IMPACT ON PAVEMENT
OxyChem calcium chloride products are recommended for deicing, prewetting and anti-icing treatments on asphalt and concrete surfaces that have been designed and constructed for winter weather conditions and deicer usage. Used at appropriate application rates on properly designed and constructed pavement, OxyChem calcium chloride products will not chemically attack concrete or asphalt. However, melt water from the deicing process may soak into porous concrete and re-freeze, creating pressure within the concrete structure. Concrete that lacks the strength to withstand this pressure may spall or scale. Concrete is resistant to scaling damage if it is air-entrained, mixed, placed and cured according to the recommendations of the American Concrete Institute Committee 201.
Corrosion of concrete rebar – Chloride ions from deicing salts – including sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, and calcium chloride – can permeate concrete. When chloride, oxygen and moisture combine on the surface of unprotected steel, corrosion will result. Rust formation on embedded rebar places pressure on the surrounding concrete, which can result in cracking, spalling and delamination. The loss of bond between concrete and reinforcing steel and the loss of rebar cross-sectional area can both result in serious structural problems.
Companies and trade organizations with expertise in concrete construction technology have access to several different options for protecting embedded metal from corrosion in new or rehabilitated structures. With support from these experts, each end user should determine whether or not application of chloride-based deicers is appropriate for their given situation. Implementation of strategies designed to limit use of deicers to levels appropriate for the conditions can help minimize the potential for damage to reinforcement steel as well as other metal infrastructure.