Pre-Swirl Ducts, Pre-Swirl Fins and Wake-Equalizing Ducts for the DTC Hull: Design and Scale Effects

Abstract

A pre-swirl fin (PSF), pre-swirl duct (PSD) and wake-equalizing duct (WED) energy-saving devices (ESD) are designed for the Duisburg Test Case (DTC). To this aim, a simulation-based design optimization method, combining RANSE analyses (ship resistance) with BEM calculations (unsteady propeller performances) in a simplified optimization process realized through a parametric description of ESD geometries, was employed. Fully resolved RANSE analyses were used to validate the outcomes of this affordable design process, which identifies devices capable of saving energy in the delivered power for this type of challenging test case by up to 2.6%. Comparisons with model-scale calculations, furthermore, permit us to discuss the influence of each appendage in different flowfields (model- and full-scale, as well as under the action of the simplified or the resolved propeller) and the reliability of the full-scale extrapolation methods recently proposed for these types of devices.