Numerical Simulation of Cotra Rotating Propellers

Abstract

In this paper, numerical simulation based on Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equation and   k SST turbulence model is performed to investigate the hydrodynamic performance of Contra rotating propeller (CRP). The whole computation domain is divided into three sub-domains, which include the two rotating domains containing the fore and aft propellers, and the left outer domain. MRF(Multiple reference frame)coordinate system technique is used to simulate the rotation of the propeller. Fully structured gridding strategy is used to ensure the accuracy of the calculation and reduce computation time. The numerical simulation is verified by the experimental data of CRP6 and CRP7. Then, further analysis of the fluctuation of the thrust and torque is performed, as well as the hydrodynamic interference between the two forward and aft propellers.

Effect of geometrical features on the contra-rotating propeller hydrodynamic performances

“…A comparison of performance results showed that CRPs efficiency is 2.2% higher than that of single propellers. Feng et al (2017) studied numerically the flow around the CRPs using the MRF (Multiple reference frame) techniques to analyze the variation of the thrust and torque propeller and the interaction between both propellers. They deduced that the forward propeller coefficients fluctuate more than those of the backward one.…”