On Fri, 7 Feb 2014 07:59:49 -0500, "Mike Marlow"
wrote:

wrote:


Usually but as you point out, salt doesn't work at low temperatures
(doesn't work at all a 0F). If there is any water in the sand the
salt will freeze solid in the salt sheds or on the trucks. Pure salt
is easier to use at these temperatures. No clean up in the Spring is
a bonus.

Around here - in the rural areas, it's still mostly a mix of sand and salt
although I know they do use calcium chloride also, but I don't know how
much. On the interstates, they're using something else - it's green, but I
don't know what it is. You don't ever see a truck with pure salt in the box
anymore around here. Of course heated boxes go a long way to keeping things
from freezing up in the box. On the interstates - no sand in the mix, ,just
salt and whatever else. In the suburban areas - kind of the same. In the
rural areas - sand and salt and (probably) calcium chloride.
Urea is also used quite a bit in some areas. However only Calcium
Chloride has a colder working range than NaCl - among the common
"salts"

Sodium Acetate is used on runways because it is non-corrosive and
works to zero F.. Sodium Formate is similar.