ABSTRACT
A proper mechanical characterization of asphalt mixtures is needed to improve the performance and durability of asphalt materials. This study aims at evaluating the influence of the air void content over the fracture properties of asphalt mixtures at two different length scales. To achieve this goal, Semi-Circular Bending (SCB) tests were conducted on a Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) and its corresponding Fine Asphalt Matrix (FAM), under three different air void contents (i.e. 4, 7, and 10%). Peak load and fracture energy of FAM and HMA samples exhibited air voids dependency, while the area of its fracture zone did not. The fracture response of FAM samples could be used as an initial insight of the expected behavior of the full mixture, since the trend of the properties studied as a function of AV were quite similar in both materials.
