Shane Woods, Anton Paar
PAPER
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Abstract
For many years people have worked on ways to make our roads more durable to prevent potholes and other road damage. The goal of this experiment is ultimately to gain a better understanding of the chemical elemental composition of materials used in the manufacturing of asphalt final-products (roads/tar).
For this I would like to look at microwave digestion in combination with ICP-analysis. Microwave digestion can break down tough materials (such as asphalt) into their chemical-elemental composition through acid oxidation/reduction at high temperatures. The sample can then be analysed using ICP-analysis, which will result in the chemical-elemental composition together with its concentrations of each.
This information must be interpreted and could ideally lead to optimisation of the binding of the different raw materials that can enhance the strength and durability of the final product (pavement).
About the Author
Shane Woods obtained his BSc (Hons) in Biochemistry from the University of Johannesburg and started his career as a lab analyst, later progressing into a research and development role and eventually sales. He joined the sales team at Anton Paar Southern Africa in 2019 as part of the Measurement Department, responsible for the sales and support of the Analytical and Synthetic Chemistry (ASC) product range. He was appointed as ASC Product Manager in July 2020, with the main focus of providing solutions for R&D and quality control laboratories in South Africa.
