Development of Shaker Test as a Standardized Test Protocol for Deicing Chemicals Evaluation

During a research project previously funded by the Mid-America Transportation Center (MATC), a simple and economical test using a martini shaker for ice melting capacity evaluation showed potential in becoming a standardized test. The development of the shaker test was prompted by the inconsistent results from the Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP) ice melting capacity tests. Further, there is a general interest within the winter maintenance community (e.g., Clear Roads and Transportation Research Board (TRB) Committee AHD65) to further develop the shaker test into a deicing chemicals test protocol. This research focused on the use of a mechanical rocker for shaking instead of manually shaking, which can introduce significant error. The main objective of this research was to transform The Mechanical Rocker Test into a standardized testing procedure for an ice melting capacity evaluation of liquid deicing chemicals. A number of testing parameters need to be precisely specified to ensure repeatability and consistency in the test results. In this test, 33 ice cubes of 1.3-mL each and 30-mL of liquid deicing chemical were mixed in a vacuum sealed thermos on a mechanical rocking platform. The rocker was set to a frequency of 90 Revolutions Per Minute (RPM) with a tilt angle of ±10°. The time duration for rocking was set for 15 minutes. A Styrofoam dish or cup was used for measuring the mass of the ice. With these test parameters, a standard deviation of 1.15% has been achieved when testing with MeltDown Apex™. The Rocker Tests can be used to develop guidelines for efficient winter roadways maintenance operations involving the use of deicing chemicals. Guidelines for best practices under various weather and roadway conditions will improve snow removal operations and provide an adequate level of service and safety to the general public on the U.S. surface transportation system. This test procedure will be submitted to selected Departments of Transportation and Clear Roads for parallel testing and feedback.

• Record URL:
  • http://matc.unl.edu/assets/documents/matcfinal/Tuan_DevelopmentofShakerTestasaStandardizedTestProtocolforDeicingChemicalsEvaluation.pdf
• 
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This document was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation, University Transportation Centers Program.
• Corporate Authors:

  University of Nebraska, Lincoln

  Department of Civil Engineering
  Omaha, NE  United States  68182-0178

  Mid-America Transportation Center

  University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  2200 Vine Street, PO Box 830851
  Lincoln, NE  United States  68583-0851

  Research and Innovative Technology Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Tuan, Christopher Y
  • Albers II, Tregan
• Publication Date: 2014-7-31

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Edition: Final Report
• Features: Appendices; Figures; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 65p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Deicing chemicals; Evaluation; Melting; Test procedures; Testing equipment; Winter maintenance
• Subject Areas: Highways; Maintenance and Preservation; I62: Winter Maintenance;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01551443
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 25-1121-0003-058, MATC-UNL: 058
• Files: UTC, TRIS, RITA, ATRI, USDOT
• Created Date: Jan 27 2015 11:23AM