Research on the Induction Heating Thermal Properties of Asphalt Concrete via Pixel-Level Analysis

Induction heating of asphalt concrete has the characteristics of high crack repair efficiency and environmental sustainability. However, the uneven temperature distribution and local overheating obstruct its widespread application. Therefore, this paper conducted a pixel-level quantitative analysis of the temperature distribution characteristics and local overheating phenomenon on both the upper and side surfaces of asphalt concrete with different steel fiber (SF) contents after continuous heating. The temperature distribution was visualized by three-dimensional (3D) heat maps and violin maps. The uniformity of temperature was analyzed by the slope absolute value of the linear fitting results and the ratio of the interquartile range to the range. Results indicated that high SF content accelerated the heating rate of asphalt concrete but decreased the temperature uniformity. Localized overheating caused thermal expansion damage in asphalt mixtures, and the sample with 10% SF had both 304.2°C (maximum) and 79.7°C (minimum) upper surface temperatures at 60 s of heating, with local structural disintegration of the mixture. Higher heating uniformity and faster heating rates were achieved for samples with 6% SF content. The heating rate decreased with increasing heating time. The upper surface of the sample with 8% SF can be heated up the fastest (2.28°C/s). It is recommended that the maximum temperature of the upper surface be controlled during induction heating to avoid thermal damage. This proposal provides a reference for the practical application of induction heating technology.