The amplitude and maximum of daily pavement surface temperature increase linearly with solar absorption

Pavement surface temperature is critical to the pavement design and to the development of cool pavements. There have been numerical models and empirical models to predict the pavement surface temperature, but the theoretical correlation about critical parameters such as solar irradiation, albedo, and thermal inertia is unclear. This study presents a theoretical model to predict the pavement surface temperature and validates the model against experimental data. Eight concrete samples were prepared and painted with differential albedo to investigate the influence of the albedo on the pavement surface temperature. The samples were exposed in an open space for 10 continuous days and their temperatures were recorded. It is found that the amplitude (one half of maximum minus minimum) and maximum of the daily pavement surface temperature increase linearly with the pavement surface solar absorption and the daily zenith solar irradiation.