Multifunctional Erosion Resistant Icephobic Appliqu¿s for Rotorblades

The purpose of this Phase I NASA SBIR program is to develop high performance multifunctional nanostructured materials that can be used to fabricate icephobic multifunctional appliqués with enhanced erosion resistance for rotorcraft leading edges. The proposed technology offers integrated multifunctionality that results in reduction of weight, system complexity, maintenance, and cost over current systems. Prevention of ice buildup will facilitate mission critical operations in icing conditions, as well as mitigate concerns of vibration transmission and shudder that are associated with ice buildup. Integration of additional erosion resistant composites may also result in reduced maintenance costs. Electrothermal systems are currently used for anti-icing systems in rotorcraft, but are prone to failure due to system complexity. To mitigate the problems associated with current anti-icing systems, NanoSonic proposes to develop multifunctional adhesive backed appliqués with integrated hydrophobicity and enhanced erosion resistance. High performance tapes are currently applied to rotorcraft leading edges to help improve erosion resistance. Integrating multiple functionalities into a high performance nanocomposite appliqué would result in reduction of weight and system complexity, facilitate operation in icing conditions, and reduce maintenance on the rotorblades. For minimal maintenance and application cost, a new appliqué can be readily placed on the rotorblade leading edge when the existing appliqué has exhausted its functionality.