Safe bridges thanks to tailor-made (biobased) coating

The best conceivable top coat for bridges

Concrete, asphalt, wood or steel. Whatever material a bridge structure is made of, Possehl has a suitable coating in the color that suits the use. To protect the road surface, for greater safety and a longer life span. Erik de Leeuw, managing director at Possehl, tells more about Thermoflex, the special coating for bridge decks.

The Hovenring near Eindhoven, the Melkwegbrug in Purmerend, the 160 meter long Tegenbosch bridge over the A2 near Eindhoven have one thing in common according to Erik de Leeuw. "We provided these three special bicycle bridges with our special Thermoflex coating that is technically adapted to the requirements that the respective bridges have to meet." Possehl is a specialist in the development and application of special coatings. They help road authorities, contractors, engineers and project developers with advice on and realization of coating, repair and maintenance of floors, roads, paths, bridges and airports. "A coating provides more grip on the surface and therefore greater safety. It also makes the surface more resistant to water and chloride deterioration, such as deterioration from road salt. Especially when it comes to bridge decks. After all, a bridge deck is the first to freeze, which is why a high-performance coating is indispensable."

Millions of square meters

Bridges come in all shapes and sizes. Of wood, concrete, steel or asphalt, with paths for bicyclists, pedestrians and/or cars. Each material has its own effect and each use has its own color. For example, bike lanes are often red and bus lanes are green. Therefore, it is important to match the coating exactly to that. Erik: "Every coating we apply is tailor-made. We use our own coating for this purpose: Thermoflex. We developed this coating ourselves. Today this is the best conceivable top layer. We have now coated millions of square meters with it, from asphalt to industrial floors." 

Torrential

Not only is frost an additional risk with bridge decks, but the transition from very open asphalt concrete (zoab) on the road surface to regular closed asphalt on the bridge deck poses safety risks for road traffic. "On highways, you have the phenomenon of splash and spray. You know it, it's raining and you're driving on the highway. As long as it's zoab, visibility is good. Then you drive over a bridge with closed asphalt and you can hardly see your hand in front of your face. This abrupt transition is called splash and spray. This can be prevented by coating a bridge deck. This gives it a draining effect. The water runs off between the tiny grains. Even during the most intense rainstorms we have experienced in our country so far. In fact, the draining capacity is 6 liters every 20 minutes."

Biobased

The coatings applied by Possehl have a lifetime of more than 20 years. In that sense, they are very durable. But things can be even better and more sustainable in terms of environmental impact. Erik: "We have developed a biobased version of our Thermoflex coating. A very durable coating that is water-bearing and thus remains rough in every conceivable weather condition. This sustainable coating can then be sprinkled with all conceivable sprinkling materials, but the ultimate combination is with circular glass. This is recycled glass that has been "ground up" and tumbled into very small 3mm grains. It is barely distinguishable from natural rock. The epoxy currently consists of 20 percent biobased material, we are developing it further to have it completely biobased by 2030 at the latest. Independent research also shows that these biobased materials have virtually no loss of microplastics compared to other coatings."