SIMULATION OF STEADY AND UNSTEADY CAVITATION ON A MARINE PROPELLER USING A RANS CFD CODE

TLDR

RANS simulations of flow around two conventional propellers were performed under non‑cavitating and cavitating conditions using a multiphase full cavitation model, and unsteady flow around the Seiun‑maru propeller in a non‑uniform ship wake was also computed. The predicted thrust and torque coefficients matched measurements in both cavitating and non‑cavitating conditions, blade surface pressure fluctuations agreed qualitatively with data, and overall results indicate the approach can complement model experiments for designing actual cavitating propellers. Reference [1].

Abstract

RANS simulations of flow around two different conventional propellers were carried out at non-cavitating and cavitating operating conditions using the multiphase flow model based on the “full cavitation model” proposed by Singhal et al. [1]. The predicted values of the thrust and torque coefficients in uniform flow were in a good agreement with the measurements in cavitating and non-cavitating conditions. Unsteady flow around Seiun-maru conventional propeller in a non-uniform ship wake was also computed. The fluctuation of the blade surface pressure was compared with the measurement, and the agreement was qualitatively good. The overall results suggest that the present approach can complement the model experiments for actual cavitating propeller design procedures.