum. In the averaged calculations, a conversion factor of 2.2 t / m3 is used.