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Designation: E 2176 – 01

Standard Test Method for


Measuring the Coefficient of Retroreflected Luminance (RL)
of Pavement Markings in a Standard Condition of
Continuous Wetting1
This standard is issued under the fixed designation E 2176; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (e) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.

1. Scope
1.1 This test method covers the measurement of the wet
retroreflective (RL) properties of horizontal pavement marking
materials, such as traffic stripes and road surface symbols,
using a portable or mobile retroreflectometer that can be placed
on or before the road marking to measure the retroreflection at
the prescribed geometry.
1.2 This method of measuring of the wet retroreflective
properties (RL) of pavement markings utilizes a method of FIG. 1 Illustration of Measurement
continuously wetting the marking during measurement with the
retroreflectometer (see Fig. 1). Newly Applied Pavement Marking Using Portable Hand-
Operated Instruments3
NOTE 1—Test Method E 2177 may be used to describe the performance E 691 Practice for Conducting an Interlaboratory Study to
of pavement markings in conditions of wetness after a period of rain. Determine the Precision of a Test Method4
1.3 This test method specifies the use of portable or mobile E 965 Test Method for Measuring Pavement Macrotexture
reflectometers that can measure pavement markings per Test Depth Using a Volumetric Technique3
Method E 1710.2 The entrance and observation angles required E 1710 Test Method for Measurement of Retroreflective
of the retroreflectometer in this test method are commonly Pavement Marking Materials with CEN-Prescribed Geom-
referred to as “30 meter geometry.”2 etry Using a Portable Retroreflectometer5
1.4 This test method is intended to be used for field E 2177 Test Method for Measuring the Coefficient of Ret-
measurement of pavement markings but may be used to roreflected Luminance (RL) of Pavement Markings in a
measure the performance of materials on sample panels before Standard Condition of Wetness5
placing the marking material in the field. 2.2 Other Standards:
1.5 This standard does not purport to address all of the CEN–EN 1436 Road Marking Materials—Road Marking
safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the Performance for Road Users6
responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-
priate safety and health practices and determine the applica- 3. Terminology
bility of regulatory limitations prior to use. 3.1 coeffıcient of retroreflected luminance, RL—the ratio of
the luminance, L, of a projected surface to the normal illumi-
2. Referenced Documents nance, E, at the surface on a plane normal to the incident light,
2.1 ASTM Standards: expressed in candelas per square metre per lux [(cd·m-2)/lx].
D 6359 Specification for Minimum Retroreflectance of Because of the low luminance of pavement markings, the units
commonly used are millicandelas per square metre per lux
[(mcd·m-2)/lx].
1 3.2 conditions of continuous wetting—the test condition is
This test method is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee E12 on Color
and Appearance and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee E12.10 on created by artificially creating rain by using a rain simulator
Retroreflection. such as a portable hand sprayer.
Current edition approved Dec. 10, 2001. Published February 2002.
2
Reference ASTM E 1710 “Standard Test Method for Measurement of Retrore-
3
flective Pavement Markings with CEN-Prescribed Geometry Using a Portable Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 04.03.
4
Retroreflectometer.” The standard measurement condition is intended to represent Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 14.02.
5
the angles corresponding to a distance of 30 m for the driver of a passenger car with Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 06.01.
6
an eye height of 1.2 m and a headlight height of 0.65 m above the road. See Available from European Committee for Standardization, Central Secretarial
Appendix X1. (CEN), rue de Stassart 36, B1050, Brussels, Belgium.

Copyright © ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, United States.

1
E 2176 – 01
3.3 external beam retroreflectometers—retroreflectometers of the product by rain/water. This phenomenon produces an
that illuminate a measurement area outside of the instruments interference when assessing the wet characteristics of a pave-
body. ment marking. Attempt to measure markings with this surface
3.4 internal beam retroreflectometers—retroreflectometers “non-wetting” of the water may give higher values. This
that illuminate a measurement area inside of the instruments condition is short lived and markings that have been on the
body. road for one month or more do not exhibit this non-wetting.
3.5 mobile retroreflectometer—a retroreflectometer that has 4.8 It shall be the responsibility of the user to employ an
been mounted to a vehicle for purposes of taking measure- instrument having the specified observation and entrance
ments while the vehicle is moving.
angles.
3.6 portable retroreflectometer—an instrument that can be
used in the field or laboratory for measuring the coefficient of
5. Apparatus
retroreflected luminance, RL.
3.7 RL-Rain—The retroreflectance value, RL, obtained while 5.1 Retroreflectometer—Portable or Mobile:
the marking is being continuously wetted during the measure- 5.1.1 The retroreflectometer shall be an external beam
ment. See graph (Fig. 2). The value recorded is the average of instrument and shall be designed and constructed so that stray
two to three readings in the steady state area. light will not affect the reading.
4. Significance and Use 5.1.2 The retroreflectometer shall meet the requirements of
Test Method E 1710.
4.1 The quality of the pavement marking is determined by
the coefficient of retroreflected luminance, RL, be it dry or wet, 5.2 Retroreflectometer Setup—Rain/Water Shield:
and depends on the materials used, age, and wear pattern. 5.2.1 The retroreflectometer, if necessary, shall be modified
These conditions shall be observed and noted by the user. with a rain/water shield to protect its lens from splattering
4.2 Under identical conditions of headlight illumination and rain/water during wet measurement.
driver’s viewing, larger values of RL correspond to higher 5.2.2 Adjust the shield such that it does not block the
levels of visual performance at corresponding geometry. projected light and diminish readings. Determine area of
4.3 The pavement marking’s measured performance in con- marking being illuminated with the projected light. Adjust
ditions of continuous wetting may be used to characterize the shield so that it does not cover any of this area and thus prevent
performance of the marking on the road as water is continu- complete wetting.
ously falling on it and may be representative to a period of rain. 5.3 Rain Simulator (Water Sprayer):
This performance of the marking may be different than that
5.3.1 The rain maker (simulator) shall be a 8 L (2 gal)
experienced when the markings are just wet or damp.
4.4 Retroreflectivity of pavement (road) markings degrades minimum capacity, adjustable nozzle garden sprayer. The rate
with traffic wear and requires periodic measurement to ensure of water spray should be approximately 0.8 L/min. A battery
that sufficient line visibility is provided to drivers. For example operated sprayer performs the best since the battery allows a
see Specification D 6359 for dry reflectivity requirements. constant rate/volume of water spray.
4.5 For a given viewing distance, measurements of RL made 5.3.2 Clean tap water shall be used.
with a retroreflectometer having a geometry corresponding to 5.4 Wetting Agent:
that viewing distance are a good indicator of the visual ranking 5.4.1 Discussion—The use of a wetting agent as explained
of the material measured. herein is not a standard test procedure. However, the use of a
4.6 As specified by Test Method E 1710, the measurement wetting agent may be a practical way to estimate the perfor-
geometry of the instrument is based on a viewing distance of mance of newly installed markings.
30 m, an eye height of 1.2 m and a headlight mounting height
5.4.2 In that newly installed pavement markings may have a
of 0.65 m (see Appendix X1).
natural surface tension or release agents which prevent the
4.7 Newly installed pavement markings may have a natural
surface tension or release agents which prevent the wetting out wetting out of the product by rain/water, a practical method can
be used to estimate the performance of newly placed markings.
The addition of a small amount of soap or surfactant to the
water in the sprayer eliminates this interference without
damage to the installed line or sample panel. Recommended
solution mixtures are: (a) 0.10 % by volume liquid soap
solution; and (b) a fluorocarbon surfactant solution, 1 mL in
8 L.
NOTE 2—Pavement markings that have been installed on the road for
one month prior to testing usually do not exhibit this non-wetting
phenomena. When testing new markings using the soap/surfactant agents
above, visually examine the appearance of the marking as the water is
applied. The water should not form small beads of water on top of the
marking. If small beads are formed, increase the soap/surfactant level
FIG. 2 Definition of RL-Rain slightly and retry.

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E 2176 – 01
6. Sampling Do not fill the sprayer too full of water so that one cannot keep
6.1 The number of readings to be taken at each test location a constant pressure. A range of 1⁄4 to 3⁄4 full works well. The
and the spacing between test locations shall be specified by the spraying height shall be 0.45 6 0.15 m (18 6 6 in.) above the
user. marking.
6.2 Because of the unique nature of this test procedure, it is NOTE 3—The most consistent spraying of the water has been found
common to take less frequent measurements than one would do when using a battery operated portable sprayer. With this type of sprayer,
when assessing dry retroreflectance. the water rate is constant and the volume level in the tank does not effect
6.3 Measurements for each line type shall be averaged for a the spray rate.
final result. 8.3.3 With the retroreflectometer in place, a reading shall be
taken initially in the dry condition. (This is optional.)
7. Calibration 8.3.4 With the retroreflectometer still in place, the water
7.1 The portable or mobile retroreflectometer shall be cali- spray is turned on, and the area of the marking to be measured
brated (standardized) using the instructions from the instru- and adjacent area (road) is wetted for 10–15 s.
ment manufacturer. A reference or working standard is used 8.3.5 Hold the water spray over the area of the marking to
and is supplied with the instrument. be measured and take a measurement. Continue to take
7.2 Transporting the portable reflectometer from an air measurements approximately every 10 s thereafter until little
conditioned area to the test site may result in fogging of mirrors change in the values or a steady state occurs. This usually takes
in the instrument. If there is any doubt concerning the about 30 s to obtain a steady state value.
calibration or if the readings of a reference or working standard
NOTE 4—During the measurement process, the values obtained usually
are not constant, allow the instrument to reach ambient
start high and will become lower until the steady state condition occurs.
conditions and recalibrate with the reference or working
standard. 8.3.6 Record the measurements in millicandelas per square
7.3 Verification must be made that there is no moisture on metre per lux, [(mcd·m-2)/lx]. Move to next measurement
the reflectometer’s lens when the instrument is being used for location which is separated sufficiently to provide meaningful
wet readings. Adjust the water protective shield as necessary. data and repeat procedures 8.2 and 8.3.
7.4 Calibration Recheck—If the subsequent readings on the NOTE 5—Verification must be made that there is no moisture on the lens
reference standard deviate by more than 5 % from the initial when the instrument is being used for wet readings. Care must be taken
one, re-calibration shall be performed. If the readings on the when removing the moisture drops that a water smear is not left on the
reference standard deviate by more than 10 % from the initial lens.
one, recalibrate and, in addition, re-measure previous measure-
8.4 Measuring Wet Reflectance Using a Wetting Agent:
ments.
8.4.1 Discussion—The use of a wetting agent as explained
herein is not a standard test procedure. However, the use of a
8. General Procedure
wetting agent may be a practical way to estimate the perfor-
8.1 Both a dry and a wet measurement are usually taken in mance of newly installed markings.
order to characterize the performance of the marking. The dry 8.4.2 In order to wet out newly applied markings or to
measurement establishes the effectiveness of the marking in a overcome release agents that may be present, a soap or
dry condition plus acts as a bench mark for the marking to surfactant may be added to the water spray to overcome this
which the wet performance can be compared. However, the dry type of interference.
measurement is optional per this test method. 8.4.3 After the surfactant or soap has been added to the
8.2 Measuring Dry Retroreflectance: spray tank, the line is measured as in 8.3.
8.2.1 Use the manufacturer’s instructions for calibration and
operation of the retroreflectometer. NOTE 6—Caution should be taken that bubbles are not created in the
8.2.2 Locate the area of the pavement marking to be applied soap/water mixture as the bubbles act as interference.
measured.
9. Test Report
8.2.3 Place the retroreflectometer squarely on the pavement
marking material with the illumination in the direction of 9.1 Include the following in the test report.
travel. Ensure that the illuminated measurement area of the 9.1.1 Test date.
retroreflectometer fits within the width of the stripe, and take a 9.1.2 Average of the readings taken per line or marking
measurement. expressed in millicandelas per square metre per lux
8.3 Measuring Wet Retroreflectance: . The average of the readings shall be reported for wet and for
8.3.1 If necessary, use a shield to prevent water splatter onto dry conditions and for each traffic direction of interest.
the lens of the retroreflectometer. 9.1.3 Readings for centerlines shall be taken for each
8.3.2 Position and adjust the water spray with the nozzle direction of traffic. Readings for centerlines, edge lines, skip
such that it provides an even spray covering the whole area to lines, etc., shall be averaged separately.
be measured. Typically the spray area is approximately a 9.1.4 Geographical location of the test site. Global position-
20 6 2 in. circle. Open the nozzle until the water rate is ing system (GPS) location or distance from the nearest
approximately 0.8 6 0.2 L/min. The pressure in the tank shall permanent site identification, such as a mileage marker or
be maintained such that the flow does not noticeably diminish. crossroad.

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E 2176 – 01
9.1.5 Identification of the pavement marking material TABLE 1 Repeatability in Conditions of Continuous Wetting—for
tested: type, color, age, and the location on road (edge line, first Values of Wet Performance Under 100 [(mcd·m-2)/lx]
line, second line, centerline, etc.). NOTE—Individual readings range from 0 to 103 [(mcd·m-2)/lx].
9.1.6 Identification of the instrument used, value and date of n Range of Mean Pooled Coef. of 95 % C.I.
calibration of the reference standard panel used. Values Value St. Dev. Variation 2.8 (St. Dev.)
9.1.7 Remarks concerning the overall condition of the line, Study 1
such as rubber skid marks, carryover of asphalt, snowplow Instrument A 24 2 to 26 10.8 3.7 95.9 % 610
Study 2
damage, and other factors that may affect the retroreflection Instrument B 14 4 to 39 14.6 1.8 35.0 % 65.1
measurement. Study 3
Instrument A 27 6 to 76 31.7 8.3 73.2 % 623
9.1.8 Ambient temperature and other weather conditions.
9.1.9 Description of roadway slope and general drainage
where measurement is made (that is, puddles on marking due 11. Precision and Bias
to low spot in road, water drained due to road incline, etc.) 11.1 The precision and bias is based on three separate
9.1.10 Description of road surface and road texture, that is, studies, and their results can be found in Tables 1 and 2. The
portland concrete cement (PCC) (broomed, brushed, worn), tables show the repeatability for two instrument types and for
bituminous, chip seal, etc. two levels of wet performance. One level of wet performance
NOTE 7—Pavement texture may be identified and quantified by Test is shown in Table 1 for values less than 100 [(mcd·m-2)/lx] and
Method E 965. the other level is shown in Table 2 for values greater than 100
[(mcd·m-2)/lx]. The calculations and results follow Practice
10. Factors That May Influence Measurements E 691.
10.1 There are factors that may cause measurement vari- 11.2 In each study, the wet reflective measurement was
ability when taking readings in the field. Some of these are: performed by first wetting the area of the marking to be
10.1.1 Slight changes in the position of the reflectometer on measured and adjacent road and then continuously wetting the
or in front of the traffic line may yield different readings. marking while taking the measurement. For each study, 3-5
replicate readings were obtained by simply triggering the
10.1.2 The rate of water spray, the area being wetted, and
instruments at 10 s intervals without moving the instrument
the height of the water spray should be controlled as much as
once a steady state condition was obtained. The instruments
possible to reduce measurement variability.
were calibrated before the studies were conducted.
NOTE 8—It has been found that within the limits specified in this test 11.3 A reproducibility study (between instruments) has not
method the affect of changes in the water spray rate, spray height, etc., is been completed. However, in Table 2for values of wet perfor-
minimal. mance above 100 [(mcd·m-2)/lx], study # 1 gives a comparison
10.1.3 The initial values obtained with this test method are of two instruments (A1 and A2).
usually high and become lower until steady state is obtained. 12. Keywords
This process normally takes 20 to 30 s.
12.1 continuous wetting; dry retroreflection; mobile retrore-
10.1.4 The ability of the water to wet the surface of the
flectometers; pavement markings; portable retroreflectometer;
marking will affect the retroreflective readings. Normally
wet retroreflection
newly installed pavement markings have a surface chemistry
that causes water to “bead up” and act as reflective lenses. This TABLE 2 Repeatability in Conditions of Continuous Wetting—for
will give higher measurement values. Therefore, initial read- Values of Wet Performance Above 100 [(mcd·m-2)/lx]
ings are inflated and will show the marking’s performance to NOTE—Individual readings range from 100 to 940 [(mcd·m-2)/lx].
be better than it will be after they have been on the road for a
n Range of Mean Pooled Coef. of 95 % C.I.
month, when the water wets out the marking. It is common Values Value St. Dev. Variation 2.8 (St. Dev.)
practice to wait one month after installation to get a realistic Study 1
value for the marking’s performance (see 8.4 on using a Instrument A1 14 140 to 940 392 41.1 29.4 % 6115
surfactant). Instrument A2 14 126 to 740 330 41.7 35.4% 6117
Study 3
10.1.5 Water on the lens of the reflectometer will affect the Instrument A1 20 103 to 568 319 40.9 35.8 % 6114
readings. The lens must be keep clean and dry.

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E 2176 – 01
APPENDIX

(Nonmandatory Information)

X1. EXAMPLES OF PAVEMENT MARKING MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS

X1.1 The entrance angle and observation angle specified in


this test method are derived per the following geometry (which
exists in the vertical plane only). (See Fig. X1.1.)

FIG. X1.1 CEN 30 Meter Geometry—Pictorial of Observation and Entrance Angles for Simplified CEN Car
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