Scientists in the propulsion system laboratory (PSL) at NASA’s Glenn research center in Cleveland, Ohio, have developed a test facility that can recreate high-altitude engine icing, a long-awaited capability that should equip the aviation industry to tackle a poorly understood hazard.
The researchers have adapted a variable-pressure wind tunnel that was capable of simulating altitude for engine tests and modified it to generate ice crystals at simulated altitudes up to 40,000 feet and airspeeds up to Mach 0.8. The modified test chamber can lower temperatures to -60 degrees F (-51 degrees C). As part of the process, water is introduced via spray bars that allow the researchers to control the size and amount of ice in a “cloud” it creates. The ice particles generated are spherical frozen droplets, Dr. Judith Foss Van Zante, icing engineering technical lead, told AIN.
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