Numerical simulation of planing motion and hydrodynamic performance of a seaplane in calm water and waves

ABSTRACT

The high-speed motion of a seaplane involves the coupled hydrodynamic and aerodynamic effects. The suction force, pressure, free surface and motion of the seaplane model were numerically investigated to understand the characteristics of the seaplane's planing motion. The study utilized the SST-DDES turbulence model to analyse the coupled hydrodynamic and aerodynamic effects. Overset mesh method and rigid body motion were employed to simulate the high-speed and substantial motion of seaplane. The volume of fluid method (VOF) was used to capture and sharpen the interface between water and air. First, verification and validation (V&V) were performed by comparing the results with those of the towing tank experiments. Second, the air-water entrainment in calm water and free surfaces were presented, and the pressure distribution on the seaplane was analysed and discussed. Numerical simulations were performed while considering the wave parameters of different velocities, wavelengths, and wave heights. The accelerations of the fore, aft, and centre of gravity of the seaplane demonstrated the presence of the suction effect. The evolution of the air-water entrainment at the bottom of the fuselage was observed. The investigation of suction characteristics revealed that the aerodynamic force in waves plays a substantial role in influencing motions of the seaplane.

Highlights

• The study of hydrodynamics and aerodynamics of seaplanes is interdisciplinary. The numerical schemes, including a SST-DDES turbulent model, overset mesh method, and volume of fluid (VOF) method, have proven to be effective and accurate for simulating the motion of the seaplane and flow field characteristics.

• The greater the speed and wave height, the faster is the motion of the seaplane and the greater are peak and trough values of the pitch. As the wavelength increased, the peak value of the motion decreased gradually.

• The accelerations of the aft, fore, and centre of gravity of the seaplane in the waves exhibited significant periodicity. The peak value of the acceleration at the aft was the largest, whereas that at the centre of gravity was mild, and the peak value of the acceleration at the centre of gravity was greater than that at the fore. The acceleration indicates that suction at the aft of the seaplane hinders the takeoff during the planing motion.

KEYWORDS:

• Seaplane
• multiphase flow
• regular waves
• suction
• drag

Acknowledgments

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the designers of the seaplane model. Thanks to the seaplane model you have designed, we were able to conduct numerical simulations and experiments, which have provided valuable insights for the optimization and development of seaplanes.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

Financial support was provided by the Project of Research and Development Plan in Key Areas of Guangdong Province [grant number 2020B1111010002]; the National Key Research and Development Program of China [grant number 2021 YFC2800700]; the National Natural Science Foundation of China [grant numbers 52171330; 52101379; 52101380; 516790 53]; the Foundation of Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Survey Technology and Application, Ministry of Natural Resources [grant number MESTA-2021-B010]; the Innovation Group Project of Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai) [grant number 311020011], the Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation [grant number 2019A1515110721]; the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation [grant number 2019M663243]; and the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province, China [grant number 2021A1515012134].