Estimation of the Thickness of Ice Melting Front by Studying the Kinetics of Ice Ball Melting in Air

Ice melting front thickness has been estimated by studying the kinetics of thawed water accumulation during melting of ice balls with different sizes at room temperature (≈22°C) taking into account the temperature measured both on the surface and inside of the balls. The supplied heat flux is absorbed as the latent heat of fusion by an ice layer, which we define as the melting front. A model of this process has been formulated to describe the kinetics of ice ball melting. It has been assumed that the heat is supplied through the entire ice ball surface, the area of which decreases in the course of melting. The temperatures measured on the surface and inside of the balls have turned out to be ~0.4 and 0°С, respectively. Corrections associated with water evaporation have been taken into account. The fit of the experimental data according to the proposed model has made it possible to estimate the thickness of the ice melting front at room temperature. It has appeared to be approximately 3.2–3.6 mm.