b'RUNWAYSYCE79Subsequent Site Visits has a melting point similar to that of asphalt In February 2007, Pryde, Schropp, McComb Inc. conducted on- and also has been found to complicate the site inspections at YCE and confirmed that the GlasGrid Systemrecyclability of asphalt pavement at end of had effectively reinforced the apron pavement. After enduringlife. Steel wire mesh is more resistant to Canadian weather for 13 years, the cracking is minimal, and wemechanical damage, but it is cost prohibitive are satisfied with the performance of the GlasGrid product in thisand also likely to oxidize and rust. Glass fiber application, said Brad Pryde, the design engineer responsible forcoated with an appropriate formulation that the project at the time.resists oxidation facilitates a strong bond toGREG LYONSthe asphalt and has been found to be the Subsequent visits in 2018 and late 2022 also yielded positivemost economical choice for proving long-term performance, says reports. During the most recent inspection, the apron had begunLyons. to show some cracking. Considering the original condition, its quite impressive that the apron has lasted for 30 years,Lyons explains that glass fibers have an elongation at commented Dean Pettitt, a local engineer familiar with GlasGridbreak of approximately 2.5%. This value indicates the minimal and the severe conditions at YCE. deformation required to achieve full tensile strength, and is expressed as a percentage of its initial dimension. The melting Why Fiberglass? point of glass is also much higher than that of plastics or metals. Greg Lyons, technical service manager at Saint-Gobain ADFORS,Glass may start to soften around 840C (1,545F) but its explains that more than 50 years ago, there werent many optionsmelting point is much higher, he details. Fiberglass products to help asphalt resist tensile loads. Early products used to resistremain thermally unaffected by the high hot-mix asphalt paving cracking in asphalt pavements contained polypropylene, whichtemperatures of about 150 to 160C (302 to 320F).AirportImprovement.comSeptember 2023'