Evaluation of Palm Oil Fuel Ash (POFA) on Asphalt Mixtures

Malaysia is the main crude palm oil supplier in the world. During the production of crude palm oil, a large amount of waste material is generated, such as palm oil fibers (husk), shells and empty fruit bunches (EFB). After combustion, about 5% of palm oil fuel ash (POFA) or boiler ash is produced. The mechanical properties of the modified asphalt mixtures were examined and compared with a conventional mixture. The physical properties of POFA were analyzed first. Asphalt concrete mixes having different percentages of POFA (0, 1, 3, 5 and 7%) as an additive of the mineral filler were prepared, and the materials passed through a 0.075 mm sieve. These samples were characterized using the Marshall stability, resilient modulus, static creep and dynamic creep tests and fatigue testing. The study showed that POFA-containing materials showed different performance levels but displayed more resistance to permanent deformation compared to the control mixtures