A numerical parametric study on hydrofoil interaction in tandem

Abstract

Understanding the effects of the parameters affecting the interaction of tandem hydrofoil system is a crucial subject in order to fully comprehend the aero/hydrodynamics of any vehicle moving inside a fluid. This study covers a parametric study on tandem hydrofoil interaction in both potential and viscous fluids using iterative Boundary Element Method (BEM) and RANSE. BEM allows a quick estimation of the flow around bodies and may be used for practical purposes to assess the interaction inside the fluid. The produced results are verified by conformal mapping and Finite Volume Method (FVM). RANSE is used for viscous flow conditions to assess the effects of viscosity compared to the inviscid solutions proposed by BEM Six different parameters are investigated and they are the effects of distance, thickness, angle of attack, chord length, aspect ratio and tapered wings. A generalized 2-D code is developed implementing the iterative procedure and is adapted to generate results. Effects of free surface and cavitation are ignored. It is believed that the present work will provide insight into the parametric interference between hydrofoils inside the fluid.