Heathrow Airport is exploring the possibility of using geothermal technology to prevent its runways and aircraft stands from freezing during the winter.
The airport is under pressure from the Government to avoid a repeat of the disruption caused to passengers last December when snow and ice brought Heathrow to a virtual standstill for five days.
Thermal technology, which stores heat gathered from the surface of the ground during the summer and releases it in the winter, could keep the runways and stands above freezing.
Airport owner BAA told Building magazine it was one of the options being considered. Capital projects director Steven Morgan said: "It’s not the snow that caused the problem last year, it was the ice.
“We are working on a concept to capture geothermal energy from the surface of the tarmac … during the summer, to then provide a heating capability so the stands don’t freeze in the winter.
“We would store the energy underground and use it to gently heat water that would then be run through pipes in freezing conditions to warm the stands, which are the slabs of concrete directly beneath the planes, to just above zero.”
Investigations are still in their early stages but BAA has already promised to spend £50m at Heathrow next winter to avoid further problems due to cold weather.
By Linsey McNeill
