Formic acid for deicing
Formate salts of formic acid remove ice from runways, roadways and sidewalks efficiently and with minimal impact on the ecology. Solid and liquid deicers based on formate salts are used extensively in regions where strict environmental controls are in place to minimize negative impacts yet deliver outstanding deicing performance.
Formates offer the following benefits:
- Readily biodegradable
- Lower Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) compared to acetates
- Ice-melting even at very low temperatures.
- Can be formulated to meet the AMS 1435 for runways
- Less corrosive than chloride-based products for roadways
- Eliminates roadway dust and grit clean-up costs
In the past, urea was used as a de-icing agent for airport runways. Because urea has a significant negative impact on the environment, it was replaced with potassium acetate. Now formate deicers, which are easier on the environment, have become the deicer of choice for many European airports.