The simulation of free surface flows with Computational Fluid Dynamics

Computational fluid dynamics is a powerful and versatile tool for the analysis of flow problems encountered in themaritime environment. The University of Southampton Fluid-Structure Interactions research group use ANSYS CFX tomodel a wide variety of flow problems; to gain insight into flow physics, improve designs and increase the efficiencyand safety of marine vehicles. A series of three case studies from on-going research looks at: loads applied on liquefiednatural gas tanks due to sloshing, slamming pressures experienced by high speed craft as well as the influence ofpropellers on the resistance characteristics of autonomous underwater vehicles. The presence of the free surface,complex shapes and the unsteady nature of these applications make their simulation with computational fluid dynamicsparticularly challenging. The successful validation of the computational models has resulted in the development of aselection process for suitable multiphase models as well as cost-effective meshing strategies