Field Testing of Porous Pavement Performance on Runoff and Temperature Control in Taipei City

Abstract

The Taipei University of Technology, under contract from the Taipei City Government, completed a study on porous asphalt (PA) and permeable interlocking concrete brick (PICB) pavement performance with respect to stormwater runoff reduction and surface temperature mitigation. Additionally, the variation of infiltration rates against time of these pavements was monitored. The results show the following: (a) Runoff peak reduction ranged from 16% for large, intense storms to 55% for small, long-duration storms. Rainfall volume reduction ranged from 16% to 77% with an average of 37.6%; (b) Infiltration rate: for PICB, it decreased by 25% to 50% over a 15-month monitoring period, but the rate at one location increased significantly after cleaning; for PA, the rate remained high at one location, but decreased by 70%-80% after 10 months at two other locations, due mainly to clogging problems; (c) Surface temperature: during storm events, porous concrete bricks had on average lower temperatures compared to regular concrete with a maximum difference of 6.6 • C; for porous asphalt the maximum drop was 3.9 • C. During dry days, both PA and PICB showed a tendency of faster temperature increase as the air temperature rose, but also faster temperature decreases as the air cooled when compared to regular pavements. On very hot days, much lower surface temperatures were observed for porous pavements (for PA: 17.0 • C and for PICB: 14.3 • C) than those for regular pavements. The results suggest that large-scale applications of porous pavements could help mitigate urban heat island impacts.Water 2019, 11, 2635 2 of 15 types of permeable pavements: permeable interlocking concrete paver (PICP); pervious concrete (PC), and porous asphalt (PA). The results show that clogging might affect the infiltration rates at specific locations where solids tend to accumulate. Additionally, about 5%-7% of the runoff infiltrated into the material later evaporates, which could help mitigate the urban heat-island effect [1], as stipulated by an earlier field test study in Arizona [5]. Another comprehensive study by the US Geological Survey [6] observed higher pollutant removal by PC but also a declining infiltration rate. Permeable pavements could reduce the "black ice" effect because water stored in the pores have temperatures (much water at different times, so many different temperatures) above freezing during winter weather.The transportation sector may potentially be a major user of permeable pavements. For example, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) recently completed a study on PA application at a Park and Ride facility [7]. Results show that the infiltration rates remained high during a four-year monitoring period, and that the maintenance cost was low (less than $1500 per year). Another recent study by [8] reported significant benefits of PICP in reducing runoff peaks and urban flooding duration through field tests conducted in Canada. Recognizing the important role of permeable pavements in helping protect the environment under ...

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