This study aims to investigate the icing behavior of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) propellers under different operating conditions. Unlike previous work, a systematic analysis of droplet impingement, heat transfer characteristics, and ice accretion distribution on the blade surface is conducted, revealing the spatial distribution characteristics of propeller icing from multiple perspectives. The propeller flow field is solved using the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations coupled with the Multiple Reference Frame (MRF) model, the droplet motion and collection are predicted by an Eulerian multiphase approach, and the icing process is modeled using the shear-stress transport-based shallow water film method (SWIM). The results show that higher rotational speeds and larger droplet diameters significantly increase ice accumulation, with more complex ice shapes forming particularly at the blade tip. In contrast, higher temperatures reduce the overall icing amount but alter the spatial distribution of ice. The blade tip region exhibits stronger transport capacity for unfrozen water, leading to faster ice accretion. These findings provide useful guidance for designing more effective anti-icing strategies for UAV propellers.
Shi et al. (2026) studied this question.