Ice has a lot of surface due to the various types of melting on contact. article about it published In the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
It is generally accepted that gliding on ice is achieved by the presence of a liquid between the solid body and the ice. However, scientists put forward different hypotheses for the cause of this melting. Thus, Michael Faraday talked about the special property of the ice surface to melt at negative temperatures, James Thomson considered the melting of ice under pressure, and Philip Bowden proposed the hypothesis of melting due to friction.
Scientists from the University of Computer Science in Madrid ran a simulation and found that all three of these theories were correct. The combination of these factors gives the ice surface an exceptional layer of self-healing lubrication. As the pressure increases, the pre-existing lubricant is forced out of the space between the surfaces, leaving the surfaces in direct contact. But the same pressure causes additional lubrication and slippage is maintained. The same thing happens with friction.
The authors hope their modeling will make both vehicles and shoes less slippery and create more efficient lubricants for machinery.