Modeling and Analyzing on the Electric Heating Cable System for Deicing and Melting Snow on Road Surface

In order to study the principle of the road surface deicing and snow-melting system where electric heating cable is used, finite element method is adopted for calculating the change of road surface temperature. The temperature distributions and changes of road surface and inside are computed under different environmental conditions. By comparing the numerical results and experimental data, it has been found that simulated results are in good agreement with those experimental data. The results shows that based on the analyses of weather data especially the temperatures in the past ten years, that the heat cable power range from 250 to 350 W/m^2 per unit surface can meet the requirement of deicing and melting snow for roads and streets surface in Beijing.