A 52-slab Nebraska bridge turns concrete into giant resistor, warming road during snowstorms

Nebraska bridge has used special concrete to fight snow and ice for over a decade. (Photo: UNL) A bridge in Nebraska, US, has been using a special type of concrete to fight snow and ice for more than a decade. Instead of relying only on salt, chemicals or snow-clearing vehicles, the bridge can heat its own surface by carrying an electrical current through the concrete.According to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), the 150-foot Roca Spur Bridge, located about 15 miles south of Lincoln, became the world's first bridge to use conductive concrete in 2002. It has 52 conductive concrete slabs built into its surface. The system was developed by Chris Tuan, a civil engineering professor at the University, with the Nebraska Department of Roads.The idea is based on changing the way ordinary concrete behaves. Tuan added steel shavings and carbon particles to a standard concrete mixture. These materials make the concrete capable of conducting electricity. When electrical current passes through the slabs, the concrete produces enough heat to melt snow and ice from the surface.The system was demonstrated during a winter storm in Omaha in December 2015. A 200-square-foot slab outside UNL'...