Measuring Pavement Albedo and Solar Radiation Flux for Asphalt Pavements

Abstract

There is a perception that asphalt pavements utilized for highways and parking lots are contributing to increased temperatures in urban areas known as the urban heat island effect. Due to its dark color, asphalt is known to have low albedo, but the research conducted to determine the daily heating and cooling has been limited. The majority of research conducted to date has focused on freshly paved asphalt samples without accounting for changes in age, wearing, lift thickness, or aggregate types associated with different asphalt mix designs. Each of these parameters are known to affect the amount of light reflected, the amount of heat absorbed, and the amount of heat retained. This paper will show results from a revised methodology to simultaneously test repeatable one meter samples which can be easily conducted in other laboratories to help compare results evenly.