Taconite as a lower-cost, alternative high-friction surface treatment to calcined bauxite for low-volume roads in MinnesotaStatus: CompleteReport Date: 09/05/2025 Summary: Calcined bauxite, the recommended product for High Friction Surface Treatments (HFST), is imported, expensive and energy-intensive to produce. A less expensive, Minnesota mining byproduct, Mesabi (taconite) friction aggregate, will be evaluated to determine if it could provide adequate or comparable field skid resistance performance, and either partially or fully replace calcined bauxite in HFST applications. Final Deliverables: Taconite as a lower cost alternative High Friction Surface Treatment to Calcined Bauxite for low volume roads in Minnesota (Report #2025-41) Evaluating Taconite as a Lower Cost Friction Treatment (Research Summary) Related Materials: Evaluating Taconite as a Lower Cost Friction Treatment (Blog Post) Testing friction of road material made with taconite tailings with technology called SCRIM (News/Publication Article) High Friction Surface Treatment Demonstration (in St Louis County 2020) (Video/Webinar) Better Roads: Taconite the answer to fixing Minnesota's dangerous curves? (News/Publication Article) New Project: Taconite as a Lower Cost Alternative High Friction Surface Treatment to Calcined Bauxite for Low Volume Roads in Minnesota (Blog Post) Related Research: Optimized Taconite-Based Pavement Repair Compound and Deployment System Project Personnel: Principal Investigator: Mihai Marasteanu Co-Principal Investigator: Manik Barman Technical Liaison: Victor Lund Project Coordinator: Jackie Jiran Panel Members: (William) James Wilde - Texas State University Clark Moe - Maintenance Derek Leuer - Traffic Engineering Lawrence Zanko - UMD, Natural Resources Res. Institute Mark Wagner - Traffic Engineering Morris Luke - District 1 Naomi Eckerd - State Aid for Local Transp Ryan Sutherland - Itasca County Tracey Von Bargen -
