An Experimental Study on the Dynamic Ice Accretion Processes on Bridge Cables with Different Surface Modifications

An experimental study was conducted to investigate the dynamic ice accretion processes on bridge cables with different surface modifications (i.e., 1. Standard plain, 2. Pattern-indented surface, and 3. helical fillets). The icing experiments were performed in the unique Icing Research Tunnel available at Iowa State University (i.e., ISU-IRT). In order to reveal the transient ice accretion processes and the associated aerodynamic loadings on the different cable models under the different icing conditions (i.e., rime vs. glaze), while a high-speed imaging system was used to capture the transient details of the surface water transport and ice accretion over the cable surfaces, a high-accuracy dual-transducer force measurement system was also utilized to measure the aerodynamic loadings acting on the ice accreting cable models. It was found that the addition of surface features (i.e., pattern-indented surface vs. helical fillets) could effectively influence the dynamic ice accretion process and the final ice structures. Based on the temporally-resolved measurements of the aerodynamic drag forces acting on the different cable models, it was found that while the ice accretion on the standard plain cable and the cable with helical fillets could induce lower drag forces, the ice formation on the pattern-indented cable could essentially increase aerodynamic drag force. The findings derived from this study is of great importance in elucidating the underlying icing physics on bridge cables for the development of innovative, effective anti-/de-icing strategies tailored specifically for bridge icing mitigation and protection in cold climates.