The users of urban streets - pedestrians, cyclists, motorists - are sensitive to the colour of pavement surfaces. Colour is crucial in making such surfaces fit harmoniously into their surroundings. Functional colour coding of surfaces to distinguish among the different types of traffic can significantly improve safety.

Eurovia has developed a coloured hot mix for laying such surfaces that enhance the beauty and safety of the urban environment.

VIACOLOR uses decolourised binders in its formulation to bring out the natural colour of the aggregate used in the mix. Many other colours can be achieved by adding appropriate pigments.

VIACOLOR is usually formulated with a 0/4 mm grading for pedestrian zones and areas closed to traffic and in a 0/6 or 0/10 grading in trafficked areas.

It is applied manually or by paver in a thickness of 20 to 40 mm.

Eurovia has patented the composition of a pigment mix and the production of the corresponding coloured VIACOLOR hot mix.

VIACOLOR is a registered trademark.

IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE BLACK

VIACOLOR uses synthetic coating binders with the same properties as conventional bitumin but without the black colour. These synthetic binders, made of oilbased ingredients, contain no asphaltene (which gives bitumen its black colour) and are thus light coloured, translucent, and transparent when applied as a thin film.

These binders are available in the same grades as road bitumens from 20/30 to 180/220. Some are modified with polymers which extend the range of loadings for which VIACOLOR can be used to very high levels.

With decolourised binders, hot mixes can be made with the colour of the constituent aggregates: pink porphyry, light grey quartzite, brown cherty limestone or white hard limestone for example. These surfacings have the very natural look of their aggregates.

Pigments are added to obtain brighter or more varied colours.

Eurovia has developed an original process for preparing and introducing these pigments which ensures their regular distribution throughout the hot mix. They are first dispersed in an oil which is compatible with the binder to produce the "pigment paste" this is packed in predetermined amounts in heat-fused bags for direct injection into the mix plant.

A broad selection of pigments enables VIACOLOR surfacings to be made in a variety of colours: titanium oxide for light colours, chromium oxide for greens, cobalt salts for blues, iron oxides for reds and yellows, etc.

Note: the lighter the surfacing, the more sensitive it is to tyre tracks, oil spots and other soiling.

VIACOLOR is suitable for all types of traffic.

It promotes safety through greater "readability" of surfaces and visual differentiation of their functions as sidewalks, car parks, bicycle paths, traffic corridors, emergency stopping lanes, etc.

VIACOLOR uses colour to beautify the environment of a variety of facilities- schoolyards, playgrounds, park and garden pathways, suburban development paths, traffic islands, etc.

VIACOLOR in light colours is particularly suited to certain specific uses:

• as a pavement surfacing in tunnels and underpasses, it provides savings in lighting and improves visibility and thereby safety,
• as an engineering structure wearing course, it reduces the temperature reached by the surfacing when exposed to sunlight and thereby limit thermal stress on the structure deck.

VIACOLOR has a very broad spectrum of applications.