- Joe W. Button is a consulting engineer in College
Station, Brazos County, Texas. He received a Bachelor of Science Degree
in Chemical Engineering from Texas A&M University in 1972 and a Masters
Degree in Civil Engineering from Texas A&M University in 1984. He is a
licensed professional engineer in the State of Texas.
- He has performed research on asphalt products and
asphalt pavements at the Texas Transportation Institute at Texas A&M
University from 1972 to the present. He has served as principal
investigator on more than 50 asphalt pavements related research projects
which total more than six million dollars, about one million dollars of
which directly involved studies of modified asphalts and non-bituminous
admixtures used to enhance asphalt pavement performance. Selected
research topics include: preparation of specifications and construction
guidelines for large stone asphalt mixtures, waste roofing in asphalt
mixtures, emulsified prime coats, and micro-surfacing; availability and
cost-effectiveness of asphalt rubber; evaluation of fabrics, fibers, and
various asphalt modifiers applied to reduce reflection cracking in
asphalt overlays; evaluation of lime and asphalt additives for improving
resistance to moisture, cracking, and rutting in asphalt concrete;
effects of asphalt temperature susceptibility on pavement construction
and performance; physical and chemical characterization of asphalts and
recycling agents from shale oil and tar sand; determination of seasonal
variation of pavement skid resistance; and remediation of heaving soils
under pavements.
- Mr. Button has authored or co-authored 60
published papers and 90 research reports. He has developed new test
procedures, equipment, and analysis techniques; prepared specifications
and materials acceptance criteria for highway agencies; and written
construction guidelines to improve asphalt pavement quality and
probability of success. Several of these items were prepared
specifically addressing fabrics applied to reduce reflection cracking in
asphalt pavements.
- Mr. Button is active in both technical and
professional organizations. He is currently chairman of the Mineral
Aggregate Subcommittee of the Transportation Research Board (TRB)
Committee on Characteristics of Non-Bituminous Components of Bituminous
Paving Mixtures, chairman of the Performance-Based Specifications
Subcommittee of the TRB Committee on Characteristics of Bituminous
Materials, and chairman of Subcommittee on Analysis of Bituminous
Mixtures of the ASTM Committee on Road and Paving Materials. His is a
member of ASTM subcommittee on Aggregate Specifications. He served as
chairman of the expert task group for monitoring of the Strategic
Highway Research Program on Asphalt Modification (1991-94). He is an
active member of the Association of Asphalt Paving Technologists and the
International Society of Asphalt Pavements. In 1984, he served as
president of the Brazos Chapter of the Texas Society of Professional
Engineers.
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