THE ROADS OF TOMORROW ARE HERE! Utah is known for its beautiful landscape and four distinctive seasons, but in some circles, there are five seasons: spring, summer, winter, fall and pothole season. Drivers in Utah know all too well the adventure of dodging potholes in efforts to save their car’s suspension. In 2023 alone, Salt Lake City repaired over 38,000 potholes. Provo City, on average, uses 150 tons of asphalt per year to keep potholes repaired. Those are only two examples; the other 327+ cities in Utah have their own story to tell, and it all adds up to money spent. Additionally, with more roadways being built each year to keep up with Utah’s fast-growing population and the ongoing need for regular road maintenance, asphalt crews have their work cut out for them. The asphalt industry works hard — day and night — to keep roadways safe and free from hazards, like potholes, that can cause car damage and frustrate drivers. Keeping our roads in good repair may sometimes feel like an uphill battle. In June, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) shared some exciting news with the asphalt industry and citizens alike. The announcement garnered a lot of excitement as UDOT explained they had developed a weather-resistant, durable asphalt mix that would transform the way Utah is maintaining and repaving roads — reducing paving costs, time and repairs. In asphalt mixes, crushed rock is mixed with binders that act as glue. UDOT’s new asphalt blend, called HiMod high-density asphalt (HiMod), uses a significantly higher ratio of polymer in the asphalt binder than traditional asphalt mixes. The thicker, stickier result is much stronger than previously possible, meaning less wear and tear on the roads. This all started in 2013 when UDOT’s State Asphalt Engineer, Howard Anderson, learned about the new binder while attending a Federal Highway meeting. Howard came home with his curiosity piqued. He started working with UDOT’s binder suppliers and conducted tests, hoping to find a better way of maintaining Utah’s roadways. The first test was conducted on State Route 191 in 2015 and then on U.S. 6 near Soldier Summit. These two projects were dropped in at the standard mix design contents. From these projects, UDOT learned how to pump the HiMod binder and better control the formulation. From there, adjustments were made, and formulas were refined by their binder suppliers in an effort to get the blend right. Hamburg Rut Testing conducted by Clark Allen, UDOT’s Central Lab Mix Manager, proved the design could be drastically changed to allow for high binder contents and low void conditions that would facilitate a much more durable mix and thicker lift compaction. In June of 2021, after years of refinement, the new HiMod blend was placed by Lonnie Marchant, Region 2 Materials Engineer, at the I-80 Wendover Port of Entry near the border of Utah and Nevada. The test site was selected for its extremities: Temperatures regularly reach the triple digits in the summer and the single digits in the winter, and the port of entry experiences heavy truck traffic regularly decelerating and 12
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