Experimental Investigation of the Flow Mechanisms Associated with a Wake-Ingesting Propulsor

Abstract

The current experimental study aims at quantifying the power conversion processes involved in a propulsor ingesting body wake. Stereoscopic particle image velocimetry is employed for the first time to visualize the flowfield at the location of interaction between a propeller and an incoming body wake, as well as to provide experimental data to be used for the power balance method. Besides experimentally quantifying the power conversion method, the results show that one of the main mechanisms responsible for the claimed efficiency enhancement in the experimental setup is due to the utilization of body-wake energy by the wake-ingesting propeller.