Estimating the Aerodynamic Performance of a High Speed Watercraft Using Computational Fluid Dynamics

This paper presents a computational model to simulate the flow around a high speed watercraft operating at cruise conditions. The objective was to investigate the aerodynamic performance of the current design and asses the adequacy of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) to conduct detailed design studies. The model developed was based on the physical conditions generally encountered in wind tunnel tests. The results show that the model is capable of capturing the general flow patterns with reasonable accuracy. However, accurate predictions of friction were not possible using this method. Nevertheless, the model proved to be useful in estimating the aerodynamic forces acting on the surface of the watercraft. In turn, specific design recommendations to improve the aerodynamic performance of the watercraft could be made using CFD.