Abstract
In 2012, the Lithuanian Road Administration initiated a three-year research project ‘The study of effective winter road maintenance of national significance roads in Lithuania’. The main purpose of this research was to optimize road maintenance in winter and to determine the most effective means of combating slippery conditions. The research project was carried out by two institutions: the Road Research Institute of the Faculty of Environmental Engineering of Vilnius Gediminas Technical University and JSC ‘Problematika’. JSC ‘Problematika’ conducted exploratory experiments, which were divided into two phases. In the first phase of the experiment, five different snow melting materials (Slipperiness Reducing Materials – SRMs) were investigated in the laboratory. Different test methods were used in this investigation. In the second phase of the experiment, three SRMs with different properties were selected, and experimental road sections were set up to determine the road slipperiness and the change in coating layer thickness over time concerning different environmental conditions, as well as different snow and ice layer thicknesses. An optical remote sensor of Road Condition Monitor (RCM 411) was used for friction measurements on the roads. This report covers the laboratory test results of five different SRMs, road slipperiness measurement results using three selected SRMs and their analysis, comparison of the performance efficiency of the most widely used SRMs in Lithuania and the tested SRMs under different environmental conditions.
Highlights
The most significant action in winter road management is to remove snow and ice from the road surface more efficiently and rapidly
Numerous laboratory and field studies have been conducted to evaluate the performance of Snow Melting Materials (Slipperiness Reducing Materials – SRMs) and the resulting friction coefficient of treated pavement
Test methods included the selection and analysis of test methods of ice melting materials, road surface condition measuring devices and techniques
Summary
The most significant action in winter road management is to remove snow and ice from the road surface more efficiently and rapidly. In cold and snowy regions, salting is the primary measure against icy road surfaces and an important measure to secure safe and smooth winter road traffic (Zofka et al 2014). Numerous laboratory and field studies have been conducted to evaluate the performance of Snow Melting Materials (Slipperiness Reducing Materials – SRMs) and the resulting friction coefficient of treated pavement. (Muthumani et al 2014; Akin, Shi 2012). In this context, laboratory and field experiments need to be carefully designed to encompass all relevant variables so that better correlations can be developed
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