A review of electrically conductive concrete heated pavement system technology: From the laboratory to the full-scale implementation

Transportation agencies in cold regions often suffer each year economically due to a partial shutdown of their transportation networks during winter storms. Traditional passive ice and snow removal techniques using snowplows, snowblowers, snow shovels and de-icing chemicals are inefficient and hazardous to the environment and pavement. The addition of electrically-conductive fillers (ECFs) such as carbon fibers and steel fibers in a standard concrete mixture reduces electrical resistivity and enhances the resistive heating properties of electrically-conductive concrete (ECON). Under the application of electric voltage, the heat produced from ECON can melt ice and snow accumulated on the pavement. While ECON can be utilized in heated-pavement systems (HPS), field-scale implementation of ECON HPS technology is not yet ubiquitous. This study discusses the challenges that must be overcome to make ECON HPS technology economically attractive to transportation agencies.

Automated summary

Transportation agencies in cold regions often face economic losses due to the inefficiency and environmental hazards of traditional ice and snow removal techniques. This study discusses the challenges of implementing electrically-conductive concrete for heated-pavement systems to make it economically attractive.