Flow Separation Evaluation on Tubercle Ship Propeller

Abstract

Propeller design for ship propulsion is important based on efficiency and power output. Advanced propeller design has been proposed in recent research, such as the tubercle propeller. The modified propeller on the leading edge with a tubercle-like design has been improved. Moreover, some evaluation has been studied on the design and performance. In the present study, the tubercle design on the leading edge is evaluated, which focuses on the flow separation effect developed by the tubercle shape. A computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model is compared between the normal and tubercle leading edge. The flow total pressure, Reynold number velocity, and power surface acoustic are evaluated. The flow separation is generated in the leading edge due to the tubercle shape. Moreover, the tubercle shape reduces the total pressure at the propeller blade, especially at the edges. It also increases the Reynold number velocity at the surface due to the flow separation. However, the flow separation decreased the power acoustic surface, which means it lost some power on the propeller.

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