What Does Pavement Milling Mean In Road Construction?

What Does Pavement Milling Mean In Road Construction?

Pavement milling, also known as cold planing, asphalt milling, or profiling, is the process of removing part of a paved surface such as a road, bridge, or parking lot. This process can remove anywhere from just enough thickness to level and smooth the surface to full depth removal.

It is commonly used for pavement recycling and can be used to remove distresses from the surface, providing a better driving experience and/or longer roadway life.

Pavement milling is achieved using a heavy-duty piece of construction equipment called a milling machine or cold planer. The drum of this machine consists of scrolls of cutting tools that grind up the pavement surface.

Micro milling uses the same basic equipment as asphalt milling but with more cutting teeth in order to adjust the grade, elevation, and smoothness of a paved surface.

Pavement milling offers many benefits including restoring uneven and bumpy pavement surfaces, repairing pavement damaged by accidents or fires, improving safety by eliminating skidding hazards on roads and highways, and creating rumble strips on pre-existing roads.

What Is The Purpose Of Pavement Milling?

The purpose of pavement milling (also known as cold planing, asphalt milling, or profiling) is to remove part of the existing paved surface in order to restore the pavement surface to a specified grade and cross-slope.

It can also be used for pavement recycling, as it removes the milled pavement which can then be put through a crusher and recycled.

Milling is performed by construction equipment called milling machines or cold planers. These machines use a large rotating drum to remove and grind the road surface.

The Asphalt Recycling and Reclaiming Association has defined five classes of cold planning that the Federal Highway Administration has recognized.

The benefits of cold milling include cost savings due to reduced quarrying and transportation costs for new aggregates, as well as time savings due to its fast process. Additionally, it helps conserve landfill space by reusing asphalt.

Cold planers are equipped with either three or four tracks for load distribution, mobility, and traction, as well as automatic grade control systems to accurately control the grade and profile of the milled surface.

Micro milling is also available which uses a fine-toothed drum for more precise removal of asphalt layers.

What Are The Advantages Of Pavement Milling?

Pavement milling, also known as cold planning, asphalt milling, or profiling has numerous advantages, including:

1. Providing a cost-effective solution for pavement rehabilitation and creating reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) for subsequent recycling operations.
2. It also reduces traffic disruption compared to conventional surface tearing and shredding methods that employ multiple pieces of equipment at different stages.
3. Additionally, it optimally removes deteriorated pavement that is unable to retain the pavement of the overlay and provides a better driving experience and/or longer roadway life.
4. Cold planers are available in polyurethane or rubber and have cutting drums with 2, 3, or 4 scrolls which increases traction and minimizes damage to the roadway surface.
5. Furthermore, re-profiling a deformed pavement prior to resurfacing is less expensive than replacing it entirely, and reusing asphalt conserves landfill space.
6. Finally, milled surfaces can be used as driving surfaces as long as the surface does not ravel.

What Is The Cost Of Pavement Milling?

The cost of pavement milling (cold planning, asphalt milling, or profiling) varies depending on the size of the area being milled and the complexity of the job. On average, the cost of asphalt milling falls within the range of $10 to $20 per ton.

Additional factors that can affect the cost include job accessibility, asphalt prices, and disposal millings.

Micro milling is a lower-cost alternative to diamond grinding of pavement and uses a specialty drum with three to four times as many cutting teeth. The process is carried out by cold planer and milling machinery.