This technology creates solid phase change material particles by adsorbing polyethylene glycol (PEG) onto porous silicon dioxide surfaces and coating them with molten asphalt. When added to asphalt pavement mixtures, these particles store heat during the day and release it as temperatures drop, providing high-heat-storage asphalt pavement.
Over 90% of roads in Korea are paved with asphalt. Since 2015, black ice has caused an average of over 1,200 traffic accidents annually, while the need to address urban heat and carbon emissions has grown. Previous solutions involved filling porous particles with paraffin-based phase change materials to be buried under roads in pipes or using cellulose fiber-impregnated pastes. However, these lacked a phase change material capable of being mixed directly into asphalt and withstanding high-temperature construction.
This technology involves mixing 85 wt% silicon dioxide with 15 wt% PEG (number-average molecular weight 1,800–2,200) in a sol state, heating to 50–60°C for gelation, and then drying and pulverizing the particles. These are coated with molten asphalt at 5 wt% of the asphalt mass, maintaining a solid state even after 2 hours in a 200°C oven. The pavement is created by adding 10 parts by weight of this material to 100 parts of a mixture containing 50–60 wt% coarse aggregate, 30–40 wt% sand (4.74mm or less), and 4–5 wt% asphalt. Applicable to bridge decks, tunnel entrances, and shaded mountain roads, it integrates heat storage into existing asphalt plant processes to delay road icing and mitigate urban heat island effects.
This invention was developed with support from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport for research on simulation analysis and life-cycle economic analysis of rebar-alternative concrete structures.
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