Sustainability and excellence shine at Illinois Bituminous Paving Conference

Illinois Center for Transportation hosted the 65th Illinois Bituminous Paving Conference on Dec. 10-11 at the I Hotel and Conference Center in Champaign, Illinois.

Approximately 300 experts attended the event, which featured workshops, presentations and networking opportunities along with exhibit booths.

This year’s conference emphasized low-carbon materials, sustainability and innovations in bituminous paving.

The conference awards committee honored four individuals for their outstanding contributions to the field:

• Renan Santos Maia, a doctoral student in civil and environmental engineering at Illinois, received the Marshall Thompson Student Research Award. Maia has been involved with two IDOT research projects focused on improving the design of full-depth asphalt pavements in Illinois. His work has produced new algorithms for estimating the modulus of asphalt mixes, accounting for recycled materials, and has proposed a revised fatigue endurance limit for perpetual pavement design. His findings suggest less conservative parameters, which could save $30,000 per lane mile per inch of hot-mix asphalt.
• Greg Renshaw, principal research engineer at ICT, was awarded the IAPA Bituminous Innovative Research Award. Renshaw leads ICT’s research engineering team and oversees its laboratories and testing facilities, conducting research on pavement materials, design and rehabilitation. He was recognized for his significant work on ICT’s I-APT device, an accelerated pavement tester.
• Chad Pink, an engineer for IDOT, received the Barry Dempsey Bituminous Technical Contribution of the Year Award. Pink’s ability to identify challenges faced by producers in District 2 and develop effective solutions, paired with his positive approach, has earned him this recognition.
• John Senger, IDOT’s Bureau Chief of Research, was honored with the Imad Al-Qadi Leadership in Bituminous Engineering Award. Senger has spearheaded efforts to improve pavement performance testing, preservation techniques and departmental policies. He also developed the plan for and manages activities at the Illinois Certification and Research Track, furthering innovation and collaboration in the field.

The conference, chaired by ICT director and Grainger Distinguished Chair in Engineering Imad Al-Qadi, has served as a cornerstone for professionals in the bituminous paving industry for over six decades.

Its success this year was made possible by the efforts of moderators, the conference committee, IDOT, the Federal Highway Administration, and the event’s sponsors and exhibitors.

The 66th Illinois Bituminous Paving Conference will take place Dec. 9-10, 2025, at the I Hotel and Conference Center in Champaign.

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