Effectiveness of Dust Control Agents Applied to Tank Trails and HelicopterLanding Zones

摘要

Operating wheeled and tracked vehicles on dry, unsurfaced roadways createstremendous amounts of dust as soil particles are dislodged and carried into the atmosphere through wind action. Numerous products are available for controlling dust on unsurfaced roadways, but very little data exists from large scale field experiments designed to evaluate their effectiveness, durability over time, and cost. To help installation public works, environmental, and natural resources managers select durable and cost effective dust control products, a research/demonstration project on unsurfaced roadways was initiated at Fort Campbell, KY, during the summer of 1996. Products evaluated included calcium chloride, proprietary polyvinyl acrylic emulsion, and soybean processing by products. At Fort Campbell, each dust control product was applied to recently graded unsurfaced roadways according to the manufacturers' recommendations. Dust control data were then collected at monthly intervals. Levels of dust control associated with each product and the untreated control area were evaluated using dust collection pans and photographic images captured after controlled vehicle traffic. Cost and performance data suggest that calcium chloride provides good levels of dust control for periods exceeding 90 days. Conversely, polyvinyl acrylic emulsion and soybean processing by-products were exhibiting deterioration after 60 days, especially on road surfaces completely covered with limestone aggregates.