A simple lab screening test to evaluate ice adhesion

Abstract

Ice formation is a major problem for many sectors such as aeronautics, power generation, maritime, communications, etc. and therefore, there is a growing demand for anti-icing surface modification technologies. Being able to compare and evaluate these materials at the laboratory scale is a challenge for which a unified response has not yet been given. There are no standards for evaluating icephobicity despite the fact that there are numerous studies focused on the influence of the surface topography on the wetting behavior. In addition, several testing options have been published both for the evaluation of ice accretion, mainly focused on ice wind tunnels (IWT), and on ice to substrate adhesion, as for instance the zero degree cone test, DLST, Cantilever, centrifugal tests, etc. This article describes a method developed to carry out a simple screening evaluation of ice adhesion by the double lap shear test (DLST) method. This technique can provide qualitative ice adhesion information and is commonly available in research laboratories. Moreover, it does not require icing wing tunnel testing. Its ease of execution and reproducibility makes it a useful tool for a first stage evaluation of anti-icing surfaces despite the fact that ice is formed under static conditions. Various materials and surface finished surfaces with different degree of ice adhesion strength were evaluated and were also tested in a centrifugal adhesion test with ice accreted in an IWT. The results showed that the DLST is valid for ice adhesion classification of materials, but shows limitations for those superhydrophobic materials that are in the Cassie-Baxter state.