Cationic Bitumen Emulsions

First shipment of Bitumen Emulsions from the Company's Plant in Brighton, La Brea, Trinidad. The Plant , the first of its kind in the Caribbean was purchased from Akzo Nobel of Sweden.

What are Cationic Bitumen Emulsions ?

Cationic Bitumen Emulsions are a mixture of Bitumen, Water and a soap solution, the latter consisting of a controlled level of emulsifiers, acids and stabilisers. Cationic Emulsions have largely displaced what is known as Anionic Emulsions because of their better overall performance and have virtually eliminated the use of the solvent based products in the more developed countries of the world.

The Manufacture of Cationic Bitumen Emulsions

Cationic Bitumen Emulsions are manufactured by the controlled mixing of five (5) basic ingredients, namely:

Bitumen ( usually 60 - 67 % either 180 - 200 Penetration Bitumen or 60/70 Penetration Bitumen.

Emulsifier (Usually 1 - 1.5% either Rapid/Medium setting or Slow Setting)

Stabilizer - 0.1%

Solvent - 5.0% maximum. Used in Cold Mixes ONLY

All three (3) types of Emulsions are formulated at our Plant and are listed below.

Cationic Rapid Setting (CRS)

The rapid setting grades are designed to react quickly with aggregate and revert from the emulsion state to bitumen. They are used primarily for spray applications, such as aggregate (chip) seals, surface treatments and Asphalt Penetration Macadam

Cationic Medium Setting - (CMS)

The medium setting grades are designed for mixing with coarse aggregate. Since these grades do not break immediately upon contact with aggregate, mixes using them remain workable for a few minutes. The CMS grades have high viscosities to prevent runoff

Cationic Slow Setting - (CSS)

The slow setting grades are designed for maximum mixing stability. They are used with high fines contents, dense - graded aggregates. All slow - setting grades have low viscosities that can be further reduced by adding water. These blends can be diluted (up to 50 % diluted) prior to field applications. When diluted, they may also be used for tack coats, prime coats, fog seals, and dust palliatives

The prices for the products listed may be obtained from our Marketing Department

Some tips on the use of Cationic Bitumen Emulsions

Bulk Storage Users

Drum Users

General uses of Emulsified Asphalt

Return to first page