Speakers
Description
Considered from the hydrodynamic perspective, submarines bring many interesting challenges that need to be properly addressed to provide precise information about their performance. Such hydrodynamic performance must be evaluated at least in two main operating conditions, namely when the vessel is deeply submerged and when it sails at snorkel depth. There are relevant differences both in terms of interaction with the free surface and in terms of hydrodynamic itself since the forward speed in the latter condition is typically much lower compared to that of the first scenario. Moreover, submarines used to sail at snorkel depth if they need to accomplish specific tasks, such as communication, that involves the use of surface piercing masts.
The proposed study analyses the opportunity provided by different Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) approaches to correctly address submarine performance. In particular, resistance in both deeply submerged and snorkel depth conditions, masts free surface hydrodynamics and maneuvering behaviors are analyzed. Ad-hoc approaches based on in-house developed numerical procedures and open-source software are presented. Different CFD techniques have been used, ranging from Reynolds Averaged Navire Stokes (RANS), Large Eddy Simulation (LES) and Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH), according to the particular physics that needs to be simulated. Results from numerical simulations are validated and discussed highlighting the benefits and the drawbacks of each used method.
