Numerical simulation of snow melting on pavement surface with heat dissipation pipe embedded

Programmed software was developed in order to numerically simulate time variation of the temperature field and snow depth around a pipe‐in‐pile snow‐melting system, using meteorological data. The system utilized underground piles as the heat exchanger between underground soil and water flowing inside the pipes. The water was pumped into heat dissipation pipes embedded beneath the pavement surface, on which snow melted. The unsteady three‐dimensional heat conduction inside the pavement and the underground soil was numerically solved. On the surface, the heat balance of conduction, convection, and radiation was considered. Snow fall depth was estimated by rainfall weather data, ratio of snowfall to rainfall, and dry density of snowfall. For simulating the snow layer, an unsteady one‐dimensional heat conduction was solved while incorporating partial absorption of solar radiation. Experiments for measuring time variation of the temperature field and snow depth around the system were conducted for verification of the software. The obtained simulation results showed good agreements with experimental data, demonstrating the utility and validity of the software. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/htj.20226