oSIST prEN 18389:2026

• Abstract:

  This document specifies a framework of additional characteristics and associated test methods for bitumens and bituminous binders, which is complementary to other product standards for bitumens and bituminous binders. This document is applicable to bitumens and bituminous binders suitable for use in paving applications, but it is also applicable for other uses such as waterproofing membranes.; With regard to paving applications, the following characteristics are addressed:; - resistance to permanent deformation (rutting);; - resistance to low-temperature cracking;; - resistance to ravelling;; - resistance to fatigue cracking;; - temperature susceptibility;; - equi-stiffness temperature and phase angle;; - durability (evolution of equi-stiffness temperature and phase angle);; - mixing and handling characteristics (paving and compaction) temperatures;; - additional characteristics (e.g. solubility, elastic recovery and storage stability).; Not all the properties and characteristics established in the framework are universally relevant to all binders. For example, elastic recovery is not relevant for unmodified binders.

• Status: Not Published
• Public Enquiry End Date: 18-Oct-2026
• ICS: 75.140 - Waxes, bituminous materials and other petroleum products
• ICS: 93.080.20 - Road construction materials
• Technical Committee: VLA - Water proofing
• Current Stage: 4020 - Public enquire (PE) (Adopted Project)
• Start Date: 25-Aug-2026
• Due Date: 12-Jan-2027
• Ref Project: prEN 18389 - Bitumens and bituminous binders - Complementary Performance-related Specification Framework

Overview

oSIST prEN 18389:2026 is a draft European standard developed by CEN/TC 336 that provides a complementary performance-related specification framework for bitumens and bituminous binders. This standard defines a robust set of additional characteristics and associated test methods, enhancing and supporting existing product standards for bitumens and bituminous binders. While its primary focus is on materials used in paving applications, such as asphalt for road construction, the framework is also applicable to other uses, notably waterproofing membranes.

By introducing performance classes and precision measurement guidance, oSIST prEN 18389:2026 aims to ensure consistency, quality, and fitness for purpose across Europe’s diverse climate and traffic conditions. It promotes transparency and comparability in specifying and selecting bitumens and bituminous binders.

Key Topics

oSIST prEN 18389:2026 addresses the following key performance characteristics for bitumens and bituminous binders:

• Resistance to permanent deformation (rutting): Indicates how well a binder resists permanent shape change under repeated loading.
• Resistance to low-temperature cracking: Assesses flexibility and performance at low temperatures to avoid cracking.
• Resistance to ravelling: Evaluates the binder’s ability to resist disintegration or loss of aggregate particles.
• Resistance to fatigue cracking: Measures the binder’s durability under repeated stress.
• Temperature susceptibility: Describes performance stability across temperature variations.
• Equi-stiffness temperature and phase angle: Links stiffness and elasticity parameters, which affect binder performance.
• Durability: Examines changes in performance over time due to ageing, using indicators like equi-stiffness temperature and phase angle shifts.
• Mixing and handling characteristics: Recommends optimal paving and compaction temperatures for safe and efficient application.
• Additional properties: Covers factors such as solubility, elastic recovery, storage stability, and safety-related criteria like flash point.

It is important to note that not all properties are required or relevant for every binder type (e.g., elastic recovery is not relevant for unmodified bitumens).

Applications

The framework set out in oSIST prEN 18389:2026 is valuable for a range of stakeholders involved with bitumens and bituminous binders:

• Road Construction: Enables manufacturers, specifiers, and contractors to select binders fit for specific traffic and climatic conditions by referencing measurable performance criteria.
• Quality Control: Standardized testing procedures and performance classes facilitate rigorous quality assurance and assessment during production and application.
• Specification Drafting: National organizations and application-specific documents can build robust specifications tailored to unique needs, using the framework’s flexible classes and properties.
• Material Selection: End-users can compare suppliers and products effectively, ensuring that choice of bitumen or binder aligns with durability, workability, and safety requirements.
• Other Uses: The framework can be adapted for non-paving applications, such as the production of waterproofing membranes, where similar durability and handling qualities are needed.

Related Standards

oSIST prEN 18389:2026 complements and references several established European and international standards relevant to bitumens and bituminous binders:

• EN 12591 - Specifications for paving grade bitumen
• EN 14023 - Polymer modified bitumens
• EN 13924-1 and EN 13924-2 - Special paving grade bitumens (hard and multigrade)
• EN 13808 - Bituminous emulsions
• EN 15322 - Cut-back and fluxed binders
• EN 13302, EN 13398, EN 13399 - Test methods for viscosity, elastic recovery, and storage stability
• EN ISO 2592, EN ISO 2719 - Flash point determination
• EN 14769, EN 14770, EN 14771 - Ageing, complex shear modulus, and flexural creep testing

By offering a harmonized specification and test framework, oSIST prEN 18389:2026 supports enhanced safety, durability, and environmental performance across the bituminous materials sector. This helps drive innovation and best practices throughout the road construction and waterproofing industries in Europe and beyond.

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-oktober-2026
Bitumen in bitumenska veziva - Okvir dodatnih specifikacij glede na zmogljivost
Bitumens and bituminous binders - Complementary Performance-related Specification
Framework
Bitumen und bitumenhaltige Bindemittel - Ergänzende Produktspezifikationen -
Bitumenhaltige Bindemittel für den Straßenbau
Bitumes et liants bitumineux - Cadre de spécifications complémentaires relatives aux
performances
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: prEN 18389
ICS:
75.140 Voski, bitumni in drugi naftni Waxes, bituminous materials
proizvodi and other petroleum products
93.080.20 Materiali za gradnjo cest Road construction materials
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

DRAFT
EUROPEAN STANDARD
NORME EUROPÉENNE
EUROPÄISCHE NORM
August 2026
ICS 93.080.20
English Version
Bitumens and bituminous binders - Complementary
Performance-related Specification Framework
Bitumes et liants bitumineux - Cadre de spécifications Bitumen und bitumenhaltige Bindemittel - Ergänzende
complémentaires relatives aux performances Produktspezifikationen -Bitumenhaltige Bindemittel
für den Straßenbau
This draft European Standard is submitted to CEN members for enquiry. It has been drawn up by the Technical Committee
CEN/TC 336.
If this draft becomes a European Standard, CEN members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations
which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration.

This draft European Standard was established by CEN in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other
language made by translation under the responsibility of a CEN member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC
Management Centre has the same status as the official versions.

CEN members are the national standards bodies of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway,
Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and
United Kingdom.
Recipients of this draft are invited to submit, with their comments, notification of any relevant patent rights of which they are
aware and to provide supporting documentation.

Warning : This document is not a European Standard. It is distributed for review and comments. It is subject to change without
notice and shall not be referred to as a European Standard.

EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION
COMITÉ EUROPÉEN DE NORMALISATION

EUROPÄISCHES KOMITEE FÜR NORMUNG

CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Rue de la Science 23, B-1040 Brussels
© 2026 CEN All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved Ref. No. prEN 18389:2026 E
worldwide for CEN national Members.

Contents Page
European foreword . 3
1 Scope . 5
2 Normative references . 5
3 Terms and definitions . 6
4 Abbreviated terms . 6
5 Sampling and sample preparation . 7
6 Characteristics and test methods . 7
6.1 General . 7
6.2 Short-term ageing . 7
6.3 Long-term ageing . 7
6.4 Characteristics and related test methods. 8
6.4.1 General . 8
6.4.2 Resistance to permanent deformation . 8
6.4.3 Resistance to low-temperature cracking . 8
6.4.4 Resistance to ravelling . 8
6.4.5 Resistance to fatigue cracking . 8
6.4.6 Temperature susceptibility . 8
6.4.7 Equi-stiffness temperature, phase angle and durability . 8
6.4.8 Mixing and handling temperatures . 9
6.4.9 Additional product characteristics . 9
6.5 Precision . 9
6.6 Tables presenting the classes of performance for product characteristics . 9
Annex A (informative) Guidance on the use of tables and selection of classes of performance
....................................................................................................................................................................16
Bibliography .19

European foreword
This document (prEN 18389:2026) has been prepared by Technical Committee CEN/TC 336 “Bitumens
and bituminous binders”, the secretariat of which is held by AFNOR.
This document is submitted to the CEN Enquiry.
Introduction
This document defines performance-related properties to better define the performance of bitumens and
bituminous binders in construction works, for example asphalt paving.
This document is designed to be complementary to other CEN/TC 336 product standards for bitumens
and bituminous binders, some of which are harmonized within the European construction product
regulation and cited in the Official Journal of the European Union. It aims to provide additional product
performance characteristics by addressing performance-related properties and critical ageing states and
does not overlap with other product standards for bitumens and bituminous binders. It is the outcome of
works carried out by CEN/TC 336/WG 1 on bitumens and bituminous binders future specifications.
At the time of publication of this document, adhesion performance is not addressed in CEN/TC 336
product standards, as this is determined by tests on the asphalt mix. However, this document does
address handling temperatures which are important in the production of notably asphalt mixtures.
This document is part of a family of CEN/TC 336 product standards for bitumens and bituminous binders
for paving applications, as shown in Figure 1, but can also apply to other uses.

Figure 1 — Mapping of European product standards for bitumens and bituminous binders for
paving applications
1 Scope
This document specifies a framework of additional characteristics and associated test methods for
bitumens and bituminous binders, which is complementary to other product standards for bitumens and
bituminous binders. This document is applicable to bitumens and bituminous binders suitable for use in
paving applications, but it is also applicable for other uses such as waterproofing membranes.
With regard to paving applications, the following characteristics are addressed:
— resistance to permanent deformation (rutting);
— resistance to low-temperature cracking;
— resistance to ravelling;
— resistance to fatigue cracking;
— temperature susceptibility;
— equi-stiffness temperature and phase angle;
— durability (evolution of equi-stiffness temperature and phase angle);
— mixing and handling characteristics (paving and compaction) temperatures;
— additional characteristics (e.g. solubility, elastic recovery and storage stability).
Not all the properties and characteristics established in the framework are universally relevant to all
binders. For example, elastic recovery is not relevant for unmodified binders.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
EN 58, Bitumens and bituminous binders — Sampling of bituminous binders
EN 1426, Bitumens and bituminous binders — Determination of needle penetration
EN 1427, Bitumens and bituminous binders — Determination of the softening point — Ring and Ball
method
EN 12592, Bitumen and bituminous binders — Determination of solubility
EN 12594, Bitumens and bituminous binders — Preparation of test samples
EN 12597, Bitumens and bituminous binders — Terminology
EN 12607-1, Bitumens and bituminous binders — Determination of the resistance to hardening under the
influence of heat and air — Part 1: RTFOT method
EN 12607-2, Bitumen and bituminous binders — Determination of the resistance to hardening under the
influence of heat and air — Part 2: TFOT method
EN 13302, Bitumens and bituminous binders — Determination of dynamic viscosity of bituminous binder
using a rotating spindle apparatus
EN 13398, Bitumen and bituminous binders — Determination of the elastic recovery of modified bitumen
EN 13399, Bitumen and bituminous binders — Determination of storage stability of modified bitumen
EN 13589, Bitumens and bituminous binders — Determination of the tensile properties of modified
bitumens by the force ductility method
EN 13702, Bitumen and bituminous binders — Determination of dynamic viscosity of bitumen and
bituminous binders by the cone and plate method
EN 14769, Bitumen and bituminous binders — Accelerated long-term ageing conditioning by a Pressure
Ageing Vessel (PAV)
EN 14770, Bitumen and bituminous binders — Determination of complex shear modulus and phase angle —
Dynamic Shear Rheometer (DSR)
EN 14771, Bitumen and bituminous binders — Determination of the flexural creep stiffness — Bending
Beam Rheometer (BBR)
EN 16659, Bitumens and bituminous binders — Multiple stress creep and recovery test (MSCRT)
EN ISO 2592, Determination of flash and fire points — Cleveland open cup method (ISO 2592)
EN ISO 2719, Determination of flash point — Pensky-Martens closed cup method (ISO 2719)
EN ISO 4259-2, Petroleum and related products — Precision of measurement methods and results —
Part 2: Interpretation and application of precision data in relation to methods of test (ISO 4259-2)
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in EN 12597 apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https://www.iso.org/obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https://www.electropedia.org/
4 Abbreviated terms
For the purposes of this document, the following abbreviated terms are used in Tables 1 to 8:
— DV for “Declared Value” made available by the supplier or manufacturer of the bituminous binder;
— NR for “Not Required”, e.g. where a particular characteristic is not applicable to a certain type of
bituminous binder or has not been selected for the specification of a particular group of binders.
In Tables 1 to 8, for a given characteristic, performance can be defined by a declared value (DV), not
required (NR), a threshold (limit) or a class (range).
5 Sampling and sample preparation
Samples of bulk products, so called “laboratory samples”, shall be taken in accordance with EN 58.
Test samples shall be taken from the laboratory samples and prepared for testing, in accordance with
EN 12594. Additional requirements on the test samples or specimen preparation can be specified in the
related test methods.
6 Characteristics and test methods
6.1 General
European product standards cover a large variety of road materials for different applications, to
accommodate local traffic loads and climatic conditions. Therefore, this document covers a large range of
bitumens and bituminous binders to facilitate production and application for the intended use and the
designed paving.
This document provides a performance framework for the characteristics of bitumens and bituminous
binders which are selected from Tables 1 to 4 and Table 6 which are distributed as follows:
— Table 1 gives characteristics related to permanent deformation;
— Table 2 gives characteristics related to low-temperature cracking;
— Table 3 gives characteristics related to ravelling resistance;
— Table 4 gives characteristics related to fatigue cracking and temperature susceptibility;
— Table 6 gives characteristics related to durability.
Tables 5, 7 and 8 give details of product characteristics which are important in determining some aspects
of performance, safety or handling.
Guidance on the use of Tables 1 to 8 and subsequent reporting of performance classes is given in Annex A.
6.2 Short-term ageing
Short-term ageing, as used in Tables 1 to 6 and Table 8, means rolling thin film oven test (RTFOT)
conditioning in accordance with EN 12607-1. For soft binders, such as those described in
EN 12591:2009 [1], Tables 3A and 3B, short-term ageing is carried out by thin film oven test (TFOT)
conditioning in accordance with EN 12607-2.
The main test is the RTFOT at a temperature of 163 °C. In some cases (e.g. for highly viscous polymer-
modified bitumens or low-viscosity binders for reduced-temperature application), this temperature may
be modified when necessary to ensure that a moving film is generated and remains in the bottle.
Experience has shown that a temperature up to 180 °C can be necessary for high viscosity binders. For
low-viscosity binders, a temperature of 140 °C may be used, as long as a continuous moving film is
generated. If a temperature other than 163 °C is used, this shall be declared.
6.3 Long-term ageing
Long-term ageing as used in Tables 2 to 6 means RTFOT conditioning in accordance with EN 12607-1 or
TFOT in accordance with EN 12607-2, followed by pressure ageing vessel (PAV) conditioning in
accordance with EN 14769. PAV conditioning shall be carried out at a temperature T of 100 °C, a
pressure P of 2,1 MPa and for a duration t of 20 h ± 10 min.
6.4 Characteristics and related test methods
6.4.1 General
The characteristics of bitumens and bituminous binders as well as related test methods shall be selected
from the performance classes given in Tables 1 to 8. When tested by the methods given in Tables 1 to 8,
the various performances shall conform to the classes or thresholds specified in Tables 1 to 8 unless DV
or NR is selected.
6.4.2 Resistance to permanent deformation
Resistance to permanent deformation shall be indicated by the percentage recovery, %R, and non-
recoverable compliance, J , at a stress level of 3,2 kPa of short-term aged binders as defined in Table 1. A
nr
single test temperature value within the range 40 °C to 80 °C shall be selected according to regional
conditions and the intended use of the binder.
6.4.3 Resistance to low-temperature cracking
Resistance to low-temperature cracking shall be indicated by the critical stiffness temperature, critical
m-value temperature and the parameter ΔT of long-term aged binder as defined in Table 2. ΔT is defined
c c
as the difference between the temperatures at which the binder stiffness S = 300 MPa and the
m-value = 0,3.
6.4.4 Resistance to ravelling
Ravelling resistance shall be indicated by the total cohesion energy and elongation to break of long-term
aged binder as defined in Table 3.
Total cohesion energy is defined as the total area under the curve of the force-extension graph until
...