Asphalt pavement is susceptible to aging during service, leading to the degradation of road performance andreduced durability. Graphene has been widely recognized as a promising modifier for improving the structural integrity of asphalt and delaying property damage. In this research, hydrocarbon-based graphene (HG) was incorporated as modifier to systematically evaluate its effect on the aging behavior of virgin asphalt (VA). A comprehensive characterization approach was adopted, including conventional properties, thermal stability, rheological behavior, functional groups analysis and microstructural observation. Experimental results demonstrate that hydrocarbon-based graphene modified asphalt (HGMA) exhibits significantly lower increases in viscosity, consistency and hardness compared to VA after aging, along with improved flexibility. The increments of initial thermal decomposition temperatures for HGMA after pressurized aging vessel (PAV) and ultraviolet (UV) aging are 7.0℃ and 7.6℃ lower than those for VA, respectively. HG effectively alleviates the aging-induced rise in complex modulus (G*) and decline in phase angle (δ), enabling HGMA to retain superior viscoelastic properties. Furthermore, HG suppresses oxidative condensation reactions, curbing the generation of carbonyl (C=O) and sulfoxide (S=O). After PAV aging, the C=O and S=O indices in HGMA increases by 49.3% and 55.7% of those observed in VA, the corresponding values after UV aging are 54.5% and 43.1%. Microstructural analysis reveals that the growth of bee structures and the increase in surface roughness parameters are markedly suppressed in HGMA, indicating a reduced sensitivity to aging. This research offers valuable guidance for creating high durability asphalt.

Paper Details:

Construction and Building Materials 520 (2026) 146078

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2026.146078