Numerical and Experimental Investigation of Ice Adhesion Using the Blister Test

Structures in cold weather environments are susceptible to atmospheric ice formation. A fracture mechanics based approach is proposed for in situ characterization of the interfacial fracture energy of ice on different substrates. This paper summarizes the development of the experimental and analytical framework to measure the ice adhesion energy, calibrated on static ice. The testing configuration utilizes a shaft-loaded blister test to produce stable crack propagation, from a well-defined pre-crack at the interface of the ice layer and the substrate. Measurements of the fracture energy are taken over a range of ice thicknesses and surface roughnesses. The developed analytical framework to estimate adhesion energy are verified and calibrated via finite element numerical simulation of the proposed geometric configuration and employing cohesive surfaces along the interface to simulate the crack nucleation and propagation process. Several different phenomena were observed include the transition from adhesive to cohesive fracture. The measured interfacial adhesion energy was almost independent of the surface roughness in the range of examined roughness. The measured interfacial R-curve showed a steady state plateau for range of interfacial crack propagation. The proposed experimental framework enables precise measurement of the interfacial fracture toughness over a range of surface finishes and ice layer thickness.