Methodology and test procedures for evaluating new roofing materials

Worldwide, there are more than 40 tests to assess the properties of nearly 400 conventional and new roofing products that exhibit wide ranges in a given property. New roofing materials can be divided into six distinctly different groups: 1. Hot applied rubberized asphalts; 2. Cold applied liquid membranes; 3. Prefabricated elastomeric sheeting; 4. Flexible polyvinyl chloride (PVC) membranes; 5. Prefabricated, reinforced, modified bituminous membranes; 6. Sprayed polyurethane with weather-resistant top coats. Each of these groups has its own specific characteristic properties that must be taken into consideration at the design stage. Test procedures were selected or, where necessary, developed to quantify properties before and after subjecting the materials to accelerated exposure conditions. This paper highlights the state of evaluating new roofing materials and describes test methods for this task. The concept and rationale of selecting tests for the different types of membranes and the tentative limits for various properties are discussed.
Proceedings of Second International Symposium on Roofs and Roofing: 1981