Laboratory investigations on bituminous concrete mixtures utilizing foundry sand

Abstract

Foundry sand is a byproduct of the molding industry, produced during the molding and core-making production processes. Sands are reused several times before being discarded. This research work reports the effect of foundry sand (FS) mineral filler (MF) aggregate on characteristics of bituminous concrete grading-2 (BC-2) mixtures and compares the test results with the traditional BC-2 mixtures. The Marshall mixture design method is adopted to assess the optimal bitumen content at 4% air voids for bituminous concrete grading-2 specimens prepared using 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 percent FSMF (Foundry Sand Mineral Filler) content. Split tensile strength test and water resistivity test were conducted to study the performance characteristics of
BC-2 mixes. Laboratory test results showed that by increasing percentage of foundry sand mineral filler (FSMF) aggregate in bituminous grading – 2 mixtures, stability, split tensile strength, and moisture resistance augmented.