A Wind Tunnel and Theoretical Study on the Melting Behavior of Atmospheric Ice Particles: III. Experiment and Theory for Spherical Ice Particles of Radius > 500 μm

Abstract

An experimental and theoretical study has been performed on the melting of spherical ice particles between 3 and 20 mm in diameter. For the experimental study the UCLA Cloud Tunnel was employed in determining the melting rate, the mode of melting, the shedding rate, and the hydrodynamic behavior of the melting ice particles. Our experimental results demonstrate that the melting mode of ice particles can be grouped into distinct categories depending on the Reynolds number. For these categories, comparison was made to various theoretical expressions reported in literature and to our own formulations. These comparisons show that experiment and the appropriate theory agree within experimental error.