About Asphalt: Alternatives

The world has become increasingly concerned over the global climate change problem in recent years due to the pollution that is released into the atmosphere. Most of the emissions are derived primarily from burning fossil fuels. This has led to the introduction of bitumen alternatives that are more environmentally friendly and non toxic. Bitumen can now be made from non-petroleum based renewable resources such as sugar, molasses and rice, corn and potato starches etc. To further help the environment bitumen can also be made from the waste material vacuum tower bottoms produced in the process of cleaning used motor oils which helps the recycling industries, this waste is normally disposed by burning or dumping into land fills. These new non-petroleum based bitumen binders can be colored, which thereby help reduce the temperatures of road surfaces which contribute to the Urban heat island which in turn contributes to global climate change. For millions of people living in and around cities, heat islands are of growing concern. This phenomenon describes urban and suburban temperatures that are 2 to 10°F (1 to 6°C) hotter than nearby rural areas Elevated temperatures can impact communities by increasing peak energy demand, air conditioning costs, air pollution levels, and heat-related illness and mortality. Fortunately, there are common-sense measures that communities can take to reduce the negative effects of heat islands, such as replacing conventional black asphalt road surfaces with the new pigmentable bitumen that gives lighter colors.

Asphalt made from non-petroleum based renewable resources is world first breakthrough asphalt bitumen technology which was invented and pioneered in Australia by Ecopave AustraliaTM with the first field trial laid in the 1980's and early 1990's [4]. The bitumen asphalt called GEO320TM is made from water soluble plant and vegetable based waste materials such as molasses, sugar, palm oil waste, peanut oil waste, corn oil waste etc and vegetable oils and starches such as from corn, rice and potato's and the waste material derived from the distillation process of cleaning used motor oils (bottoms).

Asphalt made with vegetable based binders was patented by Colas SA in France in 2004 (Vegecol), Colas was originally owned by the Royal Dutch Shell.

A number of homeowners seeking an environmentally-friendly alternative to asphalt for paving have experimented with waste vegetable oil as a binder for driveways and parking areas in single-family applications. The earliest known test occurred in 2002 in Ohio, where the homeowner combined waste vegetable oil with dry aggregate to create a low-cost and non-polluting paving material for his 200-foot driveway. After five years, he reports the driveway is performing as well or better than petroleum-based materials.

This movement has led the Shell Oil Company (see also, Controversies surrounding Royal Dutch Shell) to pave two public roads in Sweden in 2007 with the Colas vegetable-oil-based asphalt. Results of this study are still premature.

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