Anti-icing Method of Heated Walkway in Ice Class Ships: Efficiency Verification of CNT-based Surface Heating Element Method Through Numerical Analysis

While melting glaciers due to global warming have facilitated the development of polar routes, Arctic vessels require reliable anti-icing methods to prevent hull icing. Currently, the existing anti-icing method, i.e., the heating coil method, has disadvantages, such as disconnection and power inefficiency. Therefore, a carbon nanotube-based surface heating element method was developed to address these limitations. In this study, the numerical analysis of the surface heating element method was performed using ANSYS. The numerical analysis included conjugate heat transfer and computational fluid dynamics to consider the conduction solids and the effects of wind speed and temperature in cold environments. The numerical analysis method of the surface heating element method was validated by comparing the experimental results of the heating coil method with the numerical analysis results (under the –30 ℃ conditions). The surface heating element method demonstrated significantly higher efficiency, ranging from 56.65–80.17%, depending on the conditions compared to the heating coil method. Moreover, even under extreme environmental conditions (–45 ℃), the surface heating element method satisfied anti-icing requirements. The surface heating element method is more efficient and economical than the heating coil method. However, proper heat flux calculation for environmental conditions is required to prevent excessive design.