Research

About Iowa DOT Research

The Iowa DOT Research’s mission is to Drive a quality program that delivers targeted solutions for Iowa's transportation future . Our areas of focus include safety, mobility, accessibility, technology, and sustainability of economic, social, and environmental progress. We can help you whether you want to get involved in our research, already have an approved project in the works, or simply want to learn more about our team.

Iowa’s transportation innovations are possible with oversight and technical and financial support from a variety of sources, including the Iowa Highway Research Board, the State Planning & Research Program, and the State Transportation Innovation Council.

Why Research Matters

Awards

The Iowa DOT’s transportation research achievements are a result of numerous collaborations between Iowa DOT research staff, university researchers, technical experts, local system engineers, and industry partners.

2023 - Roadway Friction Modeling: Improving the Use of Friction Measurements in State DOTs
Roadway friction measurements help winter maintenance managers determine when snow and ice removal is needed. While friction sensors can be an important data source, they cost too much to install on all roads. Using machine learning, this research showed that it's possible to predict road surface conditions in real time without the need for sensors.
2022 - Investigation of Autonomous and Connected Vehicles in Work Zones
Autonomous vehicles offer the potential to save energy and increase efficiency on roadways, and could keep workers safe when used in work zones. This research used simulators to help Iowa DOT better understand how human drivers and autonomous vehicles are likely to interact in order to prepare for possible future deployments.
2022: Self-Heating Electrically Conductive Concrete Demonstration Project
This research evaluated the performance of concrete heated with embedded electrodes over the course of three years. The concrete, which can melt snow and ice without the use of deicers, could one day be a sustainable option for icy trouble spots like sidewalks that are not easily cleared during winter storms.
2021: corn-based deicers
Thanks to its low cost and effective work, sodium chloride is what most public transportation agencies choose for treating icy roadways. But too much road salt can also corrode metal cars and infrastructure and harm the environment. In search of alternative deicers, Iowa DOT’s research showed that those made from corn can work well to melt snow and ice on Iowa’s roads with less environmental impact.
2020: remote-controlled hydrographic survey system
While it may look like a toy, this small, remote-controlled boat is equipped with big technology. Its small size makes it capable of navigating tight spaces easily, and its GPS, compass, and sonar provide a three-dimensional view of everything below the water—meaning engineers can inspect bridge structures safely from the shore without ever having to get into deep, murky, or fast-moving waters.
2018: traumahawk
TraumaHawk is a smartphone app that allows first responders to collect and send crash photos to emergency room personnel. With advanced notification and a better understanding of the severity of the victims’ injuries, doctors, nurses and other staff can be better prepared with life-saving treatments.
2016: development of self-cleaning box culvert design: phase ii
This two-phase project began in 2009, with Iowa DOT reevaluating every aspect of traditional culverts in an effort to find better ways to keep the state’s waterways clean. The work involved testing a variety of culvert formations over several years and led to an innovative culvert design that restricts sediment from entering and virtually eliminates the need for manual cleaning. In the second phase, researchers retrofitted an existing culvert with the new design to test its performance and verify the anticipated findings in the field.
2015: track-a-plow
Iowa DOT developed a snowplow tracking website to give members of the public real-time safety information and insight into where the agency's snowplows are operating, the types and quantities of deicing materials being used, and what road conditions look like through cameras affixed to the plows windshields.
2014: western iowa missouri river flooding – geo-infrastructure damage assessment, repair, and mitigation strategies
The 2011 flood of the Missouri River caused millions of dollars' worth of visible damage to Iowa's roads and infrastructure, but it also water also wreaked extensive destruction below the surface that couldn’t be seen. This project identified a variety of advanced technologies, such as ground-penetrating radar and 3D laser scanning, that Iowa DOT can deploy to quickly gauge the extent of all damage caused during future flooding events, as well as strategies to reduce infrastructure vulnerability and expedite recovery.
2013: evaluation of the rapidair 457 air void analyzer
Iowa DOT routinely tests concrete pavement samples for adequate air voids, a key factor affecting the pavement’s long-term durability. This project evaluated the accuracy and reliability of the RapidAir 457 air void analyzer, a device that offers to automate the testing process and save time and money over traditional methods. .