  Icy pebbles may play an important role in planet formation close to the water
ice line of protoplanetary discs. There, dust coagulation is more efficient and
re-condensation of vapor on pebbles may enhance their growth outside the ice
line. Previous theoretical studies showed that disruption of icy pebbles due to
sublimation increases the growth rate of pebbles inside and outside the ice
line, by freeing small silicate particles back in the dust reservoir of the
disc. However, since planet accretion is dependent on the Stokes number of the
accreting pebbles, the growth of planetesimals could be enhanced downstream of
the ice line if pebbles are not disrupting upon sublimation. We developed two
experimental models of icy pebbles using different silicate dusts, and we
exposed them to low-temperature and low-pressure conditions in a vacuum
chamber. Increasing the temperature inside the chamber, we studied the
conditions for which pebbles are preserved through sublimation without
disrupting. We find that small silicate particles ($<50$um) and a small
quantity of ice (around $15$% pebble mass) are optimal conditions for
preserving pebbles through sublimation. Furthermore, pebbles with coarse dust
distribution ($100-300$um) do not disrupt if a small percentage ($10-20$% mass)
of dust grains are smaller than $50$um. Our findings highlight how sublimation
is not necessarily causing disruption, and that pebbles seem to survive fast
sublimation processes effectively.
