Polymer Modified Bitumen Rigebit Modified

A qualified response to the environmental requirements in the road sector

Road network paving and maintenance activities are now increasingly guided by environmental protection principles, which have two important practical aspects:

• reduction in operating temperatures
• reuse of milled asphalt materials from old paving layers.

The use of lower temperatures and the consequent energy savings translate as lower CO₂ emissions into the atmosphere, while the possibility of using materials recovered from old roads in the operating cycle makes it possible to exploit “waste” and reduce the use of virgin quarry materials.
Due to the maximum attention to environmental sustainability aspects Road Authority, Paving Contractors, Research Centres, Universities and laboratories experiment innovative technologies promoting the use of low temperatures and recycling of removed asphalt, the objective being to maintain performance levels similar to those obtained with traditional application technologies.
And this is the aim of Eni Research in developing the RIGEBIT polymer modified bitumen, a new binder for top-level and long-life roads which are easy to apply and use and offer a wide range of operating temperatures, considerably lower than those recommended for classic polymer modified bitumen.
A further benefit of application possible using RIGEBIT bitumen is that a contribution is made to the environment in terms of the use of old materials, such as milled asphalt o which can still be used effectively, thereby reducing the need for new quarry materials. Another positive aspect is the reduction in energy consumption in the production cycle for the asphalt mix compared to traditional hot mix asphalts, thanks to the reduction in operating temperatures and the consequent reduction in emissions as a result of saving fuel.

Polymer Modified Bitumen Eni Rigebit: binders for warm applications and for recycling

RIGEBIT bitumen are special binders obtained through a process in a specific plant, starting with select bituminous bases, modified with polymers and enriched with suitable additives.
RIGEBIT bitumen exists in two grades: RIGEBIT 60 and RIGEBIT HM 30.

Characteristics and performance

The special formulation adopted in their preparation provides superior characteristics in terms of adequate viscosity, in order to facilitate its application and compaction at operating temperatures lower than those commonly used for traditional hot mixes.
The adopted formula aim to reach high fluidity of the binder without any hazard of segregation of the final conglomerate.
Reducing the difference between the temperatures of compaction and temperature of the air, it is possible to extend the season of the paving works, doing the maintenance operations with better use of the resources.

Applications

RIGEBIT, therefore, are the ideal products for particular applications such as the following:

• when it is requested a good workability of the asphalt mix, in critical climatic and external temperature conditions;
• when using a classic polymer modified bitumen could make effective application difficult;
• in recycling applications, making it possible to reuse the old material as road paving with high performance levels in terms of duration and mechanical resistance.