Readers response - Porous Asphalt is King of the Road - Revised 15/10

In the article “Porous Asphalt Is King of the Road”, Pave Green (n.d.) believes that porous asphalt is “King of the Road”.  According to Pave Green (n.d.), porous asphalt improves safety, reduces erosion and mitigates water pollution, while giving back to the earth. Porous asphalt roads prove to be a sustainable method in reducing pollution due to its natural filtration ability. One of the best applications is found in stormwater management where rainwater can flow through it, reducing the risk of floods. It can be used on superhighways where it enhances the safety of the road users especially during winter climates. Pave Green (n.d.) supports the reduced usage of chlorine-laden treatments used in deicing and anti-icing practices which contain harmful agents that can be detrimental to the environment and quality of water. Porous asphalt is significantly more cost-effective and environmentally friendly as compared to its conventional counterpart. While I agree with the positive impacts of porous asphalt used in pavements, I feel that the way Pave Green explained the article is highly biased towards the benefits of porous asphalt. The lack of information regarding the disadvantages of porous asphalt remain unknown, resulting in an unreliable article source. With reference from other sources, I have found some disadvantages of using porous asphalt, some of which include its lifespan, maintenance and the complexity of the material.

One problem with porous asphalt lies in its lack of longevity. The lifespan of porous asphalt ranges from 15 to 20 years depending on how well the asphalt is maintained. As compared to its conventional counterpart, concrete can last for 50 years and even longer without any major repairs. (Concrete Supply Co. n.d.) Short lifespan limits the usages of permeable asphalt in many applications. For example, in outdoor carparks or areas with high traffic. In the event of repairs or replacements of porous asphalt roads, it can be time consuming and a waste of resources. I feel that this is not the way to progress in our urban society as "time is money". Instead, the resources would be more beneficial in other areas.

Another problem with porous asphalt is its high maintenance. In order for porous asphalt to achieve its optimum lifespan of 20 years, it is crucial to maintain the condition of the porous asphalt. Porous asphalt are susceptible to the clogging at the surface and subsurface void areas, resulting in lower permeability performance. Due to its porosity, it is important that there are no debris which inhibit the ability for water to flow through freely. In my opinion, this is one critical disadvantage of porous asphalt as when its pores are clogged, it loses its filtering ability and acts as a conventional asphalt. In order to maintain the permeability of the porous asphalt, it is necessary to perform vacuum sweeping two times per year, and precautions must be taken to avoid the build up of organic matter or fine sand from clogging. (Eisenberg, B. Lindow, K. C. & Smith, D. R., 2015) This only one of the few inspection and maintenance tasks carried out to ensure that reliability of the permeability which results in a higher maintenance cost as compared to conventional asphalt roads. 

The last problem with porous asphalt lies in the complexity of the martial. The porous material consists of a higher binding content (Zannoni, 2019). Where with heavy loads from industrial vehicles or cars, the bindings may fail to support the weight effectively. This results in higher costs when constructing thicker layers to compensate for the lack of toughness. (Matsumoto, 2012) This also adds on to porosity loss due to the compaction dealt by heavy traffic, especially on busy routes. I feel that this would create dents in the asphalt which make the road uneven and pose a threat to its users. 

Although Pave Green (n.d.) supports the use of porous asphalt in roadworks and pavements, their stand could have been less biased towards the benefits and possibly strike a balance by including the liabilities that follow.

(666 words)

References

Concrete Supply Co.. (n.d.)  "Concrete vs. Asphalt: Roads, Parking Lots & Driveways" https://concretesupplyco.com/concrete-vsasphalt/#:~:text=On%20average%2C%20asphalt%20is%20thought,to%20last%20for%2020%20years.

Eisenberg, B. Lindow, K. C. Smith, D. R.. 2015. Permeable Pavements. American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). https://app.knovel.com/hotlink/toc/id:kpPP000029/permeable-pavements/permeable-pavements

Matsumoto, L. Holdhusen, B. Lebens, M. September 2012. “Porous Asphalt Pavement Performance in Cold Regions.” http://www.dot.state.mn.us/research/TS/2012/201212TS.pdf

Pave Green (n.d.) "Porous Asphalt Is King of the Road" http://www.pavegreen.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=58:king-

Zanoni, L. January 2019. "The Benefits of Using Porous Asphalt Pavement in Comparison with Other Forms of Pervious Pavements" https://www.il-asphalt.org/files/3715/4896/1291/Luke_Zanoni_2018_UIUCgo.pdf

Revised <15 October 2020>

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