Cavitation Tunnel Tests For Propeller Noise of a FRV and Comparisons with Full-Scale Measurements

Abstract

This study presents the results of cavitation tunnel tests carried out with model propeller of a Fisheries Research Vessel (FRV) and those of noise measurements with its full-scale propeller to validate the low-noise performance of this propeller. The tests involve the simulation of a target wake using a wake screen and the determination of the nature and extent of the observed cavitation behind the simulated wake. The measurements for the noise levels of the model propeller and their analyses are also part of the study. The net noise levels of the model propeller are extrapolated to full-scale using the scaling law recommended by the 18th ITTC Cavitation Committee. The extrapolated results are compared with the criteria recommended by the International Council for the Extrapolation of the Sea (ICES) as well as against the full-scale measurements carried out with this vessel in Japan.