Effectiveness of superhydrophobic material on the hydroplaning risk of asphalt pavements

One of the major issues in road safety is the slipperiness of the topcoat surface of the road during rainfalls. The presence of water on the pavement surface reduces friction on the topcoat surface. In the absence of sufficient friction, accidents caused by slipping seem inevitable. A common phenomenon during rain is hydroplaning. The hydroplaning characteristics are affected by water film thickness, tire inflation pressure, pavement texture depth, surface hydraulic properties, and tire tread depth. The present study aims to determine the impact of superhydrophobic coating of octafluoropentyl methacrylate (OFPMA) on the hydroplaning risk and water layers thickness in asphalt pavements. For this purpose, a device for simulating rainy conditions on asphalt pavements was designed. The water flow velocity over a variety of uncoated and coated asphalt surfaces with various degrees of the superhydrophobic coating was measured and the hydroplaning speed was calculated. According to the results, the mean values of the hydroplaning speed of a vehicle on the coated asphalt samples were roughly 1.33 times greater than the uncoated asphalt samples. Furthermore, the outcomes in this paper indicated that superhydrophobic coatings could be an innovative method to mitigate hydroplaning risk and decrease water film thickness on pavements.

Automated summary

The study aims to investigate the impact of superhydrophobic coating on reducing hydroplaning risk and decreasing water film thickness on asphalt pavements. Results show that the mean hydroplaning speed of vehicles on coated asphalt samples was roughly 1.33 times higher than on uncoated samples, indicating the potential of superhydrophobic coatings in mitigating hydroplaning risk.