Water-Based Colored Thin Pavement System COLORFULWAY (1-mm Eco-Friendly Slow-Travel Overlay)

The water-based colored thin pavement system COLORFULWAY is an innovative eco-friendly modified polymer paving solution for slow-traffic greenway construction. This system solves common drawbacks of traditional colored pavement such as thick overlay, hot-construction requirement and fast color fading.

Core Structure & Working Principle of the water-based colored thin pavement system

It adopts a three-layer composite structure: primer, intermediate coating and top surface coating. The overall finished thickness is merely 1 mm. It will not add extra elevation or structural load onto the existing asphalt base, which is why the water-based colored thin pavement system suits overlay projects.In this system, a water-based self-crosslinking polymer mixes with high-strength wear-resistant silica aggregates. After matched COLORPLUS pigment blending, it forms dense, flexible colored surface. Strong adhesive force locks onto original substrate; flexible formula adapts minor base deformation to prevent cracking. Anti-UV components effectively slow down color fading under outdoor sunlight exposure.

Main Technical Performance

All performance indexes of this system comply with Chinese national road-coating standards. Skid-resistance BPN keeps ≥45 to secure safety for cyclists and pedestrians. Tensile bonding strength reaches ≥2.0 MPa for stable adhesion on asphalt concrete.

It passes 800-hour artificial accelerated aging test and three-cycle low-temperature cracking test. Wear loss stays ≤50 mg under standard abrasion test. The water-based formula controls VOC within ≤150 g/L for environmental-friendly public-area application.

On-Site Construction Guidance

The whole system is an ambient-temperature cold-construction system without heating equipment. Before coating with this system, the asphalt base surface must be fully cleaned. For this system, construct in sequence: primer CY800, intermediate CY800 and top coating CY1000. Each layer follows specified application rate.

Allow each coat to reach the recoat condition specified in the current application sheet before applying the next layer. Apply the specified protective treatment after the surface coat. Protect the coating while it cures, and reopen the surface only after the supplier’s curing and site acceptance requirements for the intended traffic have been met.

Color Customization & Application Scope

Cooperated with COLORPLUS pigment series, this system supports abundant custom color schemes. It is widely adopted for tourist highway greenways, urban bike-lanes, park walkways and scenic-spot recreational pavement. Low-maintenance property reduces later-stage project operating costs.

Base Coating Main Agent Technical Specifications

Project	Qualification	Experimental method
Viscosity at 25 °C: Pa·s	≤ 50	GB/T2794-2013
Specific gravity (25 °C), g/cm³	1.45 ~ 1.6	ASTM.D1475
Surface	Multicolour	Visual
CY Fine Sand Specification	80 – 120 mesh	Visualization

Surface Coating Performance Parameters

Project	Qualification	Experimental method
The state of the base material in the container	No lumps or skinning; easy to mix evenly.	GB/T3186-2006
Hydrolytic resistance	After soaking in water for 24 hours, no abnormal phenomena should be observed.	JTT712-2008
Resistance to alkali	Soaking in a calcium hydroxide protective solution for 24 hours showed no abnormal phenomena.	JTT712-2008
Bonding strength to cement concrete, MPa	≥ 2	Tension test
Adhesive strength, KN/m	≥ 2.0	GB/T7122-1996
Non-stick drying time (base, intermediate and surface coats), min	≤60 (test requirement; not traffic reopening time)	COLORFULWAY technical brochure, p. 9

Colorant (Slurry) Performance Parameters

Project	Qualification	Experimental method
Tinctorial strength	Low dosage, strong color intensity	GB/T 21473-2008
Light permanency	≥ 5	GB/T 21473-2008
Weather fastness	≥ 3	GB/T 21473-2008

CY Color Super Surface Technology Specifications

Test item	Requirement	Experimental method
Gel time, min	≥ 10	JTT 712-2008
Base Material Adhesion (Circle Method)	≤ Level 4	JTT 712-2008
Skid resistance	BPN ≥ 45	JTT 231-2004
Non-stick drying time (base, intermediate and surface coats), min	≤60 (test requirement; not traffic reopening time)	COLORFULWAY technical brochure, p. 9
The state of the base material in the container	No lumps or skinning; easy to mix evenly.	GB/T3186-2006, JTT712-2008
Formed appearance	color and aggregate particle distribution shall be uniform, with no cracks or detachment of aggregate particles after drying and molding	Visual inspection
Hydrolytic resistance	After soaking in water for 24 hours, no abnormal phenomena should be observed.	JTT 712-2008
Resistance to alkali	Soaking in a calcium hydroxide protective solution for 24 hours showed no abnormal phenomena.	JTT 712-2008
Abrasion performance	≤ 30 mg/1000 rpm	GB/T 22374-2008

Table-10-1 CY Color Super Surface Quality Acceptance Requirements

Engineering Sub-item	Testing Parameters	Requirement	Conformity Assessment	Testing frequency
CY paint-coat	Hydrolytic resistance	After soaking in water for 24 hours, no abnormal phenomena should be observed.	After soaking in water for 24 hours, no abnormal phenomena should be observed.	3 Point/200 m²
	Cohesional strength	≥2.0 MPa	≥ 2.0MPa	3 Point/200 m²
Surface layer-Bottom layer	Coating weight	0.7 ~ 1.2kg/ m²	0.7 ~ 1.2kg/ m²	3 Point/200 m²
Surface layer	Coating weight	0.5 ~ 0.9kg/ m²	0.5 ~ 0.9kg/ m²	3 Point/200 m²
Skin coat	Hydrolytic resistance	After soaking in water for 24 hours, no abnormal phenomena should be observed.	After soaking in water for 24 hours, no abnormal phenomena should be observed.	3 Point/200 m²
	Coating weight	0.1 ~ 0.3kg/ m²	0.1 ~ 0.3kg/ m²	3 Point/200 m²

Product images

Why a 1-mm Coating Is Different from Thin Hot Overlays

Most coloured pavement solutions add thickness. A thin hot overlay, a slurry seal or a coloured micro-surfacing layer each raise the finished surface by several millimetres to several centimetres, which changes kerb heights, drainage falls and the transition at every access point. The COLORFULWAY system adds approximately 1 mm in total, applied at ambient temperature, so the original pavement elevation is effectively unchanged.

That matters on a greenway or cycle path where the surface has been built to a designed level and where the edges meet kerbs, planting strips and structures. It also matters for load: a 1 mm system adds almost nothing to the structure, so it can be applied to an existing sound substrate without recalculating the pavement design. The trade-off is that the substrate must be sound in the first place, because a thin system follows the profile beneath it rather than correcting it.

Water-Based Colored Thin Pavement System: Layer by Layer

The system is built as a sequence of coats rather than a single product, and each coat has a defined application rate.

• Primer, CY800 — applied at 0.7–1.2 kg/m². This coat bonds to the substrate and seals the surface so the subsequent layers adhere evenly.
• Intermediate, CY800 — applied at 0.5–0.9 kg/m². This coat builds the body of the system and carries the wear-resistant silica aggregate that provides skid resistance.
• Top surface, CY1000 — applied at 0.1–0.3 kg/m². This coat delivers the finished colour and the final protective surface.

Colour comes from the COLORPLUS pigment series, which allows custom multi-colour schemes rather than a fixed palette. Because the colour sits in the coating system rather than in a surface dressing, an individual panel can be recoated later without disturbing the surrounding surface — a point that matters on projects where appearance is maintained over years rather than only at handover.

Safety and Durability Figures Explained

The published performance figures describe what the system is intended to deliver in service. Skid resistance reaches BPN ≥ 45, which is the property that matters most for a cycle path in wet weather. Tensile bonding strength is ≥ 2.0 MPa, which governs whether the coating stays in place under braking and turning forces. Wear resistance is measured at ≤ 50 mg under a 500 rpm, 750 g load with a CS-17 wheel, and low-temperature crack resistance is demonstrated by three cycles at −10 °C without cracking. Artificial ageing resistance reaches a comprehensive grade of ≤ Level 1 after 800 hours.

The published VOC limit is ≤150 g/L. The technical brochure lists a non-stick drying requirement of ≤60 minutes for the base, intermediate and surface coats under the referenced test procedure. This is a coating test result, not a full-cure time or permission to reopen a lane. Site drying and recoat intervals depend on temperature, humidity, application rate and substrate condition; confirm the application and reopening plan for the project.

The 24-hour coating interval in the brochure concerns laboratory preparation of composite-coating test specimens. It is not a fixed interval for every coating operation on site. Follow the current application sheet for recoating, curing and acceptance before opening the surface to its intended traffic.

Substrate Preparation and Weather Windows

AC-10 asphalt concrete is the recommended base course. Preparation is a cleaning operation before it is anything else: loose material, dust, oil and any previous marking compound must be removed, because the primer bonds to the surface it finds rather than to the surface that was intended. Cracks and local failures in the substrate should be repaired and allowed to cure before the system is applied, since a 1 mm overlay will telegraph movement from beneath it.

The full on-site workflow runs from surface cleaning through primer, intermediate and top-surface coating to the final protective agent spray. Ambient-temperature application means the process does not require heating equipment on site, which simplifies both the mobilisation and the safety arrangements. Work should nevertheless be planned for dry conditions within the recommended temperature window, and the drying time before reopening to traffic should be confirmed on a trial panel rather than assumed.

Colour Selection and Long-Term Appearance

Colour choice on a greenway is usually made against a landscape design rather than in isolation, and the practical questions are the same ones that apply to any coloured surface: does the shade read correctly under the lighting the path will actually see, and how will it appear after a season of use. Because the system is water-based and UV-stable rather than a surface dye, colour retention depends mainly on the integrity of the surface coat, which is why the top-surface and protective coats are specified as separate layers.

Maintenance is correspondingly simple. A worn or damaged panel can be cleaned back and recoated without the equipment and curing time a thicker coloured system would require, and because the total thickness is so small there is no build-up problem after repeated repairs. That combination of low initial thickness, low maintenance cost and good repairability is what makes the system suitable for long slow-traffic networks rather than only for one-off decorative sections.

References

Independent background on the practices described on this page is available from the Federal Highway Administration asphalt pavement recycling programme and from the Asphalt Institute. Both are non-commercial industry references and neither is affiliated with LIJIU.

Related equipment and guides

• Asphalt Rejuvenator (High-RAP 40%+ Deep Penetration Bitumen Recycling Agent)
• Colored Asphalt Binder / Color Powder
• Colored Thin Pavement System Buying Guide: Water-Based 1-mm Greenway Overlay

Standards and references

Specifications on this page follow Federal Highway Administration — Asphalt Pavement Recycling. Ask us for the full test report when you request a quote.