Propeller slipstream induced erosion phenomena
General Project Description
The ageing infrastructure of sea and inland ports must be adapted to modern ship propulsion systems whose continuous optimization leads to large loads on the port facilities and thus to increased investment costs. The aim of the project is to create a sustainable design basis for port planning by developing new approaches for more precise recording of the interaction between ship and port facility. This includes the determination of propeller slipstream expansion and the associated scour phenomena.
The research project is being carried out in cooperation with the industrial partner WK Consult and the Leichtweiß Institute for Hydraulic Engineering and Water Management at the Technische Universität of Braunschweig. Further cooperation partners are Lübeck Port Authority and the Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute. In this project, field measurements, experimental investigations in the test facilities of the Leichtweiß Institute and numerical simulations at the Institute for Fluid Dynamics and Ship Theory of TUHH are conducted. The combined results of all investigations will provide a comprehensive insight into the development of scour due to propeller slipstream which will establish a solid basis for developing a design formula to estimate the external loads on port structures.
Sub-project ASSESS: Analysis of Propeller Slipstream and Sound Emissions of Ship Manoeuvring Devices by Simulation
In the sub-project ASSESS (Analysis of Propeller Slipstream and Sound Emissions of Ship Manoeuvring Devices by Simulation), the Institute for Fluid Dynamics and Ship Theory analyzes real world maneuvering data of ships during port navigation and links them to the power delivered by the propulsion system components to achieve a reliable database for numerical studies on resulting loads on the port. The observed and documented maneuvers are modelled using a hybrid CFD approach combining high-fidelity RANS simulations as well as by applying a boundary element method to calculate the propeller slipstream during the ship maneuvers and the related velocity and pressure distribution in the fluid field. The results will be used to calculate the hydrodynamic loads on components of the port structure.
In addition, the underwater noise emitted by the propulsion components will be calculated to analyze the impact on the underwater environment. By including in the simulations the changes in scour measured in experimental studies at the Leichtweiß Institute, scour phenomena and their development can be deeply understood and the effects of different propulsion systems on the formation of scour in the harbour area can be investigated.
Project Partners
WK Consultants GmbH (WKC), Hamburg
Leichtweiß Institute for Hydraulic Engineering and Water Management at the Technische Universität of Braunschweig
Lübeck Port Authority
Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute
Funding
The project is funded in the framework program “ Innovative Port Technologies II (IHATEC II)", the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI).