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The current need to move towards more sustainable technologies in the construction sector has promoted the investigation of using alternative materials in asphalt mixtures for pavements. Biomaterials, used as biobinders, have shown their potential as partial replacement of bitumen in asphalt mixtures as solution to decreasing the demand for fossil-fuel-based binders as well as CO2 emissions. However, more research is needed to increase the replacement of bitumen in asphalt mixtures. In this investigation,biobinders are used as full replacement of virgin bitumen and as recycling agent within asphalt mixtures with high Reclaimed Asphalt (RA) content. Blends of biobinders and RA binders, and bio-recycled asphalt mixtures, were produced, subjected to ageing and rheologically characterised. The results show that the rheological properties of binders’ blends seem adequate for their use, while the bio-recycled asphalt mixtures seem to have a faster ageing than conventional ones, hence their full-scale application still remains a concern.

Part of this research was funded by the project RTI2018-096224-J-I00 that has been cofounded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, inside the National Program for Fostering Excellence in Scientific and Technical Research, National Subprogram of Knowledge Generation, 2018 call, in the framework of the Spanish National Plan for Scientific and Technical Research and Innovation 2017-2020, and by the European Union, through the European Regional Development Fund, with the main objective of Promoting technological development, innovation and quality research. Part of this work was financially supported by the Italian Ministry of University and Research with the research Grant PRIN 2017 USR342 Urban Safety, Sustainability and Resilience., This paper describes the development of novel/state-of-art computational framework to accurately predict the degree of binder activity of a reclaimed asphalt pavement sample as a percentage of the indirect tensile strength (ITS) using a reduced number of input variables that are relatively easy to obtain, namely compaction temperature, air voids and ITS. Different machine learning (ML) techniques were applied to obtain the most accurate data representation model. Specifically, three ML techniques were applied: 6th-degree multivariate polynomial regression with regularization, artificial neural network and random forest regression. The three techniques produced models with very similar precision, reporting a mean absolute error ranging from 12.2 to 12.8% of maximum ITS on the test data set. The work presented in this paper is an evolution in terms of data analysis of the results obtained within the interlaboratory tests conducted by Task Group 5 of the RILEM Technical Committee 264 on Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement. Hence, despite it has strong bonds with this framework, this work was developed independently and can be considered as a natural follow-up, Spanish Government RTI2018-096224-J-I00, European Commission, Ministry of Education, Universities and Research (MIUR) PRIN 2017 USR342

The recent drive to find ways to increase sustainability and decrease costs in asphalt paving has led researchers to find innovative ways to incorporate more recycled materials and bio-derived binders into mixes with varying success. A new novel bio-derived binder made from refined pine chemistry stabilised with a polymer can increase the sustainability of asphalt mixes while maintaining pavement performance. Laboratory performance testing was conducted on asphalt mixes containing 50% Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP) by mix weight and the novel bio-derived binder. Results show that the bio-derived binder outperforms the conventional 50/70 pen grade binder mixes with respect to resistance to thermal cracking and adequately passes all requirements for pavements with 20-year design loadings of less than 30 million ESALs. This research shows that asphalt mixes containing 50% RAP and a bio-derived binder can be designed to pass performance criteria at low, intermediate, and high temperatures without the need of neat bitumen.

Due to emerging climate challenges, engineers are looking to replace the conventional asphalt pavements by utilizing bio-materials combined with Reclaimed Asphalt (RA). However, there is insufficient record in the literature assessing their environmental performance. This study addresses the analysis of the results obtained from a life cycle assessment exercise of asphalt pavements containing bio-materials and RA within their binder courses, developed within the BioRePavation project. The aim is to analyze the environmental benefits achieved, by means of hotspot mapping and sensitivity analysis of the most impactful factors of their lifecycles. Two alternatives are compared to a conventional asphalt pavement and recommendations on how to improve the current practices are provided. Results rank the raw material acquisition and replacement as the most impactful stages, while through sensitivity analysis, linear relationships between the impact category indicator values and the RA% used, are detected.

Background: The microorganism present in breast milk, added to other factors, determine the colonization of infants. The objective of the present study is to evaluate the safety, tolerance and effects of the consumption of a milk formula during the first year of life that is supplemented with L. fermentum CECT5716 or Bifidobacterium breve CECT7263, two strains originally isolated from breast milk. Results: One hundred and eighty-nine infants completed the eleven months of intervention (61 in control group, 65 in Lf group and 63 in Bb group). The growth of infants in the three groups was consistent with standards. No significant differences were observed in the main outcome, weight-gain (Control group: 5.77 Kg ± 0.95, Lf group: 5.77 Kg ± 1.31, Bb group: 5.58 Kg ± 1.10; p = 0.527). The three milk formulae were well tolerated, and no adverse effects were related to the consumption of any of the formula. Infants receiving B. breve CECT7263 had a 1.7 times lower risk of crying than the control group (OR = 0.569, CI 95% 0.568–0.571; p = 0.001). On the other hand, the incidence of diarrhoea in infants receiving the formula supplemented with L. fermentum CECT5716 was a 44% lower than in infants receiving the control formula (p = 0.014). The consumption of this Lactobacillus strain also reduced the duration of diarrhoea by 2.5 days versus control group (p = 0.044). Conclusions: The addition of L. fermentum CECT5716 Lc40 or B. breve CECT7263, two probiotic strains naturally found in breast milk, to infant formulae is safe and induces beneficial effects on the health of infants., This work was funded by Biosearch Life supported by a grant from the Agency of Innovation and Development of Andalusia (IDEA-Spain), Cofinanced by European Regional Development Fund (EC). Project Tittle: “New applications of probiotic strains and derived compounds with biological activity (POSTBIO)” and partially funded by Lactalis-Puleva (Granada, Spain).

Los inicios de la microbiología en general y de la bacteriología en particular se caracterizan, entre otras cosas, por la rivalidad entre franceses y alemanes. Los nombres de Louis Pasteur y Robert Koch son bien conocidos gracias a sus descubrimientos, avances y aportaciones. Entre ellos se encuentran la refutación de la Teoría de la Generación Espontánea, el nacimiento de la Inmunología y en gran medida también el de la Salud Pública y la Higiene Social. Algo menos consabido es, sin embargo, el duelo que libraron en el establecimiento de la causa del ántrax, el desarrollo de las primeras vacunas, la caza de microbios en África y la búsqueda de tratamientos eficaces para enfermedades tan mortales como el cólera, la tuberculosis o la rabia. Como fruto de este enfrentamiento, que no solo es científico sino también fuertemente político, se establecen las bases de la Microbiología Moderna que se practica a día de hoy en todos los laboratorios del mundo. Por tanto, lejos de frenar el avance de la ciencia, el choque de dos grandes mentes como las de Pasteur y Koch revoluciona el mundo. Con dos personalidades muy distintas, trasfondos dispares, metodologías y medios diferentes y en un momento histórico tenso para las naciones francesa y alemana, los dos buscaron lo mismo: seres microscópicos, hasta entonces desconocidos, culpables de una mortalidad escandalosamente alta. También consiguieron, juntos, cambiar el enfoque erróneo del ser humano sobre la enfermedad, antes irracional, puramente divino, al establecer las bases del llamado pensamiento etiopatológico; demostrando a lo largo de su vida la necesidad de conocer la causa de la infección para poder prevenirla y, por supuesto, poder curarla. Universidad de Sevilla. Grado en Farmacia

The pavement engineering industry, having realized the significance of the impacts that it imposes on the environment through the production, construction and management of its products and assets, has been driven towards a more sustainable and circular way of operating. This has partly been through asphalt recycling, which is an area that many road authorities have prioritized. However, not all the National Road Authorities (NRAs) and/or sector stakeholders seem to be adequately familiar with the Circular Economy (CE) concept. This paper attempts to assist the transition of NRAs to a more circular way of doing business, by analyzing the current situation of CE within national/regional authorities and NRAs. To do so, a questionnaire was sent to di erent NRAs and an online search was conducted to identify the ways that NRAs communicate their CE practices. Findings indicate that, although the majority of the NRAs are familiar with CE as a concept, not many actions have been taken so far towards its holistic implementation. Finally, there is a significant lack of CE expertise and communication within these bodies., European Union's Horizon 2020 Program under the Marie Curie-Sklodowska actions for research, technological development, and demonstration 721493, CEDR Transnational Research Programme

Pavement Life Cycle Management is a 2-year international project aiming at supporting European National Road Authorities (NRAs) to introduce sustainability in their practices by providing training on Life Cycle techniques and a user-friendly package to support their widespread implementation. The first task in Pavement Life Cycle Management (Pave-mentLCM) project is the creation of a Sustainability Assessment (SA) framework that complies with EN15643-5 and consequently include the three pillars of sustainability, use a life cycle ap-proach and use quantifiable sustainability performance indicators. This paper presents the first steps towards the creation of the framework which includes the following steps: 1) review of the available Product Category Rules (PCRs) related to asphalt mixtures and pavement activi-ties; 2) definition of the object of the assessment; 3) review and survey of NRAs practices of the main research efforts in Europe towards the definition of sustainability performance indicators.

As part of an effort by agencies and industry to move towards performance-based design to evaluate mixtures in the laboratory at a smaller scale before moving to full scale operation, laboratory protocols exist to simulate the aging that occurs as a material is produced. However, recent research has shown that these existing protocols may not accurately represent the changes a material experiences in a plant. Moreover, due to the focus of previous studies on the ability of the current method to replicate mixture characteristics and performance in an undamaged state, there is a lack of information as it relates to the damaged state. This paper presents a concise description of a study undertaken on a particular mixture to evaluate the differences in the behaviour of a standard asphalt concrete mixture produced in the laboratory and in the plant to assess the anticipated field performance at the mixture design stage. The results, in terms of the rheological properties of binders extracted and recovered from laboratory and plant produced mixtures as well as rheological, repeated cyclic fatigue, and cracking performance evaluation of the asphalt mixtures, have shown the ability of a short-term oven aging protocol to replicate plant produced material in the laboratory.