APPLICATION AND CHARACTERISTICS OF WATERBORNE ROAD MARKING PAINT

Abstract

Horizontal road markings are one of the essential safety features of modern roadways. All of the utilised systems consist of a pigmented coating containing partially embedded retroreflective elements such as glass beads. In addition to durability and functionality of the road marking, ease of application and effect on human health and environment are primary considerations for their selection. Road marking systems can be divided into plural component materials that cure due to chemical reaction occurring at the site of application, thermoplastics that require heat for application, and paints, drying upon evaporation of the dissolving medium. The focus of this paper is on road marking paints with a special emphasis on contemporary waterborne materials. Over 100 years old solventborne technology furnishes paints that afford consistent application properties under a variety of conditions such as lower temperatures and high humidity. Their environmental and human health impact is significant and durability quite poor. Modern waterborne paints are based on acrylic resins and incorporate developed in the 1990s quick-set chemical mechanism for drying. Under favourable weather conditions, they dry faster as compared to solventborne. However, their known weakness is risk of washout in case of rain and sluggish development of washout resistance at marginal application conditions like high humidity and low temperature. Impact of waterborne paints on human health and environment is very significantly minimised as compared to other materials. Their durability is significantly higher as compared to solvent-based paints. Analysis of characteristics of waterborne road marking paints and preliminary results from their trial application in Croatia are presented herein. Based on the presented comparison with solventborne materials, after results from test application become available, intelligent decisions regarding future use of waterborne road marking paints in Croatia and other countries that have not embraced this technology shall be possible.