Risk assessment of warm mix and half warm mix asphalts comparing with hot mix asphalt

Due to rapid population growth and industrialization, the demand for highway transportation increases. During asphalt production process, there are numerous factors that can be considered as an occupational health and safety risk. When hot and warm mix production processes are compared from a risk perspective, the amount of gas and vapor emissions caused by the petroleum-based bitumen is determined to be the most significant factor. Higher temperatures in the mixing process ease the binding capability of bitumen with aggregates, which causes higher amounts of emissions to be released, posing threats for both the environment and occupational health. In the past 20 years, due to increasing environmental awareness and the increasing number of occupational health and safety studies has led to the development of Warm Mix Asphalt (WMA) technology in asphalt industry. When the asphalt production plants and processes in our country are examined, it appears that the WMA technology is not currently being applied and the necessary studies to oversee workers' health are deemed to be insufficient, in comparison with developed countries. In this study; the basic differences between hot and warm mix asphalt, the potential hazards and risks in asphalt plants, the composition and the amount of the emissions released, as well as the possible precautions that could be taken to lower these risks to an acceptable level are examined.