Title: Hydrodynamic effects of strut on 3D hydrofoils near free surface in cavitating and non-cavitating conditions at various velocities and angles of attack

Authors: Aliakbar Ghadimi; Hassan Ghassemi; Parviz Ghadimi; Alireza Pourmansour

Addresses: Department of Maritime Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, Hafez Ave, No. 424, P.O. Box 15875-4413, Tehran, Iran ' Department of Maritime Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, Hafez Ave, No. 424, P.O. Box 15875-4413, Tehran, Iran; School of Ocean Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Weihai, China ' Department of Maritime Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, Hafez Ave, No. 424, P.O. Box 15875-4413, Tehran, Iran ' Department of Maritime Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, Hafez Ave, No. 424, P.O. Box 15875-4413, Tehran, Iran

Abstract: Hydrofoils are connected to vessels through geometrically complex struts to reduce resistance while maintaining vessel performance. This study explores the effects of various factors, including the presence of struts, on the hydrodynamic behaviour of hydrofoils near free surface under both cavitating and non-cavitating conditions. Using the RANS solver and VOF model in STAR CCM+ software with the Saur model for cavitation, the performance of two 3D hydrofoil cross-sections, NACA0012 (symmetric) and NACA6612 (asymmetric), was analysed. Simulations indicate that the lift-to-drag ratio decreases with increasing angles of attack and immersion ratios for both hydrofoil types, though asymmetric hydrofoils consistently achieve higher lift-to-drag ratios than symmetric ones. Additionally, the inclusion of a strut significantly enhances the lift-to-drag ratio in both cavitating and non-cavitating conditions, with the asymmetric NACA6612 showing superior performance compared to the symmetric NACA0012.

Keywords: hydrodynamic performance; hydrofoils; strut; NACA6612; NACA0012; cavitation; numerical simulation.

DOI: 10.1504/PCFD.2026.151110

Progress in Computational Fluid Dynamics, An International Journal, 2026 Vol.26 No.1, pp.1 - 19

Received: 07 Nov 2024
Accepted: 04 Jan 2025
Published online: 14 Jan 2026 *

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