MUMBAI, India, Oct. 5 -- Intellectual Property India has published a patent application (202611028962 A) filed by Malaviya National Institute Of Technology Jaipur on March 11, 2026, for Modified Bitumen Incorporating Groundnut Shell And Polypropylene Biochar And Applications Thereof`.
Inventors include Ghanshyam Balotiya; Arun Gaur; Amit Sain; Prakash Somani; and Sanchit Anand.
The application for the patent was published on October 02, 2026, under issue no. 40/2026.
Abstract: The present invention relates to a modified bitumen binder for flexible pavement construction, prepared using biochar derived from groundnut shell and polypropylene (PP). The biochar is produced through a controlled co-pyrolysis process in predetermined groundnut shell:PP weight ratios of 90:10, 80:20, 70:30, and 60:40, followed by pulverization to a particle size of less than 75 microns. The pulverized biochar is incorporated into a base paving bitumen binder, preferably VG30, using high-shear mixing, with biochar dosages ranging from 3 wt.% to 15 wt.% by weight of bitumen. Storage stability evaluation indicates that binders containing 12 wt.% and 15 wt.% biochar fail the phase separation test; accordingly, 9 wt.% biochar is selected as the optimum stable dosage. The optimum modified binder exhibits improved binder properties compared to the base binder, including a change in specific gravity from 0.98 to 0.991, an increase in softening point from 55 °C to 61 °C, a reduction in penetration from 46 dmm to 36 dmm, an increase in absolute viscosity from 3087 to 4749.2 poise, and an increase in kinematic viscosity from 380 to 621.75 cSt. The optimum modified binder is further used in Dense Bituminous Macadam (DBM-II) mix design, wherein Marshall stability increases from 13.06 kN (control VG30 mix) to 16.57 kN.
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
