Better Roads Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/134675
HighwayContractor Stormwater into Brine Even with salt content, it can be used A gallons, VDOT captures sufficient water for all pre-wetting Virginia Transportation Research Council report, conditions and for low and average direct application condiRecycling of Salt-Contaminated Stormwater Runoff for Brine tions requiring approximately 25 and 60 million gallons, Production at Virginia Department of Transportation Road-Salt Storage respectively. Facilities, notes that a large part of the Virginia DOT's mainte• The implementation of a VDOT recycling program using nance effort involve snow removal and ice control. stormwater runoff for brine generation appears economi"VDOT captures significant volumes of salt-laden stormcally feasible. There will be large variations in the benefits water runoff at its 300+ salt storage facilities throughout the accrued by VDOT depending on the volumes of stormwater state," says the report, noting that the disposal options for this runoff accumulated during the year, the total volume of water are limited and costly. The research looked at the posNaCl applied, and local disposal costs. sibility of recycling salt-contaminated stormwater runoff for • Between the two brine application alternatives examined, for producing brine that can be used for pre-wetting of granular most scenarios investigated, the combination of direct appliNaCl and direct application. cation and pre-wetting results in a faster positive return on The researchers' conclusions: VDOT's initial investment . • Low HRTs (high flow rates)and high temperatures are the • With average total NaCl application volumes, the maximum optimum conditions for brine generation in terms of time benefits derived from stormwater reuse are obtained when of operation and percentage of NaCl used. Lower HRTs will capturing less than 60 MG of stormwater statewide. require more frequent additions of road salt to the brine generation reactor. • The lower water temperatures likely to result from the use of water from stormwater ponds during the late fall and winter will reduce the efficiency of THAT INTEGRATES WITH YOUR ACCOUNTING SYSTEM. the brine generation equipment compared to the use of water at a higher temperature coming from a groundwater source. The efficiency of brine generation when stormwater is used should be similar to that when a municipal drinking water source is used (temperatures in these sources are comparable.) • TSS levels of approximately 20 mg/L, as found in VDOT's captured stormwaEstimating Dispatching Safety GPS Mobile Apps ter, do not reduce the efficiency of the Job Costing Equipment Fuel Tracking Cloud Maintenance Hosting brine generation process. The values for TSS in the stormwater were relatively Used by 40,000 construction professionals small compared to those for the source World-class 24/7 instant customer support of granular NaCl. Construction-friendly desktop & mobile apps • With minimal filtering, stormwater Innovative Proven processes for implementation Software from runoff storage ponds can be re Low risk—Software comes with a for the Construction Industry cycled for brine without harm to brine 12-month money back guarantee! 800-683-3196 generation or distribution equipment. SIGN UP FOR • Based on the total annual stormwaDAILY WEBINARS at www.HCSS.com/Better-Roads ter collection estimate of 60 million INDUSTRY LEADING CONSTRUCTION SOFTWARE Text INFO to 205-289-3789 or visit www.betterroads.com/info Better Roads June 2013 13 HighwayCon_BR0613.indd 13 5/31/13 12:38 PM