Ice load prediction of a podded propulsor under the dynamic azimuthing condition

Abstract

In the process of cutting an ice layer by dynamic azimuthing of a podded propulsor, the unsteady and high pulsation characteristics of the ice load may compromise the safety and structural strength of podded propulsors. In this study, the failure criterion of simulated materials for the ice-breaking problem and the ice load calculation method were derived based on the peridynamics and the idea of panel division. The contact judgment method between the propeller and ice under the dynamic azimuthing condition of the podded propulsor was proposed. A numerical calculation model of the milling action of the ice–podded propulsor was established, and a numerical simulation of the ice–propeller milling process under the dynamic azimuthing conditions of the podded propulsor was realized. Moreover, numerical simulations under different ice layer moving velocities, propeller rotational speeds, podded propulsor azimuthing rates, and azimuth angles were carried out, and the ice layer breaking phenomenon and the variation characteristics of the propeller ice load under the dynamic azimuthing condition of the podded propulsor were obtained. The research results can guide technical support for the load evaluation, structural safety analysis, mechanism research of load components, and the selection of polar navigation steering strategies for ice-class podded propulsors.