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Frozen and split water
Markus Schremb (left) and Daniel Kintea conducting experiments into safe flight.
Ice is in the air Markus Schremb and Daniel Kintea from the Institute for Fluid Mechanics and Aerodynamics are studying the causes of ice formation on aircraft during flight. Their experiments and realistic mathematical models aim to reduce risks and costs when certifying new types of aircraft. Schremb is focusing on wing icing caused by supercooled water droplets during climbing and descent, while Kintea is researching the accumulation of ice in engines and on sensors when flying through ice crystal clouds at cruising altitude.
75 collaborative research centre “Droplet Dynamics Under Extreme Ambient Conditions” at TU Darmstadt, the University of Stuttgart and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) site at Lampoldshausen.
Using solar light to produce hydrogen
Without counter-measures, both types of ice accumulation would have dramatic consequences for flight safety. They are conducting their research as part of an EU project funded by a consortium of aircraft and jet-engine manufacturers, universities and research institutions, and are working within the Transregio
Hydrogen is considered to be an energy source of the future. TU Darmstadt is coordinating the German Research Foundation’s SolarH2 Priority Program, which involves 30 working groups throughout Germany. They are examining ways of using solar energy to split water and thereby produce hydrogen. The programme entered its second phase in the autumn of 2015.