An experimental study of rime ice accretion on bundled conductors

•The ice accretion characteristics on bundled power conductors are investigated experimentally.•The effects of the spacing and angular displacements of the bundled conductors are examined.•A 3D scanning system is used to quantify the 3D shapes of ice structures accreted on the conductors.•A digital PIV system was used to characterize the wake flow behind the iced bundled conductors.•The variations of the aerodynamic drag acting on the iced conductors are characterized quantitatively.•Ice accretion results are correlated with PIV & drag measurements to elucidate the underlying physics.