The Utilization of Waste Toner as a Modifier in Trinidad Asphalts

Abstract

As more persons are adjusting to home working in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a significant increase in the use of technology. Trinidad and Tobago, like many other Small Island Developing States, began exploring strategies in the areas of recycling and reuse techniques to mitigate negative environmental impacts from the disposal of waste toners. The reuse of waste toners as a performance enhancer in bituminous materials has successfully been achieved in foreign jurisdictions; however, the lack of research on the utilization of the indigenous Trinidad Lake Asphalt (TLA) and Trinidad Petroleum Bitumen (TPB) has stymied the application of this strategy locally. The influence of four waste toners (A, B, C, and D) on the rheological properties of an unmodified TLA/TPB paving binder was measured using the dynamic shear rheology (DSR) testing technique. The addition of waste toners noted improvements in the rheological parameters of stiffness, elasticity, and viscosity, exhibiting superior temperature susceptibility. Of great interest was the observation at 90 °C, where the modified paving binders containing 5% Toner C and 20% Toner D were elastically superior to the world-renowned TLA. This study demonstrated the potential of utilizing waste toner as a bitumen modifier, providing an innovative, sustainable disposal option.