Decision aid model for asphalt mixture choice

Warm Mix Asphalt (WMA) represents widely used alternative to hot mix asphalt (HMA), this in order to decrease the energy consumption and environmental load. Numerous WMA products can be found and the choice of the most favourable mixture is not necessarily straightforward. In order to achieve this, an innovative methodology has been developed. This methodology permits to consider various qualitative and quantitative criteria such as mechanical performances, production complexity and sustainability, but also includes a life cycle analysis of the emissions (greenhouse gas), energy and costs.The process as developed and implemented comprises four independent levels, each bringing its own contribution to the decision making procedure. The model finally proposed permits to compare different types of asphalt mixtures and assists in a very flexible way in the decision making process.