A team consisting of Aswin Gnanaskandan, assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and scientists from Virginia Tech have been awarded a $717,500 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to investigate how supercooled water droplets freeze when they strike cold surfaces and to develop improved approaches for predicting and preventing ice accumulation. Ice formation remains an important challenge for aircraft and wind turbines. When supercooled water droplets in the atmosphere strike a cold surface, they can spread and rapidly freeze, forming layers of ice that alter aerodynamic performance. On aircraft, ice accumulation can affect lift and safety, while on wind turbines it can reduce energy production and increase operational disruptions.
Gnanaskandan’s project will combine advanced computer simulations with experiments to study the fundamental heat-transfer and fluid-dynamic processes that control how an impacting droplet spreads and freezes. The research will examine physical mechanisms that are often neglected in existing models, including the interaction between the freezing droplet and the material on which it lands.
In addition to its research goals, the NSF-funded project will incorporate education and outreach activities at WPI. Undergraduate and graduate students will participate in the research, and outreach efforts will engage middle- and high-school students with STEM topics and demonstrate how fundamental research in fluid mechanics and heat transfer can address real-world engineering challenges. By improving understanding of the fundamental physics governing droplet freezing, the project could contribute to future technologies for safer aircraft operation and more reliable wind-energy production in icing conditions.
