Laboratory and Wind Tunnel Evaluations of the Rosemount Icing Detector

Abstract

The Rosemount model 871FA ice detector was evaluated during a number of laboratory and wind tunnel studies. The purpose of this evaluation was to determine the sensitivity of the detector to a variety of icing conditions and to determine its utility as a ground-based or airborne liquid water content measuring device. The laboratory studies determined the ice mass sensitivity of a number of detectors and showed the variability among instruments. These studies also looked at the sensitivity of the detector to the position of mass accumulated on the detector's sensor. The wind tunnel studies determined the dynamic mass response of the detector and demonstrated that this detector can be a very sensitive, fast response, and relatively accurate liquid water content measuring instrument.