Field description of mix with too little binder, or too many fines soaking it up. Dry mix looks brown or dusty instead of black, feels harsh under the lute, resists compaction and leaves an open surface that ravels within a few seasons. It has nothing to do with moisture: a dry load can come from a binder pump problem, a calibration error or a coarse shift in gradation.
Mix looks dry and brown in the hopper, rakers can't close it up, call the plant and get a burn on that truck.
Also heard as
- lean
- dry mix
- brown
Related terms
Fat
Describes mix carrying too much binder: shiny, slick and prone to bleeding or rutting.
Raveling
Loss of aggregate from the pavement surface as the binder lets go of the stone.
Oil
Crew and plant slang for liquid asphalt binder, as in oil content or a load that looks short on oil.
Burn
Lab shorthand for an ignition oven test, or the binder content result that comes out of it.