Bitumen
Elan InterTrade has very strong import sources of bitumen from UAE/Iran and is currently procuring them for Indian businesses primarily involved in roadway construction in order for them to meet their growing demands.
Bitumen is a viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum consisting of hydrocarbons and their derivatives. It is obtained by refinery processes from petroleum or found as a natural deposit. It is usually available in dark colors ranging from brown to black. The main purpose of bitumen in flexible pavements is to strongly bind and hold the other pavement components together and provide a smooth and leveled surface for moving vehicles in road construction. Current world use of bitumen is approximately 100 million tonnes per year. About 85% of all bitumen produced (grade 60/70) is used as a binder in asphalt for road construction. A further 10% is used in roofing applications and remaining 5% is used for sealing and insulating purposes.
The high demand of bituminous materials is owing to a number of following properties:
- Adhesive
- Water proof
- Strong
- Versatile
- Economical
The global bitumen market size was $66.10 billion in 2015 and is expected to reach $79.91 billion by 2024. Increasing use in various applications including roadways and rapid urbanization in emerging countries like India (building 40 km roads/day) has resulted in increasing demand for bitumen. India has a road infrastructure of 3.3 million km, the second largest road network in the world, after the US. The government has prioritized the development of roads, allocating more than 10% of total spending from 2014-19 to the road sector.
The investments would be for setting up new networks and rehabilitating existing road networks. In such a scenario, bitumen will play a vital role towards planning and execution of road construction projects in India. Based on the projected demand from upcoming projects, India’s bitumen consumption will outpace production in the coming years creating an increasing market for bitumen imports (specifically grade 60/70) used In the road construction industry.
| Bitumen with penetration Grade of 60/70 | Penetration at 25oC | Softening Point | Resistance to Hardening at 163oC | Change of Mass Maximum | Retained Penetration Minimum | Softening Point after Hardening Minimum | Flash Point Minimum | Solubility Minimum |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit | Penetration at 25oC | 0.1mm | oC | % | % | oC | oC | % (m/m) |
| Test Method | EN 1426 | EN 1427 | EN 12607-1 or EN 12607-3 | EN 1427 | EN22592 | EN 12592 | ||
| Grade | 60-70 | 46-54 | 0.5 | 50 | 48 | 230 | 99.0 |
| Bitumen 60/70 | Specification | Test Method |
|---|---|---|
| Specific gravity @25/25 C | 1.01 - 1.06 | D-70 |
| Penetration @25 C | 60/70 | D-5 |
| Softening point C | 49/56 | D-36 |
| Ductility @25 C | 100 min | D-113 |
| Loss on heating (wt)% | 0.2 max | D-6 |
| Drop in penetration after heating% | 20 max | D-6 & D-5 |
| Flash Point C | 250 min | D-92 |
| Solubility in CS2 (wt)% | 99.5 min | D-4 |
| Spot test | Negative | *A.A.S.H.O.T.102 |
| Paraffin wax content | Less than 2% | Din-52015 |
used in Road Construction
