Analysis of the flow past a fully appended hull with propellers by computational and experimental fluid dynamics

The flow in the stern region of a fully appended hull is analyzed by both computational and experimental fluid dynamics. The study is focused on the velocity field induced by the rotating propellers. Measurements have been performed by laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV) on the vertical midplane of the rudder and in two transversal planes behind the propeller and behind the rudder. In the numerical approach, the real geometry of the propeller has been considered. To this purpose, a dynamic overlapping grids method has been used, which is implemented in the unsteady Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes equations (URANSE) solver developed at INSEAN. Uncertainty analysis has been performed on both data sets and the results from the two approaches are compared. The agreement between the two data sets is found to be good, the deviation in the velocity and vorticity fields lying within the evaluated uncertainties. Numerical data allowed the analysis of further details of the flow that could not be measured, like load conditions of the single blades, interaction of the propeller wake with the rudder, and pressure oscillations induced by the propeller on the vault of the stern. © 2011 American Society of Mechanical Engineers.