1,721,011 research outputs found
Influence of drift angle on the computation of hull–propeller-rudder interaction
Full text linkThe operation of the propeller dominates the flow interaction effects on the upstream hull and a downstream rudder. An investigation is carried out into the sensitivity with which these effects can be resolved when an angle of drift is applied as well as the length of an upstream body is varied. The computed results are compared to a detailed wind tunnel investigation which measured changes in propeller thrust, torque and rudder forces. Variation of the upstream body length and drift angle effectively varies the magnitude of the crossflow and wake at the propeller plane. The time resolved flow was computed around the hull-propeller–rudder configuration using the Reynolds averaged Navier Stokes (RANS) equations and an Arbitrary Mesh Interface (AMI) model to account for the motion of the propeller. A mesh sensitivity study quantifies the necessary number of mesh cells to adequately resolve the flow field. Overall, good agreement is found between the experimental and computational results when predicting the change in propulsive efficiency, flow straightening and rudder manoeuvring performance. However, it can be seen that there is a significant computational expense associated with a time resolved propeller interaction and that alternative body force based methods are likely to still be required with the computation of self-propelled ship manoeuvres
Numerical investigation of the influence of propeller to the interference drag of twin prolate spheroids at various longitudinal offsets and transverse separations.
No full textThe purpose of this paper is to provide guidance for operators on suitable spacing for multiple vehicles’ missions. This paper investigates the combined drag of a pair of propelled prolate spheroids and compared to the towed models for the length Reynolds Number of 3.2×106. The model has a length-diameter ratio of 6:1. A series of configuration of a pair of spheroids is simulated at various longitudinal offsets and transverse separations. Three-dimensional simulations are performed using a commercial Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes (RANS) Computational Fluid Dynamics code ANSYS CFX 12.1 with the SST turbulence closure model. In each case, the fluid domain has a mesh size of approximately nine million cells including inflated prism layers to capture the boundary layer. Mesh convergence is tested and then validated with wind tunnel test results. The drag of each spheroid is compared against the benchmark drag of a single hull. The three-dimensional cylinder is modelled to simulate the thrust distribution of propeller. The drag of the propelled model is compared against the single bare hull model. The results show that the transverse separations and longitudinal offsets determine the interaction drag between both hulls. The increasing of separation results in lower interference drag. The decreasing of offset results in higher drag reduction. By implementing the body force propeller, the combined drag and drag of the follower is interfered by the accelerated flow. Based on the numerical information, operators can determine the optimal configurations in transvers separation and longitudinal offset based on energy consideration
An improved energy management strategy for a hybrid fuel cell/battery passenger vessel
Full text linkThe combination of a fuel cell and an energy storage system for the reduction of fuel consumption and improving the dynamics of hybrid power systems has successfully been used in transportation applications. In order to realise the benefits of hybrid fuel cell power systems, an energy management strategy is essential for distributing the required power properly between the fuel cell and the energy storage system. For a hybrid fuel cell/battery passenger vessel, an improvement to the classical proportional-integral (PI) controller based energy management strategy is presented. This takes fuel cell efficiency into consideration as an input to maintain higher efficiency of fuel cell and reduce stresses on it and hence reduce its fuel consumption.A 25.5 m long passenger vessel is used and its propulsion system is modelled in MATLAB/Simulink environment using the SimPowerSystems toolbox. The performance of the proposed PI energy management strategy is compared to original PI, equivalent fuel consumption minimization strategy (ECMS), and state-based energy management strategies in terms of consumed energy, battery state of charge, fuel cell efficiency, hydrogen consumption, and the stresses seen by each power source of the hybrid system taking into consideration a daily operation of 8 hours. Results indicate that a daily hydrogen saving of 3.5%, 1.7%, and 1.4% compared to the ECMS, state-based, and the original PI strategies respectively can be achieved by adopting the proposed PI strategy in addition to lower stress on the fuel cell
Towards arctic AUV navigation
No full textThe navigational drift for Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) operating in open ocean can be bounded by regular surfacing. However, this is not an option when operating under ice. To operate effectively under ice requires an on-board navigation solution that does not rely on external infrastructure. Moreover, some under-ice missions require long-endurance capabilities, extending the operating time of the AUVs from hours to days, or even weeks and months. This paper proposes a particle filter based terrain-aided navigation algorithm specifically designed to be implementable in real-time on the low-powered Autosub Long Range 1500 (ALR1500) vehicle to perform long-range missions, namely crossing the Artcic Ocean. The filter performance is analysed using numerical simulations with respect to various key factors, e.g. of the sea-floor morphology, bathymetric update rate, map noise, etc. Despite very noisy on-board measurements, the simulation results demonstrate that the filter is able to keep the estimation error within the mission requirements, whereas estimates using dead-reckoning techniques experience unbounded error growth. We conclude that terrain-aided navigation has the potential to prolong underwater missions to a range of thousands of kilometres, provided the vehicle crosses areas with sufficient terrain variability and the model includes adequate representation of environmental conditions and motion disturbances.</p
Autonomous marine environmental monitoring: Application in decommissioned oil fields
Full text linkHundreds of Oil & Gas Industry structures in the marine environment are approaching decommissioning. In most areas decommissioning operations will need to be supported by environmental assessment and monitoring, potentially over the life of any structures left in place. This requirement will have a considerable cost for industry and the public. Here we review approaches for the assessment of the primary operating environments associated with decommissioning — namely structures, pipelines, cuttings piles, the general seabed environment and the water column — and show that already available marine autonomous systems (MAS) offer a wide range of solutions for this major monitoring challenge. Data of direct relevance to decommissioning can be collected using acoustic, visual, and oceanographic sensors deployed on MAS. We suggest that there is considerable potential for both cost savings and a substantial improvement in the temporal and spatial resolution of environmental monitoring. We summarise the trade-offs between MAS and current conventional approaches to marine environmental monitoring. MAS have the potential to successfully carry out much of the monitoring associated with decommissioning and to offer viable alternatives where a direct match for the conventional approach is not possible
Kayak blade-hull interactions: a body-force approach for self-propelled simulations
No full textA sprint kayak experiences an unsteady flow regime due to the local influence of the paddle. However, kayak designs are usually optimised for steady-state, naked hull resistance. To determine whether unsteady paddle effects need to be included in kayak design, the hydrodynamic interactions between a kayak paddle and a hull are assessed using computational fluid dynamics. A body force model of a drag-based paddle stroke is developed using a blade element approach and validated against experimental data. This allows the paddle-induced local velocities to be simulated without the need to fully resolve the detailed flow around a moving paddle geometry. The increase in computational cost, compared to the naked hull simulation, is 8%. A case study investigating the impact of different paddle techniques on the hydrodynamic forces acting on a self-propelled kayak is conducted. A 0.23% difference in self-propelled resistance was observed, while an estimated 0.5% additional increase can be attributed to paddle-induced draught increases. An estimate of small changes in resistance on race times indicates that reductions of even a fraction of a percent are worth pursuing, indicating that the developed methodology may provide a useful design tool in the future
Ship voyage energy efficiency assessment using ship simulators
Full text linkThe increase in global trade is driving growth in both the size and number of ships. However, this increased demand is leading to greater contributions from shipping to air pollution. This is leading designers and operators to propose and adopt novel powering and propulsion systems. However, there is a challenge with assessing the actual benefit from using a certain retrofit technology or changing the operating conditions of their ships, this may be addressed using numerical simulations. This paper presents a time-domain one-degree of freedom ship simulator implemented in MATLAB/Simulink to enable designers to predict the performance of ship propulsion system during voyages.The proposed simulator is used to assess the effectiveness of three different EEDI and SEEMP measures suggested by IMO to increase ship's propulsion system efficiency which are: voyage execution, slow steaming, and hybrid electric power and propulsion concepts using fuel cells. The developed simulator can be used for further studies and more elements are planned to be added to the ship simulators to make it more generic and capable of testing more propulsion configurations options
Control of an AUV from thruster actuated hover to control surface actuated flight
No full textAn autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) capable of both low speed hovering and high speed flight-style operation is introduced. To have this capability the AUV is over-actuated with a rear propeller, four control surfaces and four through-body tunnel thrusters. In this work the actuators are modelled and the non-linearities and uncertainties are identified and discussed with specific regard to operation at different speeds. A thruster-actuated depth control algorithm and a flight-style control-surface actuated depth controller are presented. These controllers are then coupled using model reference feedback to enable transition between the two controllers to enable vehicle stability throughout the speed range. Results from 3 degrees-of-freedom simulations of the AUV using the new controller are presented, showing that the controller works well to smoothly transition between controllers. The performance of the depth controller appears asymmetric with better performance whilst diving than ascendin
Risk and reliability modelling for multi-vehicle marine domains
No full textIt is well-known that autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) missions are a challenging, high-risk robotics application. With many parallels to Mars rovers, AUV missions involve operating a vehicle in an inherently uncertain environment of which our prior knowledge is often sparse or low-resolution. The lack of an accurate prior, coupled with poor situational awareness and potentially significant sensor noise, presents substantial engineering challenges in navigation, localisation, state estimation and control. When constructing missions and operating AUVs, it is important to consider the risks involved. Stakeholders need to be reassured that risks of vehicle loss or damage have been minimised where possible, and scientists need to be confident that the mission is likely to produce sufficient high-quality data to meet the aims of the deployment. In this paper, we consider the challenges associated with risk analysis methods and representations for multi-vehicle missions, reviewing the relevant literature and proposing a methodology
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