Which roller type compacts by dead weight and may use ballast?

• A. Static Steel Wheeled Rollers
• B. Pneumatic Tired Rollers
• C. Vibratory Rollers
• D. Breakdown Roller

Answer: (A)

Dead weight compaction relies on the pressure from the roller’s own weight, sometimes increased with ballast to push the asphalt compaction deeper and achieve higher density without using vibration. Static steel-wheeled rollers are built to press the surface with that weight, giving a uniform, broad contact that densifies the mat as you roll. Ballast helps boost that pressure when a thicker lift or stiffer mix needs more force to reach the target density.

In contrast, pneumatic-tired rollers rely on kneading from the tires and air pressure, and vibratory rollers depend on vibration to rearrange mix particles for densification. A breakdown roller is a heavy static roller used in asphalt but functions under the same basic principle of applying weight rather than vibration, so the broader category that matches “compact by dead weight and may use ballast” is static steel-wheeled rollers.