New asphalt that contains its own de-icer!

[thewayne]

Very clever, doesn't sound like it would add significantly to the cost per mile of road as it's an additive, not a replacement for something important.

They reformulated salt so it's not sodium chloride, combined it with some other stuff, then micro-encapsulated it. Mixed it with the top asphalt layer and laid it down on a freeway offramp. And it stayed ice-free! Every time someone drives across it, it ruptures some of the micro-encapsulated stuff and it releases, constantly fighting the ice. It's estimated that it could last five to seven years.

https://newatlas.com/materials/asphalt-salt-additive-ice-roads/

Comments

[armiphlage]

I doubt the chemical will leach out of more than the top millimetre or so of asphalt, so the useful effect would drop off rapidly. Still, useful while it lasts.

[thewayne]

Roads and resurfacing are normally thought of in decade increments, but they do sometimes get damaged and need repair, or at least resurfacing on a spot basis.  Without it being implemented and actually tested for decades, "estimate" is the best they can do, I expect.