Data collection and analysis for geothermal research

A prototype bridge deck heating system that utilizes heat pipes to transfer the energy between a warm water source and the deck surface was tested for possible use on some of the I-70 structures through the geothermally active Glenwood Canyon. At water flow rates around 35 GPM and temperatures of 25 C, the snow cover duration on the 59 sq m of heated surface was reduced between 96% and 100% and the deck's frozen time was reduced between 85% and 95% for the five different heat pipe configurations tested; this despite the fact that over a 1 1/4 thick sludge was deposited on all the unprotected metallic surfaces exposed to the geothermal water which caused the system's thermal resistance to double. If this system is to be viable for this application, a durable, protective coating with a low thermal resistance must be found to prevent both fouling and corrosion. The thermal analysis indicates that up to two hundred of these units can be placed in series with a tolerable degradation in the last unit's performance for water flow rates above 100 GPM.