NUMERICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL ASSESSMENT OF THE TOTAL RESISTANCE OF A YACHT

One of the main goals of the ship design process is the reduction of the total resistance, which is nowadays even more highlighted due to increasingly stringent rules related to ship energy efficiency. In this paper, the investigation of the impact of the bow on the total resistance of a yacht is carried out for three models by towing tank tests and numerical simulations. The verification and validation studies are performed, and satisfactory agreement is achieved. Also, a comparison of three turbulence models for the prediction of the total resistance of a yacht is made. The flow around the models of the yacht is analysed and it is demonstrated that bulbous bow causes the reduction of wave elevations. Experimental and numerical results indicate that the decrease in the total resistance due to bulbous bow can be up to 7%. Finally, the applicability of CFD within the ship design process is presented.

Automated summary

This paper investigates the impact of a bulbous bow on the total resistance of a yacht through towing tank tests and numerical simulations. It is found that the bulbous bow can reduce wave elevations and decrease total resistance by up to 7%. The study validates the use of turbulence models for predicting total resistance and highlights the significance of CFD in ship design process.