Road Weather Management Program
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Best Practices for Road Weather Management Version 2.0

Title:

Conceptual and Scaling Evaluation of Vehicle Traffic Thermal Effects on Snow/Ice-Covered Roads

Abstract:

The potential thermal effects of traffic on road surface thermal energy balance under frost/snow cover conditions have been largely ignored in meteorological evaluations of road ice deposit conditions. Preliminary exploration of these effects, particularly for heavy traffic scenarios with calm wind conditions and an ambient temperature of 0°C, is provided in this study using a conceptual model. Observational data were used to constrain the model, and parameterizations were employed to estimate the various heat transfer processes involved. The results indicate that, for heavy traffic situations, as well as for stopped traffic at intersections, the traffic thermal flux contribution at the surface is noticeable in a wide range of possible frost/snow-covered road conditions. The sensitivity to variation in traffic density, speed, and the emissivity of vehicle radiative surfaces, among others, is evaluated. Simple quantification of these traffic thermal effects, which might be considered in operational meteorological model forecasting of icy road conditions, is offered

Source(s):

Journal of Applied Meteorology, Volume 41, Issue 12, pp. 1225?1240

http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1032[amp]context=ge_at_pubs

Date: 2002

Author:

Prusa, Segal, Temeyer, Gallus, Takle

Keywords:


Snow
Pavement temperature
Speed
Volume
Pavement friction
Pavement condition

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