Photocatalytic Asphalt Pavements for the Port of Antwerp (PAPPoA): a feasibility study (Port of the future).

Asphalt pavements need to be able to withstand the effects of weather (i.e. UV, rain, and freeze-thaw cycles) and (heavy) traffic loading during their service life, while maintaining the necessary mechanical performance, e.g. limited rutting, fatigue resistance and water resistance, and providing comfortable and safe driving conditions in terms of the surface properties, taking into account mostly skid resistance and texture. Recently, not only investigations related to the mechanical performance or overall environmental impact of asphalt pavements are conducted, but more attention is given towards smart pavements, e.g. photocatalytic pavements. In most cases, TiO2 nanoparticles (semiconductor material) are used in the field of photocatalysis for many purposes, mostly for air and water-pollutant photocatalytic degradation, as it is effective, non-toxic, easily available and cheap. Due to the huge surface area of road pavements and its vicinity to the exhaust gases from automobiles, the photocatalytic capability is quoted as promising for air-cleaning. TiO2 is able to react under UV-light (only 3-5% of the sunlight spectrum) with pollutant gases, such as NOx and SO2, creating water-soluble nitrates and sulfates respectively, which are easily removed from the asphalt pavement by rain. It also has the potential to degrade soot, (spilled) oil and volatile organic compounds (VOC). In this project, we want i) to further investigate further the effects of traffic on the photocatalytic efficiency, ii) to determine possible effects on traffic safety (skid resistance) and iii) to develop an in-situ test setup to measure the NOx reduction.

Keywords:AIR PURIFICATION, ASPHALT, TITANIUM DIOXIDE, PHOTOCATALYSIS

Disciplines:Atmospheric sciences, challenges and pollution not elsewhere classified, Construction materials, Destructive and non-destructive testing of materials, Functionalisation of materials