At Van Oossanen Naval Architects, CFD analysis plays a crucial role in each of our projects. Over the years, CFD tools have become increasingly advanced and reliable. Nowadays, CFD is as accurate as traditional tank testing and can often completely replace it.

CFD is fundamental in designing vessels by analysing and optimising hull forms and appendages. Improving performance by reducing the required power leads to less fuel consumption, a smaller environmental footprint, reduced noise onboard, and enhanced comfort.

Each CFD simulation starts with a proper mesh. A volume domain, representing the virtual CFD laboratory, is divided into millions of small finite volumes, or cells, to capture the flow around the vessel in detail. The physics around the vessel are solved, and the wave pattern generated by the sailing hull is analysed.

Analysing the pressures acting on the hull leads to a better understanding of the design and gives the understanding required to enhance the vessel's efficiency. This includes analysing tangential stresses, the frictional resistance and normal stresses, the pressure resistance.
The propulsion system plays an important role in the vessel’s performance. We can simulate long-duration tests with propellers in only a few hours by using an actuator disk (AD) model. The flow passing through the AD is accelerated and momentum is applied, replicating the effect of a real propeller. This is crucial for conducting challenging studies in a short time, allowing naval architects to tailor their solutions faster.

Another critical part of ship design is the alignment of hull appendages, such as shaft brackets. Aligning these with the flow is essential to reduce hull resistance and avoid cavitation or separation phenomena, which may result in higher fuel consumption, noise and vibrations.
CFD analysis at Van Oossanen is integral to our design process, enabling us to surpass our clients' expectations by optimising efficiency, reducing fuel consumption, and improving onboard comfort. Our advanced simulations allow us to replace the majority of traditional model tests and optimise hull forms cost-effectively and in relatively short time.

We believe that what happens under and above water is equally important. This includes analysing the wind intensity over the superstructure and the plume from the exhaust stack to ensure the best operability onboard and improve comfort.

As you can see, the possibilities are virtually limitless. So, if you’re looking to reduce your vessel’s propulsion requirements, accelerations, motions, emissions … or boost some aspect of its performance, talk to one of our CFD experts to find out how we can help.

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