This synthesis explores the state-of-the-knowledge and state-of-the-practice regarding the latest updates on polymer-modified bitumens (PmBs). The information in this study was gathered from a thorough review of the latest papers in the literatures related to modified bituminous materials, technologies, and advances. For this purpose, the paper is presented in two principle sections. In the first part, the bitumen itself is investigated in terms of chemical structure and microstructural systems. In the second part, the paper focuses on bitumen modification from different aspects for assessing the effectiveness of the introduced additives and polymers for enhancing the engineering properties of bitumen in both paving and industrial applications. In conclusion, the knowledge obtained in this study has revealed the importance of the chemical composition of base bitumen for its modification. It can be declared that while some polymers/additives can improve one or some aspects of neat bitumen properties, they can lead to compatibility problems in storage and production. In this respect, several studies showed the effectiveness of waxes for improving the compatibility of polymers with bitumen in addition to some benefits regarding warm mix asphalt (WMA) production.

The asphalt industry’s incentive to reduce greenhouse gas emissions has increased since the 1990s due to growing concerns on environmental issues such as global warming and carbon footprint. This has stimulated the introduction of Warm Mix Asphalt (WMA) and its technologies which serve the purpose of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the mixing and compaction temperatures of asphalt mix. WMA gained popularity due to the environmental benefit it offers without compromising the properties, performance and quality of the asphalt mix. WMA is produced at significantly lower temperatures (slightly above 100 °C) and thus results in less energy consumption, fewer emissions, reduced ageing, lower mixing and compaction temperatures, cool weather paving and better workability of the mix. The latter of these benefits is attributed to the incorporation of additives into WMA. These additives can also confer even better performance of WMA in comparison to conventional Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) methods. Even though there are recommended dosages of several WMA additives, there is no general standardized mixture design procedure and this makes it challenging to characterize the mechanism(s) of action of these additives in the warm mix. The effects of the addition of additives into WMA are known to a reasonable extent but not so much is known about the underlying interactions and phenomena which bring about the mechanism(s) by which these additives confer beneficial features into the warm mix. Additives in a certain way are being used to bridge the gap and minimize or even nullify the effect of the mixing temperature deficit involved in WMA processes while improving the general properties of the mix. This review presents WMA technologies such as wax, chemical additives and foaming processes and the mechanisms by which they function to confer desired characteristics and improve the durability of the mix. Hybrid techniques are also briefly mentioned in this paper in addition to a detailed description of the specific modes of action of popular WMA technologies such as Sasobit, Evotherm and Advera. This paper highlights the environmental and technical advantages of WMA over the conventional HMA methods and also comprehensively analyzes the mechanism(s) of action of additives in conferring desirable characteristics on WMA, which ultimately improves its durability.

This review aims to explore the state of the knowledge and the state-of-the-art regarding bitumen rejuvenation. In particular, attention was paid to clear things up about the rejuvenator mechanism of action. Frequently, the terms rejuvenator and flux oil, or oil (i.e., softening agent) are used as if they were synonymous. According to our knowledge, these two terms refer to substances producing different modifications to the aged bitumen: they can decrease the viscosity (softening agents), or, in addition to this, restore the original microstructure (real rejuvenators). In order to deal with the argument in its entirety, the bitumen is investigated in terms of chemical structure and microstructural features. Proper investigating tools are, therefore, needed to distinguish the different mechanisms of action of the various types of bitumen, so attention is focused on recent research and the use of different investigation techniques to distinguish between various additives. Methods based on organic synthesis can also be used to prepare ad-hoc rejuvenating molecules with higher performances. The interplay of chemical interaction, structural changes and overall effect of the additive is then presented in terms of the modern concepts of complex systems, which furnishes valid arguments to suggest X-ray scattering and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance relaxometry experiments as vanguard and forefront tools to study bitumen. Far from being a standard review, this work represents a critical analysis of the state-of-the-art taking into account for the molecular basis at the origin of the observed behavior. Furnishing a novel viewpoint for the study of bitumen based on the concepts of the complex systems in physics, it constitutes a novel approach for the study of these systems.

Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) processes are technologies used in the oil and gas industry to maximize the extraction of residual oil from reservoirs after primary and secondary recovery methods have been carried out. The injection into the reservoir of surface-active substances capable of reducing the surface tension between oil and the rock surface should favor its extraction with significant economic repercussions. However, the most commonly used surfactants in EOR are derived from petroleum, and their use can have negative environmental impacts, such as toxicity and persistence in the environment. Biosurfactants on the other hand, are derived from renewable resources and are biodegradable, making them potentially more sustainable and environmentally friendly. The present review intends to offer an updated overview of the most significant results available in scientific literature on the potential application of biosurfactants in the context of EOR processes. Aspects such as production strategies, techniques for characterizing the mechanisms of action and the pros and cons of the application of biosurfactants as a principal method for EOR will be illustrated and discussed in detail. Optimized concepts such as the HLD in biosurfactant choice and design for EOR are also discussed. The scientific findings that are illustrated and reviewed in this paper show why general emphasis needs to be placed on the development and adoption of biosurfactants in EOR as a substantial contribution to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly oil and gas industry.

Refuse-Derived Fuels (RDFs) are segregated forms of wastes obtained by a combined mechanical–biological processing of municipal solid wastes (MSWs). The narrower characteristics, e.g., high calorific value (18–24 MJ/kg), low moisture content (3–6%) and high volatile (77–84%) and carbon (47–56%) contents, make RDFs more suitable than MSWs for thermochemical valorization purposes. As a matter of fact, EU regulations encourage the use of RDF as a source of energy in the frameworks of sustainability and the circular economy. Pyrolysis and gasification are promising thermochemical processes for RDF treatment, since, compared to incineration, they ensure an increase in energy recovery efficiency, a reduction of pollutant emissions and the production of value-added products as chemical platforms or fuels. Despite the growing interest towards RDFs as feedstock, the literature on the thermochemical treatment of RDFs under pyrolysis and gasification conditions still appears to be limited. In this work, results on pyrolysis and gasification tests on a real RDF are reported and coupled with a detailed characterization of the gaseous, condensable and solid products. Pyrolysis tests have been performed in a tubular reactor up to three different final temperatures (550, 650 and 750 °C) while an air gasification test at 850 °C has been performed in a fluidized bed reactor using sand as the bed material. The results of the two thermochemical processes are analyzed in terms of yield, characteristics and quality of the products to highlight how the two thermochemical conversion processes can be used to accomplish waste-to-materials and waste-to-energy targets. The RDF gasification process leads to the production of a syngas with a H₂/CO ratio of 0.51 and a tar concentration of 3.15 g/m³.

Bitumen, one of the by-products of petroleum industry processes, is the most common binder used in road pavements and in the construction industry in general. It is a complex organic mixture of a broad range of hydrocarbons classified into four chemical families, collectively known with the acronym SARA fractions, which include saturates, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes. Since the 1940s, researchers working on bitumen and the science behind its existence, nature and application have investigated the spatial organization and arrangement of several molecular species present in the binder. Therefore, several models have been proposed in the literature, and they are more or less corroborated by experimental studies, although most of them are model-dependent; for example, the structural investigations based on scattering techniques. One of the most popular models that has met with a wide consensus (both experimentally and of the modeling/computational type) is the one aiming at the colloidal description of bitumen’s microstructure. Other types of models have appeared in the literature that propose alternative views to the colloidal scheme, equally valid and capable of providing results that comply with experimental and theoretical evidence. Spurred by the constant advancement of research in the field of bitumen science, this literature review is aimed at providing a thorough, continuous and adept state of knowledge on the modeling efforts herein elaborated, in order to more precisely describe the intricacy of the bituminous microstructure. In this body of work, experimental evidence, along with details of bitumen’s microstructure (depicting the colloidal state of bitumen), is particularly emphasized. We will also try to shed light on the evolution of the experimental and theoretical results that have focused on the aspect of the association and aggregation properties of asphaltenes in various models and real systems.