Pavement recycling by stabilisation is a widely accepted and common practice technique in New Zealand and around the world for carrying out pavement maintenance and rehabilitation works.

Hiway Stabilizers have been instrumental in developing pavement recycling processes in New Zealand and are involved in numerous long term road maintenance contracts around the country.

The Process

Pavement recycling can be incorporated into various types of roading works including maintenance patching, rehabilitations, area wide pavement treatments, seal smoothings, seal extensions or anywhere there is an existing pavement that has failed or requires improving.

The process involves the mixing of stabilising binder(s) with the existing pavement thereby greatly improving the pavements strength and its ability to support traffic loads. The process can incorporate make up aggregate to provide shape to the area prior to stabilising and extra strength to the pavement. The process can also be accompanied by an aggregate overlay either prior to or following stabilising.

Reactivity, moisture content and environmental issues are significant factors to be considered when recycling a pavement.

Benefits of Pavement Recycling

Recycling of an existing deteriorating pavement by stabilisation utilises the existing pavement materials and has the following significant benefits:

• Transforms a failing pavement into a structurally sound pavement with minimal effort. 
• Significantly reduces the need to cut to waste the failed pavement material. 
• Significantly reduces the amount of imported material required to rebuild the pavement. 
• Conserves aggregate resources. 
• Greatly reduces the necessary truck traffic movements.
• Minimises inconvenience to the public by the speed and efficiency of the process. 
• Able to complete significantly more area pavement rehabilitating than conventional "dig out" methods in the same time period.

Binder Selection

Correct binder selection is of paramount importance to the effectiveness on the pavement recycling process. The make up of the pavement to be stabilised must be known. This must include the aggregate type, depth and reactivity and subgrade type and strength. Unless this information is known from past experience, then a pavement investigation will be necessary. Samples from this investigation should then be taken to a laboratory for reactivity testing to determine the most appropriate stabilisation binder(s) and application rate(s) to use.

Hiway Stabilizers have an in depth knowledge of local material types through out New Zealand and are able to advise what binders are best suited to most situations.

Current binders available for pavement recycling are:

• Lime
• Cement
• Cement blends
• KOBM Binder™
• Durabind™

Summary

Pavement recycling by stabilisation is a proven and cost effective technique for rehabilitating failed pavements.

Hiway Stabilizers are experts in this method of pavement rehabilitation with specialist rehabilitation and maintenance patching crews capable of performing the complete pavement repair including traffic control, metal placement and seal preparation or of providing the specialist stabilising portion of the repair only. 

Our Komatsu GS360 stabilising hoes are ideally suited to pavement recycling as they are rubber tyred mounted and so do not damage existing pavements, are road registered and so do not need to be transported from site to site, are equipped with rotor side shift for manoeuvring around services and are equipped with water injection facilities directly into the rotor chamber for the controlled and even application of water to the stabilised mix.

This high level of experience, expertise and plant resource ensures high production out puts and the highest quality standards are achieved.