Experimental and Numerical Investigation on Effect of Manufacturing Defects on Propeller Cavitation and Efficiency Performance

The objective of the proposed research is to carry out numerical and experimental studies on the performance degradation of propeller blades in three different scales with leading-edge (LE) manufacturing tolerances. In the experimental studies, three single propeller blades in three scales (1:1, 1:2 and 3:4) will be tested in a cavitation tunnel. Flow velocities and pressures in the upstream and downstream will be measured. The evolution of cavitation will be recorded using a high-speed camera. Three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations will be performed for single propeller blades in three scales with base sections without defect (as designed) and sections with LE defects (as built). Focus will be on the effect of grid quality, resolution and turbulence modeling on numerical solutions. Validation studies will be carried out by comparing the CFD results with the experimental data. Scale effects will also be determined based on the experimental and numerical results.
After the validation studies, CFD simulations will be extended to KCS propellers with and without LE defects in three different scales. Conclusions will be drawn on the effect of LE defects on the performance of full-scale propellers.

Faculty Supervisor:

Wei Qiu;Heather Peng

Student:

Shanqin Jin

Partner:

Dominis Engineering

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

Memorial University of Newfoundland