Salt Lake City has been the hub of trade and commerce for the Western United States. When Delta airlines decided to make the City its Western U.S. hub, it became the crossroads of air traffic connecting the west coast, western U.S. and Canadian Cities with Delta hubs in Atlanta and Cincinnati. In the 1990's a third runway was constructed to the west of the airport terminal in a large reclaimation project of the great Salt Lake Swamp. The selection of asphalt was done with great consideration due to the low temperatures of the City, the asphalt had to be able to resist cracking in winter and rutting in summer. Another requirement was that the material should allow runway grooving to remain in place for years to come. The search culminated in the discovery of Trinidad Lake Asphalt (TLA).
In 1995, the Airport Authority tested TLA on taxiway K. Later that year, a blend of AC1OR (latex) with 25 % TLA was placed in a 4 - inch lift. The material performed so well that in 1996 the main runway was scheduled for a major overlay using the TLA. In 1997, the two domestic runways have now been paved with TLA
Taken from " Restructuring Salt Lake City International Airport, Utah" - Rick Bird (Petrosource Corporation )