Experimental Investigation of High Speed SLD Impact

This paper proposes an experimental investigation of fast impinging large droplets in non-icing conditions. Two main aspects of the impact event are analyzed and discussed: the impact dynamics as a function of the surface nature and the deposition rate of the liquid on the impingement surface for various conditions. The data has been recorded and characterized at ambient pressure and a temperature of the air between 5 and 10°C using a vertical wind/droplet tunnel. To avoid the droplets evaporation the relative humidity was controlled. The morphology of impact was studied by backlighted imagery and quantitative results were obtained by image analysis. The deposition rate was obtained weighting the water accumulated on the impingement plate. Examination of splashing events images obtained on a clean surface and on blotter paper shows important differences in terms of secondary drop generation. The measurement of the deposition rate confirmed that the dynamics of drop impingement on blotter paper is not the same as impingement on a clean surface. These differences may significantly impact the development of models for icing applications.