Asphalt Preservation Emulsion Wins First EPD in Its Class

Asphalt Systems, Inc.’s GSB-88 emulsion has received the first environmental product declaration for an asphalt preservation product, the company says.

The Institute for Environmental Research & Education subjected GSB-88 to a complete life cycle assessment conducted in accordance with ISO guidelines, examining manufacturing activities, procurement of raw materials, performance of the product, excess waste disposal, and recyclability.

A team of independent parties and industry experts, led by the IERE, worked to create the Product Category Rule for this product. The PCR was reviewed by a team led by an LCA certified professional.

ASI says GSB-88 has a significant impact on the environment because it can double the life of roads, runways and parking lots. The company says that if GSB-88 is used to help preserve all existing asphalt globally, it could save up to 1.2 million metric tons of CO? equivalent per year and billions of dollars.

The U.S. has almost two million miles of asphalt and continues to produce about 550 million tons of asphalt a year, ASI says. It estimates that its product could save up to 100,000 miles of road per year in the U.S.

GSB-88 is a gilsonite-based, emulsified sealer-binder formulation that seals and binds asphalt pavements by reintroducing the oils and resins that have been lost through oxidation and normal use of the asphalt. It is a non-carcinogenic, non-toxic, water-based formulation that employs no coal tars, ASI says.

The U.S. Navy Facilities Command recently concluded a four-year performance study of GSI-88’s performance, which the company says proved that GSI-88 significantly increased the useful life of asphalt pavements and could potentially save the Department of Defense hundreds of millions of dollars in costs.

The PCR, which is now available for all companies to use in assessing pavement preservation products, can be found here.