Numerical Simulation of Aircraft Icing under Local Thermal Protection State

Abstract

The icing phenomenon seriously threatens flight safety, and, therefore, the aircraft needs to be equipped with an icing protection system. Icing may still occur when the anti-icing system is in operation when the protection range or protection power is too small. Given this state, the ice shapes of the airfoil under local thermal protection states are studied in this paper. A numerical simulation method for icing considering water film flow is demonstrated. The solution methods for the governing equations and convective heat transfer coefficient are given. The calculation results were compared with experimental data and a LEWICE calculation to verify the validity of the method. Different protection ranges and protection powers were designed, and the ice shapes under different conditions were simulated. The calculation results show that when the protection range is large, but the protection power is low, icing will still occur in the protection range. Alternatively, when the protection range is small, icing may form outside the protection area. When the combination of protection range and protection power is inappropriate, the critical ice ridge phenomenon will occur. Ice ridges cause the degradation of aerodynamic characteristics and are more dangerous than icing.