Economic Analysis of Thermo-insulated Concreteand FRP Canals in Seasonal Freezing Regions
WANG Yinghao
HE Yang
SI Na
CHEN Hongyu
HUA Shuguang
Abstract：Canals in regions subjected to freezing-thawing cycles need to be thermally insulated to avoid damage caused by frost heaping, and this work investigated the efficacy of different the rmo-insulation materials in ame-liorating frost heaping. We took the main canal in south of the Yangjia River in Hetao Irrigation District as an ex-ample and ran an experiment in one freezing-thawing cycle.The freezing depth and frost heaping of the canal ther-mally insulated with polyurethane or polystyrene were measured. The results showed that in all treatments, 6 cm insulation was more effective than 4 cm insulation. At the sun-facing slope of the canal, the 4cm polyurethane in-sulation was more effective than the 4 cm polystyrene insulation, while at the shadow slope, the efficiency of the two insulations was opposite. We also analyzed the pros and cons of concrete and fiberglass-reinforced plastic (FRP) canalsin terms of hydraulic condition, efficacy in saving water, investment return and other costs, finding that the costs of building concrete and FRP canals are comparable. Given the increasing demand for water re-source, the FRP canal appears to have the edge.
Keywords：seasonally freezing soilfreezing depthfrost heaveFRP canal
Publication Date：2017-01-01
Online Publishing Date：2026-09-12(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：8( 87-94 )