University of Minnesota to Test New Pothole Fix in Duluth

DULUTH (AP) — University of Minnesota researchers will test out a new road repair recipe in Duluth that uses a waste product from iron ore mines on the state's Iron Range.

Researchers at the university's Natural Resources Research Institute have been working on the recipe with taconite tailings for more than a decade. Researchers believe the mix will last longer and be more easily applied in the winter than typical repairs that use asphalt.

Researchers will test the new mix on potholes in Duluth this fall. Researcher Larry Zanko says they want to see how the mix holds up to the traffic and weather.

Duluth's street maintenance manager Greg Guerrero says a previous version of the taconite-based mix was used this summer and it has held up well.