Development and Performance of a Waterborne Colored Anti-Skidding Seal Layer for Pavement

Colored pavements are widely applied to improve road aesthetics and driving safety. Nevertheless, conventional colored pavement technologies suffer from limitations in cost, environmental performance, durability, and skid resistance, and cannot satisfy the demand for bright color and high skid resistance of mountainous roads. This study develops a relatively eco-friendly, durable waterborne colored anti-skidding seal coat with high skid resistance. The optimal pigment dosage of the binder was determined based on color characteristics, tensile strength, and elongation at break. The type and particle size of colored fine aggregates were selected by evaluating particle roundness, interfacial adhesion, skid resistance, and abrasion performance. The binder spreading rate and aggregate spreading rate were further optimized according to adhesion strength, and the skid resistance and water permeability of the seal coat were verified. The results show that the binder with 5% pigment dosage achieves the closest color to the standard value with minimum color difference, and maintains well-preserved mechanical properties. Colored ceramic particles with high roundness and adhesion are the preferred aggregate. The mixed aggregate combining 1 mm and 2 mm particles at a ratio of 3:2 balances skid resistance and abrasion resistance. The optimal binder spreading rate is 1.2 kg/m2, corresponding to the best adhesion and skid resistance. The prepared waterborne colored anti-skidding seal coat presents excellent skid resistance and waterproof performance, favorable water resistance, and certain oil contamination resistance. Short-term gasoline contamination will reduce skid resistance, while its color shows only minor drift under long-term petroleum contaminant erosion.