Free fall water entry of a wedge tank into calm water in three degrees of freedom

Abstract

The hydrodynamic problem of a two dimensional wedge tank filled with liquid entering a calm water surface is analysed based on the incompressible velocity potential theory. The motion effect of inner liquid on the entry process is investigated through comparison with the result containing equivalent solid mass or the liquid being frozen. The problem is solved through the boundary element method in the time domain. Two separated computational regions are constructed. One is the inner domain for the internal liquid, and the other is the outer open domain for the open water. The former is solved in the physical coordinate system, and the latter is solved in a stretched coordinate system. The solutions of two separated domains are connected through the motion of the body. The auxiliary function method is extended to decouple the nonlinear mutual dependence between fluid loads from two separated domains and the body motion. Detailed results for wedge motion, external impact pressure and free surface, and for internal pressure, free surface deformation and liquid motion are provided. Through comparison with the results of a wedge tank with frozen ice, in-depth discussion on the effect of the inner liquid is provided.