Standard Method of Test for

Accelerated Aging of Bituminous Sealants

and Fillers with a Vacuum Oven

AASHTO Designation: TP 86-10 (2013)

1. SCOPE
1.1. This method applies to bituminous crack sealants and fillers used in the construction and
maintenance of roadways.

1.2. The method covers the accelerated aging of the bituminous materials by means of elevated
temperatures and vacuum.

1.3. This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use.
It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish and follow appropriate health and
safety practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

2. REFERENCED DOCUMENTS
2.1. AASHTO Standards:
 TP 85, Apparent Viscosity of Hot-Poured Bituminous Crack Sealant Using Brookfield
Rotational Viscometer RV Series Instrument
 TP 87, Measure Low-Temperature Flexural Creep Stiffness of Bituminous Sealants and
Fillers by Bending Beam Rheometer (BBR)
 TP 88, Evaluation of the Low-Temperature Tensile Property of Bituminous Sealants by Direct
Tension Test
 TP 89, Measuring Adhesion of Hot-Poured Crack Sealant Using Direct Adhesion Tester

2.2. ASTM Standards:

 D 5167, Standard Practice for Melting of Hot-Applied Joint and Crack Sealant and Filler for
Evaluation
 D 6521, Standard Practice for Accelerated Aging of Asphalt Binder Using a Pressurized
Aging Vessel (PAV)
 E 77, Standard Test Method for Inspection and Verification of Thermometers
 E 145, Standard Specification for Gravity-Convection and Forced-Ventilation Ovens

2.3. Sealant Consortium (SC) Standards:1

 SC-1, Guidelines for Graded Bituminous Sealants
 SC-2, Test Method for Measuring Apparent Viscosity of Hot-Poured Crack Sealant Using
Brookfield Rotational Viscometer RV Series Instrument
 SC-4, Sealant Flow and Deformation
 SC-5, Test Method to Measure Low-Temperature Sealant Flexural Creep Stiffness at Low
Temperature by Bending Beam Rheometry

TS-4e TP 86-1 AASHTO

© 2013 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.
All rights reserved. Duplication is a violation of applicable law.
  SC-6, Test Method to Evaluate Sealant Extensibility at Low Temperature by Direct Tension
Test
 SC-8, Blister Method to Predict the Adhesion of Bituminous Sealants

3. TERMINOLOGY
3.1. bituminous sealants and fillers—polymer- or rubber-modified bitumens most often formulated
with a mineral filler.

4. SUMMARY OF METHOD
4.1. Crack sealant material is placed in a stainless steel pan and aged at 115°C for 16 h under a vacuum
of 29.9 in. of mercury.

5. SIGNIFICANCE AND USE

5.1. This procedure is designed to simulate the aging and weathering of bituminous sealants and fillers.

5.2. Materials aged with this procedure are best used to evaluate sub-zero characteristics.

5.3. For materials with different bitumen source, polymer grade, and filler types and content, there is
no unique correlation between the accelerated conditions and the time of in-service weathering.
The accelerated aging leads to sealant rheology typical of sealants weathered 1 to 10 years in
the field.

5.4. Sealants must be remixed before being aged by this method.

6. APPARATUS
6.1. Vacuum Oven—Oven with a vacuum valve, a bleed valve, and a pressure gauge in inches of
mercury. The oven must be capable of maintaining a vacuum of 29.9 in. of mercury and a
uniform temperature of 115° ± 1°C. Refer to ASTM E 145 to verify temperature uniformity. The
oven should be of a size sufficient to accommodate a minimum of eight sample pans of 6 in. on
two shelves.

6.2. Vacuum Pump—A one or two-stage mechanical pump capable of achieving a vacuum of 99.9
percent or better in 10 min or less. See Note 1.
Note 1—At sea level, the achievable vacuum is 29.92 in. of mercury. See the appendix for the
effect of elevation on the achievable vacuum reading.

6.3. Laboratory Oven—Calibrated Type IIA oven specified in ASTM E 145. This oven can produce
and maintain a temperature of 180° ± 0.5°C.

6.4. Stainless Steel Pans—Pans of sufficient dimensions such that 30 g of melted sealant will provide a
film about 2 mm thick. See Note 2.
Note 2—PAV pans, used in ASTM D 6521, work well for the purpose of Section 6.4.

TS-4e TP 86-2 AASHTO

© 2013 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.
All rights reserved. Duplication is a violation of applicable law.
7. HAZARDS
7.1. Standard laboratory caution should be used in handling and remixing hot sealant in accordance to
ASTM D 5167.

8. VERIFICATION AND CALIBRATION

8.1. Temperature and vacuum control of the ovens should be calibrated according to each user’s
quality assurance program.

8.2. Temperature Detector—Verify the calibration of the temperature-sensing device to 0.1°C every
6 months in accordance with ASTM E 77 for liquid-in-glass thermometers.

8.3. Vacuum Gauge—Calibrate the vacuum gauge to an accuracy of 1 percent every 6 months.

8.4. Verify that the sought temperature is obtained within 1 h after the application of vacuum. An
example is shown in Figure 1.
125
Upper shelf
Temperature, °C

Vacuum
120

115

Bottom shelf
110
0 5 10 15 20
Time, h
Figure 1—Typical Change in Temperature over Time at a Top
and Bottom Shelf of a Vacuum Oven before and after Evacuation

9. PREPARATION
9.1. Apply vacuum and preheat the vacuum oven to 115° ± 1°C. This typically takes 2 to 4 h.

9.2. Preheat the laboratory oven to 180° ± 5°C.

9.3. Remix 400 to 500 g of material according to ASTM D 5167. Pour 30 ± 0.5 g of hot material into a
stainless steel pan. This provides a sealant film about 2 mm thick. See Note 3.
Note 3—At the same time, samples can be poured for other tests, including the tracking test
(TP 85 [SC-2]), the low-temperature tests (TP 87 [SC-5] and TP 88 [SC-6]), and the adhesion test
(TP 89 [SC-7]).

10. PROCEDURE
10.1. Close the vacuum valve on the vacuum oven and slowly open the bleed valve. Once atmospheric
pressure is reached, open the door and place the sealant pan in the oven. The oven door must be
left opened for less than 1 min. Reapply vacuum by opening the vacuum valve. See Note 4.
Note 4—During this step, the vacuum pump must be left running.

TS-4e TP 86-3 AASHTO

© 2013 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.
All rights reserved. Duplication is a violation of applicable law.
10.2. Start timing once the vacuum has reached 29 in. of mercury. Maintain a vacuum better than 29 in.
of mercury and a temperature of 115° ± 1°C for 16 h ± 10 min.

10.3. After 16 h, slowly release the vacuum with the bleed valve and transfer the pan to the oven
preheated to 180°C. Heat the sealant for 5 min or until it is sufficiently fluid to pour into shape for
the tests according to SC-2, SC-4, SC-5, or SC-6. Pans may be scraped to collect maximum
amount of sealant. See Note 5.
Note 5—Allow 24 h at room temperature before an evaluation of the properties according to
SC-4, TP 87 [SC-5], or TP 88, [SC-6].

11. REPORT
11.1. Report the following information:

11.1.1. Sealant name and supplier;

11.1.2. Lot number, date received;

11.1.3. Date aged;

11.1.4. Aging temperature and vacuum;

11.1.5. Total aging time in hours and minutes; and

11.1.6. Any deviations from test temperature and vacuum.

12. PRECISION AND BIAS

12.1. The precision and the bias for this method of test have not been measured.

13. KEYWORDS
13.1. Aging; cracks; guidelines; joints; maintenance; pavement; roadways; sealant; specification.

14. REFERENCES
14.1. Al-Qadi, I. L., J. F. Masson, E. Fini, S. H. Yang, and K. K. McGhee. Development of
Performance-Based Guidelines for Selection of Bituminous-Based Hot-Poured Pavement Crack
Sealant: An Executive Summary Report. VTRC 09-CR7. Virginia Transportation Research
Council, Charlottesville, VA, 2009. [Reference for SC-1–7]
http://vtrc.virginiadot.org/PubDetails.aspx?PubNo=09-CR7

14.2. Al-Qadi, I. L., E. H. Fini, K. K. McGhee, and M. A. Elseifi. Development of Apparent Viscosity
Test for Hot-Poured Crack Sealants, Final Report. No. ICT-08-027, Illinois Center for
Transportation, Rantoul, IL, December 2008(b). [Reference for SC-2]
http://ict.illinois.edu/Publications/report%20files/ICT-08-027.pdf

14.3. Al-Qadi, I. L., J. F. Masson, A. Loulizi, P. Collins, J. R. Woods, S. Bundalo-Perc, and K. K.

McGhee. Long-Term Accelerated Aging and Low Temperature BBR Testing of Sealants. Interim
Report No. B5508-5, National Research Council of Canada, 2004, 262 pp. [Reference for SC-3 –
printed document only]

TS-4e TP 86-4 AASHTO

© 2013 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.
All rights reserved. Duplication is a violation of applicable law.
14.4. Al-Qadi, I. L., S. H. Yang, M. A. Elseifi, S. Dessouky, A. Loulizi, J. F. Masson, and K. K.
McGhee. Characterization of Low Temperature Creep Properties of Crack Sealants Using
Bending Beam Rheometry, Final Report. No. ICT-08-029, Illinois Center for Transportation,
Rantoul, IL, December 2008. [Reference for SC-5]
http://ict.illinois.edu/Publications/report%20files/ICT-08-029.pdf

14.5. Al-Qadi, I. L., S. H. Yang, J. F. Masson, and K. K. McGhee. Characterization of Low

Temperature Mechanical Properties of Crack Sealants Utilizing Direct Tension Test, Final
Report. No. ICT-08-028, Illinois Center for Transportation, Rantoul, IL, December 2008.
[Reference for SC-6] http://ict.illinois.edu/Publications/report%20files/ICT-08-028.pdf

14.6. Al-Qadi, I. L., E. H. Fini, H. D. Figueroa, J. F. Masson, and K. K. McGhee. Adhesion Testing
Procedure for Hot-Poured Crack Sealants, Final Report. No. ICT-08-026, Illinois Center for
Transportation, Rantoul, IL, December 2008. [Reference for SC-7 and SC-8]
http://ict.illinois.edu/Publications/report%20files/ICT-08-026.pdf

14.7. Collins, P., M. Veitch, J. F. Masson, and I. L. Al-Qadi. “Deformation and Tracking of Bituminous
Sealants in Summer Temperatures: Pseudo-Field Behavior.” International Journal of Pavement
Engineering, Vol. 9, No. 1, 2008, pp. 1–8. [Reference for SC-4]

APPENDIX
(Nonmandatory Information)

X1. EFFECT OF ELEVATION ON THE ACHIEVABLE VACUUM READING

X1.1. The vacuum reading on the oven gauge depends on the atmospheric pressure outside the oven,
which depends on elevation (excluding the effect of weather on pressure). The maximum
achievable vacuum reading (P) at an elevation h is given by

P(h) = P0 exp(–mgh/kT) (1)

where:
P0 = the pressure at sea level;
m = the average molar mass of dry air;
g = the acceleration due to gravity;
k = the Boltzmann constant; and
T = the temperature in Kelvin.

X1.2. Considering a laboratory temperature of 22°C and vacuum readings in inches of mercury,
Equation 1 can be simplified to

P(h) = 29.92 exp(–hc) (2)

where:
h = the elevation in ft; and
c = 0.000351 ft–1.

If the elevation is taken in meters, c is 0.0001151 m–1.

TS-4e TP 86-5 AASHTO

© 2013 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.
All rights reserved. Duplication is a violation of applicable law.
 As examples, in Denver, CO, the elevation is 5433 ft and the maximum attainable vacuum is
24.7 in.Hg. In Edmonton, AB, with an elevation of 650 m, the achievable vacuum is 27.8 in.Hg;
and in Ottawa, ON, the elevation is 188 m, so the achievable vacuum is 29.3 in.Hg.

1
These standards were developed through a pooled-fund study sponsored by several AASHTO member
departments, the University of Illinois, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), and the
National Research Council of Canada. The Sealant Consortium is the designation given to this pooled-fund study.
For availability of the individual research reports, see Section 14, References.

TS-4e TP 86-6 AASHTO

© 2013 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.
All rights reserved. Duplication is a violation of applicable law.