Bioprime

ANOTHER LAYER OF SUSTAINABILITY:

BIOPRIME

SAMI BITUMEN’S BIOPRIME IS AN EMULSION-BASED BITUMEN PRIMER MADE USING VEGETABLE OIL DERIVATIVES. SAMI AND COLAS TALK ABOUT ITS USE IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA AND THEIR PLANS TO ROLL THE PRIMER OUT COUNTRY WIDE.

Asphalt containing recycled materials like recycled crushed glass as a sand replacement and other environmentally friendly processes has been widely championed as part of the road construction industry’s drive to become more sustainable.

SAMI bitumen have gone one step further still, to make the road building process even more environmentally friendly, their team of technicians have created Bioprime.

Bioprime is emulsion-based bitumen primer that has been fluxed with a bio-oil, made from vegetable oil derivatives. Using natural sustainable resources, Bioprime is a water-based solution that does not contain petroleum solvents.

The emulsion is specifically formulated for use on compacted granular base courses prior to constructing a new surfacing.

The first application of Bioprime was in Western Australia in conjunction with Main Roads WA and Colas WA. The prime took around two hours to cure before a new seal was applied on the same day.

Upon return to the site two weeks later it was noted that the 14-millimetre aggregate was well bonded to the base course. Eleven other early applications of Bioprime also found the bonding of granular wearing course to be of quality and no stripping could be found.

Bioprime is a water based solution that does not contain petroleum solvents.

BENEFITS The two major advantages of using Bioprime are that it removes the cutter from initial treatments and can substantially reduce the period of time between priming and sealing.

Kanjana Yindee, Research and Development Manager at SAMI Bitumen Technologies says traditional prime contains kerosene as a cutting agent which can have negative effects on the environment and generates unpleasant vapours.

“We replaced the kerosene with vegetablebased oils so that the prime is 100 per cent natural. We managed to do this while achieving the same performance by altering some of the other ingredients,” she says.

Yindee says the test regime for SAMI’s traditional emulsion primers is applied to Bioprime, the only difference in chemical composition is the fluxing agent and bitumen.

“The prime can penetrate the sub-base quickly which enables crews to continue work on the surfacing within the same day. This reduces cost and time because they don’t have to send crew and equipment away while they wait for the prime to cure,” Yindee says.

SAMI’s Bioprime is usually sprayed in lesser quantities than traditional primer however, contractors can adjust set the spray rate to achieve the desired residual rate of the binder.

“Bioprime is suited to most all kinds of applications but it works especially well in remote areas as it’s very environmentally friendly. It’s easy to manage and you are able to make more efficient use of the crew.”

The quick turnaround time can also be crucial in high density locations where the closure of a road to traffic must be reduced to a minimum.

The mix has been popular in WA since its introduction. In 2016, SAMI and Colas WA received an Innovation Award from the Australian Asphalt Pavement Association for the Bioprime trials.

ACROSS BORDERS Though the primer has been used widely in WA, SAMI decided to bring the binder to Queensland completing Bioprime trials in April 2020 in partnership with Colas QLD and Brisbane City Council.

For the trial, Colas QLD teams sprayed

Q-FE

TM ROAD ANT Bioprime over a milled surface which included different pavement types such as an unbound granular base, cement treated base and asphalt. Just two and a half hours after the initial application of Bioprime the crew placed a 10 millimetre S45R SAMI seal ahead of asphalt paving.

Matthew Johansen, Operations Manager for Colas QLD says the Brisbane City Council approached Colas with work on a highdensity urban street, which they didn’t want to close for an extended period of time.

“In partnership with SAMI we suggested to the Brisbane City Council that they should trial Bioprime which meant we could prime the road and ensure it was closed for the shortest amount of time possible,” he says.

“We sprayed this project in April and the pavement temperature was around 20 degrees. The application performed very well, we put the prime down followed by a crumb rubber seal and paved over it with asphalt.”

SAMI is looking to increase the use of Bioprime across Queensland and wider Australia. SAMI and Colas are now working with other councils across the state, particularly in regional areas, where a prime may not otherwise be used.

“In terms of overall cost, with a traditional prime you would have to establish a crew on site, spray the prime and then disestablish the crew and send them home overnight while the prime cures. Using Bioprime there is no need to establish, disestablish and reestablish the crews,” Johansen says.

“We believe that Bioprime provides a great opportunity for councils and road authorities in regional areas. Currently there is limited opportunity to implement prime and seals as an initial treatment due to time and cost constraints. Cutback initial seals are common practice, and require a reseal anywhere from 3-6 months later. Bioprime enables a prime and final seal to be completed in a short period of time and at a reasonable cost.”

So far Brisbane City Council have been happy with the performance of the road and are looking to increase the use of the treatment in their resurfacing program.

The next trial of Bioprime is planned for Laverton, Victoria and over time SAMI hopes to roll Bioprime out across the country to further improve environmental outcomes.

Quality Fabrication & Engineering 36 Selby Rd Woori Yallock Vic Contact +613 5955 0000 Email sales@qualityfab.com.au