Advancements in System Modeling and Load Assessment for Infrastructure’s Ground-Source De-Icing

Paper in proceeding, 2025

Ground-source Hydronic Heated Pavement Systems (HHPS) represent a sustainable and effective approach for mitigating winter hazards on transportation infrastructure through automated snow melting, de-icing, and ice prevention. This study presents a comprehensive review of over twenty case studies involving ground-source HHPS, combining numerical thermal and mechanical modeling, laboratory experiments, and full-scale prototypes. The aim is to assess the reliability and accuracy of numerical models in predicting the performance of ground-source HHPS, identifying opportunities for optimization and model refinement. Comparative analysis emphasizes the importance of accurate calibration and validation for reliable simulation of thermal and mechanical behavior of the system. The review highlights conduction as the dominant mode of heat transfer in these systems, with secondary influences from convection and contact resistance. Furthermore, environmental factors such as radiation and precipitation also impact surface temperature regulation. Discrepancies between numerical and experimental results, often attributed to simplifying assumptions, such as material homogeneity or uniform settlement, underscore the need for iterative refinement to improve model fidelity. Validated models have demonstrated capability in optimizing pipe configurations, predict thermal performance under steady-state conditions, assess durability under cyclic loading, and evaluate load transfer in energy pile-supported infrastructure.