Analysis of the De-Icing Potential of Ducted Propeller Blades Using Resonant Excitation

Abstract

The need for sustainable, all-weather capable and highly available aircraft, like small commuter aircraft, UAVs and rescue helicopters, lead to an increased relevance of the issue of in-flight icing and more energy efficient ice protection systems (IPS). Without IPS, the aircraft must be navigated around the area with icing condition, which leads to additional flight times and increased energy consumption and, therefore, might result to an unsuccessful flight mission. Electro-mechanical de-icing systems are a promising technology in terms of low energy consumption and low weight. Piezoelectric actuators, integrated into the aircraft’s structure, excite the iced components and mechanically remove the accreted ice-layers in designated areas, like wings, air intakes or rotor blades. Excitation of the component’s resonance modes lead to large deformations and induce cracks and delamination of the ice layer. Additional challenge is the integration and excitation of the piezoceramic actuators, which must be properly designed according to the structure’s specific dynamic behavior. In a current research project, this technology is being developed and is tested on an electrically driven ducted fan propeller. This off-the-shelf propulsion system is used to demonstrate the feasibility of this technology on realistic aircraft parts, such as the propeller blades, which are made from carbon fiber composites. In this paper, the potential of resonant-based de-icing systems on ducted propeller blades is analyzed. This analysis includes the modal FEM analysis of the propeller blade and the experimental vibration analysis, which is used to validate the numerical model. As a result, mechanical stresses in the ice layer can be investigated and promising eigenmodes for de-icing as well as potential concepts for the integration of the piezoceramic actuation system can be found.