Evaluation of the effectiveness of salt neutralizers for washing snow and ice equipment.

Details

• Creators:
  Monty, Chelsea N. ; Miller, Christopher M. ; Schneider IV, William H. ; Rodriguez, Alvaro
• Corporate Creators:
  University of Akron
• Corporate Contributors:
  United States. Federal Highway Administration
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  Benefit Cost Analysis Corrosion Protection Deicers (Equipment) Deicing Chemicals Maintenance Equipment Neutralization Protective Coatings Spectroscopic Analysis Washing Winter Maintenance
• Publication/ Report Number:
  FHWA/OH-2013/18
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  Ohio
• Corporate Publisher:
  Ohio. Dept. of Transportation. Office of Statewide Planning and Research
• Abstract:
  In winter maintenance, the chloride-based deicers used to keep roadways clear of
  
  snow and ice are highly corrosive to vehicles and equipment. Corrosion of snow and ice equipment
  
  is a major issue causing increased maintenance and repair costs, reduced vehicle life, and increased
  
  vehicle downtime. Statistics show that road salt causes approximately $1500/ton of damage to
  
  vehicles, bridges, and the environment. Washing of winter maintenance equipment after exposure to
  
  ice control chemicals has been suggested as one possible solution to minimize corrosion. However,
  
  washing with soap and water has been shown to be insufficient in removing residual salt from winter
  
  maintenance vehicles. Treating winter maintenance equipment with salt neutralizers, used in a
  
  variety of household and industrial applications, has been shown to prevent corrosion.
  
  Although the consensus points to the need for a reliable and easy to implement corrosion
  
  prevention strategy, at present there is not sufficient information available to determine the
  
  effectiveness of different wash systems at preventing corrosion. As the corrosion reduction data of
  
  salt neutralizer solutions on bare and coated metal surfaces is lacking, a systematic study has been
  
  carried out to provide quantitative information. A parallel study of six commercially available salt
  
  neutralizers is carried out for comparison. Analysis of the salt neutralizer solutions was carried out
  
  using contact angle, Ultra Violet-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), and Scanning Electron Microscopy imaging (SEM). Corrosion inhibition for several metals treated with salt neutralizer was determined
  
  using potentiodynamic measurements and accelerated weight loss analysis (ASTM B117). When
  
  considering the effects of corrosion on winter maintenance equipment, it is important to study not
  
  only steel but also various “soft metals” (copper, aluminum, brass, etc.) that can be found in the
  
  wiring and other parts of the fleet. Electrical Impedance Spectroscopy and visual inspection were
  
  used to determine the ability of coated metal samples to prevent corrosion. A cost benefit analysis
  
  was completed to determine what specific conditions directly impact the cost effectiveness of
  
  corrosion prevention strategies.
  
  
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  SJN 134718
• Collection(s):
  US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:149398efa255045100f67f9732c3f3000c3e12f3d8201d2823a23ad2c60a4a6d
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/27184/dot_27184_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 4.00 MB ]