Heat and mass transfer during ice resurfacing process in ice rink

Abstract

The strict guidelines for ice resurfacing in ice sports facilities call for freezing the ice with the permitted period, achieving ice quality standards, and using the least amount of energy feasible. A transient heat and mass transfer dynamic model with phase transition for the ice resurfacing is established and validated. The influences of resurfacing water volume and initial surface temperature on transient fresh surface temperature, transient heat transfer rate, and evaporation (condensation) rate during the ice resurfacing process are analyzed to explore methods of reducing ice resurfacing time for the ice surface area of 1800 m2. The results indicate that at the time of pouring flood water onto the fresh surface, convective mass transfer contributes around 79.1% of the total transient heat transfer rate. The cooling pipe surface heat transfer rate peaks between the 14th and the 18th minute, with a value of 355 kW–389 kW. It takes about 5–13 min for the fresh surface temperature to reach the required temperature. The impact of the resurfacing on the ice rink's heat and mass transfer takes 140–180 min to disappear because of thermal inertia. The cooling pipe surface heat transfer rate's peak value decreases as the resurfacing water volume lowers and the initial surface temperature rises. The condensation rate increases from 16.3 g/s to 28.2 g/s with the initial surface temperature increasing from −3.5 °C to −9.5 °C. Lowering the cooling pipe temperature reduces resurfacing time by about 6.7 min and steady time by 19–132 min.