On Friday, November 14, Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell led a demonstration of seal coat (emulsified asphalt) to show innovative strategies to extend the life of Hawaiʻi’s roadways, to keep them in good condition longer and save costs on repaving in the long run.
Mayor Caldwell was joined by Associate Professor Adrián Ricardo Archilla from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Jon Young from the Hawaiʻi Asphalt Paving Industry (HAPI) and HAPI members—Alakona Corp., GP Roadway Solutions, Group HI, Oʻahu Sealcoating and Paving LLC. and SealMaster Hawaiʻi.
Professor Archilla received a research grant from the National Center for Pavement Preservation at Michigan State University to evaluate the effectiveness of various pavement preservation treatments including slurry seal, seal coat, fog seal and crack sealing in Hawaiʻi’s tropical climate. Test patches of various products will be applied by different vendors and the test patches will be monitored and observed over a two year period by the university to determine if these products are successful in extending pavement life. The city will use the results to determine the cost effectiveness of the treatments.
Alakona Corp., GP Roadway Solutions, Group HI, Oʻahu Sealcoating and Paving LLC and SealMaster Hawaiʻi will be participating in the project that partners the UH, HAPI and the City and County of Honolulu.
The contractors will apply their road treatments through December in the Pearl City area as part of the project.
—A news release from Mayor Kirk Caldwell
