Aggregate Industries has launched a reduced carbon asphalt that is 100% recyclable and ideal for the construction, repair and maintenance of new or existing highways; Foamix offers a truly sustainable solution for base and binder course layers, and is suitable for use in highways, footways and haunching works.
A cold-mix asphalt that does not require its source materials to be processed with heat, Foamix delivers significantly less CO2 compared to standard asphalt products. There is no compromise on performance, giving equivalent bearing capacity to standard asphalt, with a proven track record for increased cohesion and strength.
Containing 92% recycled materials, including 85% reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP), Foamix promotes a circular economy approach to road construction by reducing the requirement for virgin aggregates. It can be manufactured on site where construction is taking place using Aggregate Industries’ Sitebatch Technologies mobile mixing plants, meaning the team can re-process locally sourced planings from the existing road asset – either on site or at a nearby location – ensuring Foamix can be placed, compacted, and put into immediate use. This significantly minimises HGV movements across the local road network, construction times, user disruption and delivers a significantly lower scheme carbon footprint.
What’s more, Foamix can be laid in one single lift up to 150mm thick using conventional surfacing equipment and laying techniques and does not require any additional specialist labour.
Foamix is being launched under Aggregate Industries’ newly established Surfacing Solutions team, which combines the expertise of the contracting and asphalt divisions to offer contractors and specifiers a whole-chain approach to product specification.
Thomas Edgcumbe, Managing Director for Surfacing Solutions at Aggregate Industries, said: “As a business we’re committed to providing materials and solutions that assist in the immediate and sustained action as we transition to a more sustainable construction industry. We are changing the way we construct and the launch of Foamix is yet another step towards that goal.”
Foamix has already been used as part of a comprehensive suite of materials on the UK’s first carbon-neutral highway construction scheme between the M6, 36 junction and Brettargh Holt roundabout. The works formed part of the estimated £8m award winning A590 Brettargh Holt scheme, which was designed with a low carbon strategy in mind to deliver safer and smoother journeys for road users.
As pavement experts, Aggregate Industries collaborated with AE Yates, Amey Consulting and National Highways to engineer a pavement design and material specification that would unlock significant carbon reductions and cost benefits utilising Aggregate Industries’ bespoke ex-situ cold recycled Foamix solution.
For more information on Foamix, visit www.aggregate.com/foamix
