Thermal performance of a layered asphalt pavement system for snow melting

Recently, electrically heated cable has been used to melt snow and ice from roads around the world. To increase the heat transfer efficiency of asphalt pavement and improve its snow and ice removal ability, but decrease summer solar heating, which could cause rutting, a new asphalt pavement system with various thermal conductivity for layered structures was proposed. This pavement system includes a bottom high-conductivity layer and a top low-conductivity layer. The heat transfer of this pavement system was simulated with the finite element method and tested in a real environment. The results show that a structural combination of a top low-conductivity layer and a bottom high-conductivity layer could be helpful in increasing the surface temperature of pavement during the bottom heating at winter, but decreasing the inner temperature of pavement subjected to summer solar radiation, therefore reducing its rutting potential at summer. •A new asphalt pavement system with various thermal conductivity was proposed.•Graphite and diatomite were selected as the high and low thermal conductivity materials.•The heat transfer of this pavement system was simulated with the finite element method.•A structural combination with high and low-conductivity layer can help to increase the surface temperature.