Influence of fins on tractor-type podded propulsor performance

Abstract

A mathematical model of podded propulsors was established in order to investigate the influence of fins. The hydrodynamic performance of podded propulsors with and without fins was calculated, with interactions between propellers and pods and fins derived by iterative calculation. The differential equation based on velocity potential was adopted and hyperboloidal panels were used to avoid gaps between surface panels. The Newton-Raphson iterative procedure was used on the trailing edge to meet the pressure Kutta condition. The velocity distribution was calculated with the Yanagizawa method to eliminate the singularity caused by use of the numerical differential. Comparisons of the performance of podded propulsors with different fins showed that the thrust of propeller in a podded propulsor with fins is greater. The resistance of the pod is also reduced because of the thrust of the fin. The hydrodynamic performance of a podded propulsor with two fins is found to be best, the performance of a podded propulsor with one fin is not as good as two fins, and the performance of the common type is the worst.

Keywords

podded propulsor with fin / panel method / hydrodynamic performance / flow field