Performance optimization of novel wear-resistant reflective cooling coatings for asphalt pavement

To enhance the wear resistance of traditional asphalt pavement reflective coatings and extend their cooling effect, this study employed Potassium Hexatitanate Whiskers (PHW) as a functional material to manufacture pavement reflective coatings. It was found that PHW exhibited excellent wear resistance though agglomeration resulted in adverse effects. Therefore, untreated PHW (U-PHW) underwent inorganic-organic surface modification to produce modified PHW (M-PHW). The results indicated that M-PHW exhibited excellent optical properties, with a reflectance of 78.9 %. M-PHW exhibited more uniform dispersion in the resin matrix, which significantly enhanced the coating reflectivity. Moreover, the interfacial bonding strength between M-PHW and the resin matrix was significantly improved, enhancing the wear resistance of the coating. Especially with a whisker content of 16 units, the tensile strength of the M-PHW coating reached 96.20 MPa, representing a 43.0 % increase compared to the U-PHW coating, while achieving a maximum outdoor cooling value of 5.6 °C. •Reflective cooling coatings improved the wear resistance of pavements.•Potassium Hexatitanate Whiskers (PHW) were used as functional materials to prepare coatings.•PHW inorganic-organic surface modification was effective.•The mechanism of PHW enhancing the wear resistance of coatings was revealed.