Experimental study and numerical simulation of concrete pavement electrical heating for snow melting

• Published in: Construction & building materials Vol. 442; p. 137611
• Main Authors: Wang, Fang, Fu, Chaoliang, Liu, Kai, Huang, Silu, Gao, Yangming, Xie, Hongzhou
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 06.09.2024
• Subjects: Concrete pavement; Electric heating pipe; Finite element; Snow-free ratio; Snow-melting; Snow-melting; Electric heating pipe; Snow-free ratio; Concrete pavement; Finite element
• ISSN: 0950-0618
• DOI: 10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2024.137611

Road snow accumulation can lead to severe traffic delays, and commonly used deicing agents may pose potential environmental risks. Electrically heated concrete pavement systems utilizing heating pipe technology offer a safe and environmentally sustainable alternative. The snow-free ratio was frequently used as an evaluation index to evaluate the snow-melting performance in road infrastructure. However, the unique wavy temperature distribution during the snow-melting process of the heating system results in discontinuous melting, making the existing snow-free ratio inadequate for accurately assessing its performance and effectively guiding the operational strategy of the heating system. Therefore, this study analyzed the special temperature distribution and proposed a new calculation method for snow-free ratio based on the average temperature and the temperature non-uniformity coefficient of the pavement surface. First, the effects of factors such as heating pipe spacing, embedded depth, heating power, and wind velocity on average temperature and the temperature non-uniformity coefficient were analyzed using finite element simulation. Prediction models for average temperature and the temperature non-uniformity coefficient were then established and validated using the response surface method and experiments. Subsequently, using average temperature and the temperature non-uniformity coefficient as intermediate variables, a new functional relationship between the snow-free ratio and the four factors was established, allowing for satisfactory snow-melting performance to be achieved by adjusting the relevant factors of the heating system. The results show that the error rate between the proposed new calculation method and simulation results is only 4.44 %. Moreover, it was concluded that adjusting spacing and heating power is the most effective strategy for heating systems to achieve optimal snow-melting performance. •New evaluation method was proposed to evaluate snow-melting performance.•2D finite element model of EHCPS-HPT was established.•The prediction models of snow-melting performance were proposed.•The snow-melting experiments of EHCPS-HPT were conducted.