Sustainable Pavements and Asphalt Research (SUPAR)

Asphalt Innovation Symposium

Research meets Industry - December 10, 2026

Join us for the 9th edition of the Asphalt Innovation Symposium (AIS2026), taking place on Thursday, December 10, 2026, in Antwerp. AIS2026 will bring together leading experts from academia and industry to explore the latest innovations in road engineering. The event will feature engaging presentations, interactive sessions, and valuable discussions, making it a must-attend for professionals dedicated to advancing asphalt technology.

For any inquiries please reach out to Christina.Makoundou@uantwerpen.be. We look forward to welcoming you to AIS2026 for a day of insightful discussions and networking!

Schedule 2025

9:00 - 9:30 Registration, coffee, networking & poster session

9:30- 10:45 Opening ceremony + Session 1 (EN/DU) - The Road Forward: Innovations and Perspectives in Asphalt Engineering

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Presentation by

10:45 - 11:15 Break

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11:15 - 12:45 Interactive session 2A (DU) - Innovation in practice: When Research meets Industry

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Presentations by

11:15 - 12:45 Session 2B (EN) - Anti-ageing technologies

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Presentations by

  • ​Sophie Stuwe: ZDC vs. Bitumen Aging: A Comparative Study of Aging Methods
  • ​Anand Sreeram: Enhancing Fatigue Resistance and Low-temperature Performance of Asphalt Pavements Using Antioxidant Additives
  • ​Filippos Mastoras: In-situ lifetime extension treatment of porous asphalt: Mechanical and rheological evaluation
  • ​Peng Lin: Evaluations of rejuvenator performance in both virgin asphalt binder and polymer-modified asphalt

11:15 - 12:45 Session 2C (EN) - Emission

Chairs

Presentations by

  • ​Ali Zain Ul Abadeen: Asphalt Pavement Service Life Emissions: An Overlooked pollution source
  • Emmanouil Romanias: From roads to the air: The role of asphalt pavements on urban air quality
  • ​Sayeda Nahar: Current Practices in Emission Measurement in the Dutch Asphalt Sector: Insights from InnovA58 test section
  • Anja Sörensen: Emissions from hot bitumen – Current Eurobitume activities & recommendations

12:45 - 13:45 Networking lunch

Enjoy our delicious sandwiches and have a bowl of healthy soup while interacting with other participants and our sponsors!

13:45 - 15:15 Interactive session 3A (DU) - Bitumen kwaliteit: sectorale discussie

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In this roundtable session, we will engage in an open debate with all parties in the asphalt sector regarding the recent statements regarding the reduced bitumen quality for asphalt applications in Belgium and the Netherlands. We will discuss: Is there a scientific basis to support this statement? What specific quality requirements are lacking? What tests and/or properties should we include in our requirements to better tailor the quality to asphalt use? How optimistic are our views on the future? The session will begin with four brief statements to spark discussion. The results of this session will be shared with the authorities and the bitumen supplier sector for collaborative action.

13:45 - 15:15 Session 3B (EN) - Advanced technology on Bitumen rejuvenation and asphalt recycling

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Presentations by

  • ​Alexandros Margaritis: Pushing the boundaries for asphalt recycling in surface layers
  • ​Bowen Li: Recycling of SBS Modified Bitumen with Polymer Network Reconstructive Rejuvenators
  • Avi Singh: Sustainable dike revetments: indicators for multi-year performance tracking
  • ​Geert Jacobs: Cracking Performance of asphalt binders and mixtures with Rejuvenator: the Kielsbroek case study

13:45 - 15:15 Session 3C (EN) - Digitalization and AI in pavements

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Presentations by

  • ​Seyed Reza Omranian: Use of Information Technologies in Road Engineering: Detecting Damage Causes and Demonstration of a Thermal Line Scanner Analysing Tool
  • ​Ali Anwar: Multi-sensor AI for Surface Fault Detection
  • ​Filip Geuens: Complete pavement assessment based on Lidar-camera fusion
  • ​Anupam Kumar: Data-Driven Insights into Pavement Performance Influenced by Traffic and Aging Across Laboratory and Field Scales

15:15 - 15:45 Break

15:45 - 17:00 Session 4 (EN) - Climatic Resilience Initiative for Pavement Infrastructure: Introduction to CRIPI COST Action

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Presentations by

  • ​Wim Van den bergh: CRIPI COST Action Overview
  • ​Katerina Varveri: Sharing visions and plans on WG3 of CRIPI COST Action on pavement resilience
  • ​João Santos: Sharing visions, plans, and activities on PRA of CRIPI COST Action

17:00 - 18:00 Closing ceremony + Final networking reception