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Excel Expands in China
29 October 2004

Excel Fibre Technology’s Viscocel SMA Fibre bitumen modifier has made a major breakthrough in the booming Chinese road building industry. Its success coincides with massive investment being made by the Chinese government in a multi-billion pound road-building programme that will provide a transport infrastructure to support the country’s fast-growing economy. The first project in China to use Excel’s Viscocel modifier is the new Ninghang Expressway, which links Nanjing and Hangzhou, the capital cities of Jiangsu and Hangzhou provinces respectively. Excel is on target to deliver over 1000 tonnes of Viscocel products in its first year of trading in China.

The raw material source of Viscocel being recycled newspaper is the reason for its commercial viability for the Chinese market, since China is a net importer of paper and paper products. Being manufactured from recycled newspaper also means Viscocel has excellent environmental credentials, complementing its superior modifier performance. In addition, the processed fibre is totally inert and will not degrade over time.

Viscocel is being supplied to the Chinese road making market through leading Shang Hai construction company, Goaxin, both as a loose fibre product and in pellet form.

Viscocel works by creating a lattice within the asphalt mix to hold the hot bitumen in place around the stone aggregate during laying until the SMA has cooled and set. This prevents the bitumen from draining away during the laying process and therefore delivers a high quality wearing course, exhibiting the key properties associated with SMA: toughness and durability, smoothness, and reduced road noise.

The lattice created by Viscocel’s long, interwoven fibres also gives the SMA more elasticity, making it less brittle and more able to withstand continual heavy loading.

All Viscocel products have been developed to maintain the performance characteristics of Excel’s original, industry-leading and HAPAS-approved loose fibre modifier, including fast and even dispersion, and high levels of consistency for optimum bitumen performance. Pellets are designed to break up readily in the aggregate mix, ensuring the fibre is free to disperse evenly throughout, thereby avoiding ‘clumping’ in the mix and/or extended mixing times.

Independent trials, undertaken by Scott Wilson Pavement Engineering and the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) on SMAs manufactured using Viscocel fibre, show that Viscocel SMAs also exhibit superior stiffness and, therefore, improved load spreading ability, along with its capacity to hold bitumen in position around the stone aggregate. This is particularly important in thin pavement structures, where the benefits associated with thinner road coverings are complemented by excellent durability and longevity.

Excel Fibre Technology, a division of Excel Industries Limited of Rhymney in Gwent, is the UK’s leading manufacturer of speciality fibres and fibre delivery systems. In addition to Viscocel SMA fibre and pellets and the SMART range of refibreising systems, Excel manufactures a range of products for use in varied industrial applications as well as the building and construction industry.