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Soy-based asphalt enhances longevity, increases soy demand

Soybean checkoff dollars around the country are being used to develop new products to add value to soybeans. One project was highlighted at the 2022 Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa.

Iowa State University researchers have developed a soy-based asphalt that uses a bio-polymer from high oleic soybean oil. Iowa Soybean Association President Robb Ewoldt says the soybean oil could help replace other expensive compounds.

“You can take 100% of the crushed millings from used asphalt that would normally just be piled up, and you can start rolling them out and spraying this product over them,” Ewoldt said. “It acts like a super glue and binds them all together.”

Ewoldt says about two-thirds of the potential market for the product is public, including roads maintained by state departments of transportation. “It should be about a fifth of the cost of what a hot asphalt would be,” he said.

Nearly an acre of the product was laid at the Varied Industries Tent with 2,300 pounds of soy oil used, improving accessibility to the expo grounds for vendors and patrons.

AUDIO: Iowa Soybean Association President Robb Ewoldt