Numerical Simulation of Ice Accretion on the Engine Entrance Strut and Nose Cone

Ice accretion, caused by the impingement and aggregation of supercooled water droplets in the cold air, may occur on surfaces of engine inlet components, like intake, entrance strut, nose cone and even compressor blades when an aircraft flights through the icing environment, which deteriorates the engine performance and results in a serious hazard to the flight safety. A 3-D numerical simulation for the ice accumulation on the entrance strut and the nose cone is accomplished under the corresponding operating condition. The results indicate that the droplet collection area and ice covering area are enlarged under the condition with small size of droplets, while large droplets reduce the local water droplet content because of the returning to mainstream and reattachment of secondary droplets formed by the interaction between supercooled droplets and engine surfaces. The numerical result also figures out the influence of various factors under a certain condition on the ice covering range and the ice thickness distribution, which provides theoretical guidance for the design of the engine's anti-icing/de-icing system.