Tough Fix Hyper additive – A solution to enhance moisture resistance prevention for asphalt concrete.
EVALUATION OF THE PERFORMANCE OF ASPHALT CONCRETE MIXTURES USING TOUGH FIX HYPER ADDITIVE
AND EVALUATION UNDER LONG-TERM IMMERSION CONDITIONS
Water damage is one of the primary causes of reduced service life in asphalt concrete pavements. As water infiltrates, the bond between bitumen and aggregate gradually breaks down, leading to stripping, potholes, and rutting. To address this issue, utilizing adhesion-promoting and moisture-resistant additives has become an important research direction in many countries.
The scientific paper “Performance Evaluation of Asphalt Mixture with Tough Fix Hyper Additive and its Evaluation Under Long-term Water Immersion” (published in Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2026) evaluated the performance of the Tough Fix Hyper (TFH) additive when used at a dosage of 0.15% by weight of asphalt binder in Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA). A key highlight of the study is a 12-month water immersion program, simulating real-world long-term pavement operating conditions.
Experimental Program
The experiments were conducted at three levels:
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Asphalt Binder: Penetration, softening point, dynamic viscosity, ductility, and rheology (DSR).
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Binder–Aggregate Bond: Stripping test.
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Asphalt Mixture: Marshall stability, Indirect Tensile Strength (IDT), Tensile Strength Ratio (TSR), Hamburg Wheel Tracking, and long-term water immersion IDT.
Key Findings
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Asphalt Binder: TFH caused virtually no changes to the basic physical and rheological properties, remaining fully compliant with Superpave standards.
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Moisture Resistance: After 12 months of water immersion at 25°C, specimens with TFH showed no evident stripping, retaining a firmly attached binder coating on the aggregate (significantly superior compared to the control specimen).
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Asphalt Mixture Performance:
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Marshall stability increased by 12.7%.
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IDT strength increased by 27% (dry) and 33% (wet).
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TSR ratio increased by approximately 5%.
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Rut depth decreased from 9.1 mm to 6.48 mm (a reduction of nearly 29%).
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After 12 months of water immersion, the IDT strength remained 22% higher than that of the control sample.
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Analysis indicates that TFH primarily enhances initial strength and moisture resistance right from the start, enabling the mixture to maintain better performance throughout its operational life, even though the long-term degradation rate is comparable to conventional mixtures.
Conclusion
At a very small dosage (0.15%), Tough Fix Hyper serves as an effective solution that enhances adhesion, improves tensile resistance, reduces rutting, and significantly boosts the durability of asphalt concrete pavements—making it particularly well-suited for hot, humid, and rainy climatic conditions in Vietnam.
Download the full report (PDF): Performance Evaluation of Asphalt Mixture with Tough Fix Hyper Additive here.
Original Scientific Publication Details
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Title: Performance Evaluation of Asphalt Mixture with Tough Fix Hyper Additive and its Evaluation Under Long-term Water Immersion
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Authors: Thanh Len NGUYEN¹, Quang Phuc NGUYEN², Van Phuc LE³*, Ando TOMOHIRO⁴
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Research Institutions:
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University of Transport and Communications (UTC)
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Technical Research Laboratory – Taiyu Kensetsu Co., Ltd. (Nagoya, Japan)
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Journal: Civil and Environmental Engineering (University of Žilina)
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License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0)