Drexel University’s innovative concrete, capable of self-heating, has shown promise in reducing snow and ice accumulation, aiming to make infrastructure in cold regions more durable and maintenance-efficient. Credit: SciTechDaily.comThere’s a patch of concrete on Drexel University’s campus that could portend a frost-free future for sidewalks and highways in the Northeast.
“We have demonstrated that our self-heating concrete is capable of melting snow on its own, using only the environmental daytime thermal energy — and doing it without the help of salt, shoveling, or heating systems,” Farnam said. “This self-heating concrete is suitable for mountainous and northern regions in the U.S., such as Northeast Pennsylvania and Philadelphia, where there are suitable heating and cooling cycles in winter.
Using cameras and thermal sensors, the researchers monitored the temperature and snow and ice-melting behavior of the slabs. They reported that the phase-change slabs maintained a surface temperature between 42 and 55 degreesThis heating is enough to melt a couple of inches of snow, at a rate of about a quarter of an inch of snow per hour.
“Our findings suggest that the phase-change material treated lightweight aggregate concrete was more suited for deicing applications at sub-zero temperatures due to its gradual heat release within wider range of temperature,” Farnam said.While both applications were able to raise the temperature of the concrete to between 53 and 55 degrees Fahrenheit, which is more than enough to melt snow. Their performance was affected by the ambient air temperature before a snowfall and the rate of snowfall.