Ice Friction and Accretion

在加拿大一年中的大部分时间里，冰是生活中无处不在的事实，无论是作为一种危险，还是作为一种乐趣和娱乐的来源。冰以湿滑的人行道和街道的形式成为我们的敌人，冰堆积在飞机部件上，冻雨拉下电线。但它也是曲棍球运动员和球迷，滑冰运动员，雪橇运动员和大多数冬季运动爱好者的朋友。这项研究计划考察了冰的两个方面。其目标是改善其一些有益的特性，同时减轻其一些不良后果。在冰冻暴雨期间在电力线上积聚的冰和在飞机上积聚的冰通常被称为“结冰”。1998年1月，在一场为期五天的冰风暴中，严重的结冰导致数百根电线杆和电线塔倒塌，数百万加拿大人和美国人断电一个多星期。风暴造成数人死亡，保险公司估计总经济损失超过30亿美元。飞机结冰会给航空业带来再熟悉不过的延误和中断。更糟糕的是，尽管美国国家运输安全委员会呼吁进行更多相关研究，但每年或每两年都会发生与结冰有关的致命事故。我的目标是建立一个更好的积冰预报系统（IAFS），通过最先进的天气预报模型和最好的计算机结冰模型的智能组合。该系统将为电力公司和航空业提供更好的结冰预报和警报。冬季运动中的冰摩擦会减慢运动员的速度，使他们处于竞争劣势。我研究的一个目标是测量冰的摩擦力，并找到优化速度滑冰和有舵雪橇的方法。为了做到这一点，我们采用了两种独特的能力-世界上唯一的仪器Klap溜冰鞋，和一个计算机模型（FAST），模拟当钢刀片在冰上移动时会发生什么。我们将利用这两种能力来设计和测试溜冰鞋和雪橇运动员的新设计。我们希望能够让加拿大运动员在2014年冬季奥运会上获得竞争优势。

In Canada for much of the year, ice is a ubiquitous fact of life, either as a hazard or as a source of fun and recreation. Ice becomes our enemy in the form of slippery sidewalks and streets, ice accumulating on aircraft components, and freezing rain pulling down electrical power lines. But it is also the friend of hockey players and fans, skaters, bobsledders and lovers of most winter sports. This research proposal examines both aspects of ice. Its goal is to improve some of its beneficial characteristics, while mitigating some of its undesirable consequences. Ice that builds up on power lines during freezing rainstorms and ice accumulating on aircraft is generally referred to as "icing". Heavy icing during a five-day ice storm in January 1998 caused hundreds of poles and towers to topple and left millions of Canadians and Americans without power for more than a week. Several deaths resulted from the storm and insurance companies have estimated the overall economic cost to exceed three billion dollars. Icing on aircraft causes all-too-familiar delays and disruptions to the aviation industry. Much worse are the fatal, icing-related accidents that occur every year or two, despite calls by the US National Transportation Safety Board for more relevant research. My goal is to build a better ice accretion forecasting system (IAFS), through an intelligent combination of state-of-the-art weather prediction models and the best computer icing models. This system will provide improved icing forecasts and warnings for electrical utilities and the aviation industry. Ice friction in winter sports slows down athletes and puts them at a competitive disadvantage. A goal of my research is to measure ice friction and find ways to optimize it in speed skating and bobsleigh. In order to do this, we are employing two unique capabilities - the world's only Instrumented Klap Skate, and a computer model (FAST) that simulates what happens when a steel blade moves across the ice. We will use both of these capabilities to devise and test new designs for skate blades and bobsled runners. We hope to be able to give Canadian athletes a competitive advantage in the 2014 Winter Olympics.