Surface Acoustic Waves Equip Materials with Active De‐Icing Functionality: Unraveled Glaze Ice De‐Icing Mechanisms and Application to Centimeter‐Scale Transparent Surfaces

Enabling active de‐icing functionality on low heat conductive and transparent materials is a requirement for several seminal industries in critical economic sectors. However, developing efficient and environmentally friendly de‐icing methods still fails because of compatibility problems with large‐scale devices and real‐world conditions. In this paper, de‐icing several square centimeters covered with thick layers of glaze ice is approached through nanoscale activation by surface acoustic waves (SAWs). De‐icing functionality is demonstrated with a self‐supported piezoelectric material (LiNbO₃) and a piezoelectric film (ZnO) deposited on fused silica, the latter system proving the compatibility of the method with materials of practical relevance. Its applicability to large and transparent substrates is demonstrated by placing the interdigitated electrodes (IDTs) required for activation close to the substrate's edges, leaving most of the surface unaltered. The de‐icing mechanism of glaze ice by SAW activation is revealed by simulating the SAW propagation on ice‐covered surfaces and by experimental analysis of the ice melting process. This involves a combination of ice mechanical stress activation and heating through the initially formed water/ice front. Possible Joule effects due to ohmic losses in the IDTs have been discarded, monitoring local temperature variations during SAW activation at and out of resonance conditions.