Local and Total Density Measurements in Ice Shapes

Preliminary measurements of local and total densities inside ice shapes were obtained from ice shapes grown in the NASA John H. Glenn Icing Research Tunnel for a range of glaze ice, rime ice, and mixed-phase ice conditions on a NACA 0012 airfoil at 0-deg angle of attack. Prodi's x-ray contact microradiography method was extended using modern imaging techniques to conduct the measurements. The ice shapes were removed from the airfoil and a slice of ice 3-mm thick was obtained using a microtome. The resulting samples were then x-rayed to obtain a microradiograph, the film was digitized, and image processing techniques were used to extract the local and total density values.