Gas turbine engines in planes provide the required thrust by sucking in air, heating it to very high temperatures in a combustion chamber, and finally exhausting it at high velocities. As they operate, small inorganic particles such as volcanic ash get sucked in along with the air. These particles melt in the high-temperature zones in the combustion chamber and solidify onto the cooler zones in the engine such as the turbine blades. Over time, these droplets solidify and accumulate on the surface of the gas turbine, deforming the blades and blocking cooling holes, which deteriorates the performance and the life of the engine.
Click here for original story, Team develops computationally quick approach to predict molten droplet solidification on a solid surface
Source: Phys.org