PI spotlight: Hasan Ozer

Hasan Ozer, research assistant professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Illinois, is currently serving as principal investigator on two ICT/IDOT projects: “Revised Condition Rating Survey Models to Reflect All Distresses” (R27-150), which is aimed at addressing inconsistencies in the pavement condition rating survey (CRS) calculation models and inaccuracy of the CRS prediction models; and “Pavement Rehabilitation Strategy Course Development” (R27-170), which focuses on the development of training materials for classroom-style and online courses to explain pavement rehabilitation and preservation strategies as presented in the IDOT Bureau of Design and Engineering (BDE) Manual. The projects are led by Technical Review Panels (TRPs) chaired by Travis Lobmaster, System Performance Manager, and Charles Wienrank, Pavement Analysis Engineer, at the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), respectively. 

Ozer is also serving as a co-principal investigator on Phase II of the project “Field Performance Evaluation of Sustainable Aggregate By-Product Applications” (R27-168), which evaluates successful sustainable/green applications using large quantities of quarry by-products (QBs) in road construction. The project, scheduled to be completed in February 2018, is led by Erol Tutumluer, professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Illinois, as principal investigator; and Sheila Beshears, Aggregate Technology Coordinator, IDOT Bureau of Materials and Research, as TRP chair.

In addition, Ozer was actively engaged in a number of completed IDOT-sponsored projects, including the following:

• Laboratory Evaluation of High Asphalt Binder Replacement with Recycled Asphalt Shingles (RAS) for a Low N-Design Asphalt Mixture (R27-SP19). In this project, researchers evaluated the effect of recycled asphalt shingles on the mechanical properties of asphalt mixtures at high asphalt binder replacement levels.
• Sustainable Aggregates Production: Green Applications for Aggregate By-Products (R27-125), which conducted an industry survey among Illinois aggregate producers on the annual production rate, excess QBs generated, and current application areas of QBs and evaluated the physical and engineering properties of aggregate by-products with representative sampling from the quarries in Illinois.
• Testing Protocols to Ensure Performance of High Asphalt Binder Replacement Mixes Using RAP and RAS (R27-128). The goal of this project was to identify, develop, and evaluate protocols, procedures, and specifications for testing engineering properties of asphalt concrete (AC) mixtures with varying amounts of asphalt binder replacement (up to 60%) using RAP and RAS, in addition to a number of other AC mixtures with various field performance and mixture volumetrics. The study resulted in the development of AASHTO TP124, “Determining the Fracture Potential of Asphalt Mixtures Using Semicircular Bend Geometry at Intermediate Temperature” to rank AC mixtures based on their cracking resistance.
• Evaluation of the Impacts of Re-Refined Engine Oil Bottoms (ReOB) on Performance Graded Asphalt Binders and Asphalt Mixtures (R27-SP28), which evaluated the properties of asphalt binder modified with re-refined engine oil bottoms (ReOB) and their effect on asphalt mixture benchmark performance tests.

Among other research efforts, Ozer is serving on a team of UIUC researchers developing a life-cycle assessment sustainability evaluation tool—the first of its kind—for the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority. He is also working with Michelin Americas Research Center to evaluate pavement damage mechanisms based on various tire configurations and variables.

Ozer grew up in Turkey, where he earned his B.S. in civil engineering from the Middle East Technical University in Ankara. He received his M.S. from Northwestern University in 2005 and his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois in 2011, both in civil engineering.