ANALYSIS OF TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS AND TEST METHODS FOR ROAD MARKING MATERIALS ACCORDING TO UKRAINIAN AND EUROPEAN STANDARDS

Abstract

Introduction. The current stage of the road sector development is characterized by the increased demand in the road marking. For the arrangement of road marking, various materials are used: paint, retroreflective glass beads, plastics of cold and hot application, polymer strips, prefabricated items, etc. Each material has its own set of unique characteristics related to durability, retroreflectivity, cost of application and life cycle. Problem statement. Due to the expansion of the production range of road marking materials, their choice becomes a difficult task and it should be carried out while taking into account the following requirements: normative distances of visibility must be ensured in all weather conditions 24 hours a day; long-term preservation (resistance to environmental impacts); road marking must not interfere with the vehicles movement, it should foster gliding. In order to properly select the road marking materials, the road traffic level and the predicted operation life cycle should be taken into account. For optimal selection, it is primarily necessary to review the quality characteristics of the materials through the testing of their physical, mechanical, technological and functional characteristics. Commonly, the roads owners require the quality requirements for the materials in accordance with the European standards. Objective. To compare technical requirements and methods of testing materials for road marking in accordance with the European standards. Materials and methods. Analysis of current Ukrainian and European standards for technical requirements and methods of testing the road marking materials. Results. Technical requirements for road marking materials and methods of their testing which are lacking in the Ukrainian standards are considered. A list of equipment for the required tests according to the European standards is given. Conclusions. Basing on the analysis results, it can be noted that in order to ensure the compliance of the Ukrainian laboratories abilities to check the quality of technical characteristics of materials according to the European standards, the new equipment should be provided (Tregers device, Stormer videometer, X-ray fluorescence analyzer, wear test bench and others) as well as mastering the new testing methods. Due to the high cost of the devices and equipment (for example, of the wear test bench), it is necessary to build the test sites on the roads or establish contacts with the European laboratories on the possibility of transferring the samples of materials to them for testing.