Numerical Analysis of Tip Vortex and Cavitation of Elliptic Hydrofoil with NACA 662-415 Cross Section

Abstract

This paper provides quantification of the effects of the turbulence model and grid refinement on the analysis of tip vortex flows by using the RANS(Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes) method. Numerical simulations of the tip vortex flows of the NACA 662-415 elliptic hydrofoil were conducted, and two turbulence models for RANS closure were tested, i.e., the Realizable k-ε model and the Reynolds stress transport model. Numerical results were compared with available experimental data, and it was shown that the data for the Reynolds stress transport model that were computed on the finest grid system had better agreement in reproducing the development and propagation of the tip vortex. The Realizable k-ε model overestimated the turbulence level in the vortex core and showed a diffusive behavior of the tip vortex. The tip vortex cavitation on the hydrofoil and its trajectory also showed good agreement between the current numerical results that were obtained using the Reynolds stress transport model and the results observed in the experiment.

Keywords

• Elliptic hydrofoil
• CFD
• Tip vortex cavitation
• Local flow analysis
• Turbulence model