Numerical simulation and control of horseshoe vortex around an appendage–body junction

Abstract

The horseshoe vortex generated around the appendage–body junction of submarines strongly influences the non-uniformity of submarine wakes at the propeller discs. The flow characteristics around the appended submarine body are numerically simulated and analyzed, and a new method on the vortex control baffle is presented. Then, the influence of the vortex control baffle on the horseshoe vortex generated at the sail–body junction is numerically studied, and the flow phenomena caused by the vortex control baffle with different transverse positions is investigated further. Results show that the vortex control baffle can induce a kind of attached vortex in a rotational direction opposite to the horseshoe vortex; these two kinds of vortices undermine each other. Furthermore, when the transverse position of the vortex control baffle is close to the horseshoe vortex, the state of the horseshoe vortex is directly affected, and the flow structure becomes even more complex. We adapt the vortex control baffle for the horseshoe vortex generated at the stern foil–body junction. Results from the numerical simulation of the flow around the fully appended submarine model indicate that the effect of the vortex control baffle greatly improves the performance of the submarine wake. The circumferential non-uniformity of the axial, tangential, and radial velocity components are decreased markedly. The engineering applicability of the vortex control baffle has been well presented.