Research on the Performance of Pumpjet Propulsor of Different Scales

Abstract

This study presents a numerical research on the open-water performance of a pumpjet propulsor at different scales. Simulations were performed by an in-house viscous CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamic) code. The Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) method with SST k-ω turbulence model is employed. A dynamic overset grid is used to treat the relative motion between the rotor and other parts. The numerical results are compared with the model test data and they agree well. Comparisons for the open-water performance between the pumpjet propulsors with two scales are carried out. The results indicate that the total thrust coefficient of the large-scale pumpjet propulsor is greater than that of the small-scale one while the torque coefficient is smaller. Therefore, the efficiency of the large-scale pumpjet propulsor is about 8~10% higher than that of the small-scale pumpjet propulsor. The open-water performance of the rotor, pre-swirl stator and duct is obtained separately to estimate the discrepancies on the thrust and torque coefficients between different scales. To analyze the scale effect from different parts, the research on flow field and pressure distribution are carried out. The variation of total thrust and torque coefficient comes mainly from the rotor, which is caused by the flow field, influenced by the duct and stator.