PROJECT TITLE: Indoor Simulation of Mixed and Snow Icing Conditions
TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
There are requirements and advisory materials under the FAA (USA) and JAA (Europe) that must be satisfied prior to flight into mixed icing and snow conditions. To achieve certification for flight into these conditions, aircraft must demonstrate in test and flight that they meet those requirements, some of which are as yet undefined. In the USA, the only available facilities at which these tests can be conducted are located outdoors and are subject to weather and seasonal constraints. None of the outdoor facilities addresses the need to include airspeed aspects for in-flight conditions. Currently, there exists no year-round indoor facility in the USA or Canada for controlled testing in Mixed Icing and Snow conditions. Such a facility would significantly aid OEM’s in the design phase of snow protection equipment by reducing cost and time to gather meaningful data. The objective of this innovation is to create snow and mixed icing conditions in an environmental chamber and closed-loop wind tunnels where indoor testing can be accomplished in a controlled and repeatable manner year-round. This involves designing appropriate nozzle geometries, defining the corresponding pressures and temperatures for specified wetness (or dryness) conditions, and controlling the ambient relative humidity for consistency and repeatability.
POTENTIAL COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS
A test facility is intended to reduce the time spent looking and chasing--sometimes in vain--for the actual conditions under which the aircraft is to be tested. As more becomes known about the icing environment, the greater will be the need to test for mixed and snow conditions in addition to supercooled water droplet environments. A testing facility can be a valuable tool if it can operate independent of the season with repeatable conditions by reducing the time spent in pursuit of a specific type of environmental condition and the cost involved. The capability proposed herein will provide the basis for development of a system that can be incorporated in the NASA Lewis Icing Research Tunnel (IRT) or other similar facilities in the nation. This is because the Cox icing tunnel has the size and flow capability sufficiently large to permit reasonable extrapolation to larger facilities. The LeClerc Icing Research Laboratory at Cox will offer the advantage of a controlled access to aircraft and engine manufacturers for conveniently testing in supercooled droplets, snow, or mixed conditions year-round.
NAME AND ADDRESS OF PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Kamel Al-Khalil
Cox & Company, Inc.
200 Varick Street
New York , NY 10014
NAME AND ADDRESS OF OFFEROR
Cox & Company, Inc.
200 Varick Street
New York , NY 10014