Experimental testing of cool colored thin layer asphalt and estimation of its potential to improve the urban microclimate

Urban Heat Island refers to the temperature increase in urban areas compared to rural settings, exacerbating the energy consumption of buildings for cooling. The use of highly reflective materials in buildings and urban structures reduces the absorbed solar radiation and contributes to mitigate heat island. This paper presents the results of a study aiming to measure and analyze the solar spectral properties and the thermal performance of 5 color thin layer asphalt samples in comparison to a sample of conventional black asphalt. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation is used for evaluating the thermal and energy impact of applying the samples in outdoor spaces (roads). The spectrophotometric measurements showed that the colored thin layer asphalt samples are characterized by higher values of solar reflectance compared to the conventional asphalt, which is mainly due to their high near infrared solar reflectance. From the statistical analysis of the surface temperatures it was found that all the colored thin layer asphalt samples demonstrate lower surface temperatures compared to conventional asphalt. The maximum temperature difference recorded was for the off-white sample and was equal to 12 °C. The CFD simulation results show that surface and air temperatures are decreased when applying the color thin layer sample.