Deicing is an important problem for operating aircraft fleets and space shuttle under cold environments. Deicing from power lines, flood gates in dams and bridge piers are important for avoiding power outrages and floods; deicing from airfields, roads, and vehicles is important in both civilian and defense sectors. The aim of this proposal is to understand the physical mechanisms that govern the adhesion of ice to structural surfaces, and subsequently, to tailor the microstructure of the interfacial region which will result in the lowest possible interface strength. The microstructure will be modified by using new type of hydrophobic coatings of varying internal structures and thickness, by using surface contaminants, by changing the roughness of the substrate surface which besides affecting the interface strength through modification of the ice layer grain-size, can also lead to entrapment of flaws at the ice/structure interface. The effect of time and temperature on the above strength will also be studied. The ice/structure interface strength will be measured by adapting a recently developed laser spallation experiment. The proposed research is multidisciplinary in nature as it involves use of novel experimentation (laser, optics, materials science, wave mechanics), surface science concepts and development of new type of hydrophobic coatings based on SAMS (Self Assembled Monolayer System) technology developed in the fields of chemistry and polymeric sciences.
