Junior,
Dept. Civil & Environmental Engineering
Independent Project: Preventing Salt Scaling
I am a junior in the Civil and Environmental Engineering deparment with an interest in sustainble building and development. In my independent work, I hope to address the problem of salt scaling by testing the treatment of concrete with a solution of diammonium hydrogen phosphate (DAP). Salt scaling is a phenomenon commonly seen on sidewalk concrete, in which the mixture of salt and water weakens and breaks down the top layer of concrete, exposing the aggregate within. DAP has been used on marble in the past to produce a protective coating of hydroxyapatite, and I will be working to see whether a similar reaction might occur when DAP is applied to concrete. I hope that my research will result in a treatment that could reduce damage to sidewalks and road surfaces in the winter!