Propeller–hull interaction simulation for self-propulsion with sinkage and trim

Abstract

This paper presents numerical simulations of propeller–hull interaction of a ship model for the dynamic condition, demonstrating the ability of the developed self-propulsion module in OpenFOAM. A dynamic motion class has been developed based on the sliding mesh method to simulate a rotating propeller with ship motions. A body-force method is also implemented to simulate propeller–hull interaction to reduce the computational cost of propeller modeling. Validation studies were carried out for the Japan Bulk Carrier (JBC) ship model. The bare-hull resistance, sinkage, and trim are verified against the experimental data. The propeller open-water hydrodynamic characteristics are then computed and validated using sliding mesh and body-force methods. Finally, the self-propulsion simulations are carried out for the JBC model in calm water with sinkage and trim at the design speed. Numerical predictions of the self-propulsion parameters and axial flow velocity distributions at different transverse locations are presented.