Evaluation and selection of de-icing salt based on multi-factor

Abstract

De-icing salts can greatly ease traffic congestion but introduce corrosion of concrete and damage to plant growth. The decision of which de-icing salt to use becomes a crucial issue. In this study, several representative de-icing salts were investigated, and the effects of de-icing ability, salt freezing corrosion on concrete, and plant growth were comprehensively tested. Finally, the decision of de-icing salt was made based on analytic hierarchy process (AHP). Results show that de-icing salts achieving the best de-icing effect are not the same at different concentrations. De-icing salts of 3% concentration have the greatest corrosion to concrete. Notably, magnesium chloride and calcium magnesium acetate have the least impact on plants among all studied de-icing salts. Using AHP, ethylene glycol and calcium magnesium acetate are selected as optimal items under different priorities.