Optimum Propeller Rotation Analysis Based on the Lifting Line Theory

One of the most important parts of a ship is its propulsion system. It determines the performance of the ship in terms of the speed and maneuvering. Consequently, determining the geometry of the propeller such as diameter, blade area ratio, pitch, etc., is a crucial step in ship design because it would determine the overall design and performance of the propeller. Besides that, designing and using an optimum propeller rotation speed is another important requirement to maximize the performance of the propulsion system. In this study, Propeller Vortex Lattice (PVL) program which is developed based on the lifting line theory is used to compute the performance of a ship???s propulsion system for a certain range of propeller rotation speed. By analyzing the computation results, the most optimal speed of the propeller rotation to be used could be determined. This study also shows the effectiveness of the lifting line theory in computing and analyzing the performance and other parameters of a propeller especially the blade number compared to conventional methods which need statistical or methodical charts to calculate the performanc