A REVIEW OF METHODS FOR HYDRO-ACOUSTIC ANALYSIS OF NON-CAVITATING MARINE PROPELLERS

Underwater Radiated Noise (URN) emanating from surface and underwater marine platforms has become a significant concern for all the Nations in view of the global requirement to minimise the increasing adverse impact on marine mammals and fishes and maintain ecological balance in the ‘Silent’ ocean environment. Ambient noise level in the sea, in 10 to 300 Hz frequency band, has increased by 20 to 30 dB due to shipping (Wittekind, 2009). Marine propeller (in non- cavitating and cavitating regime) is a potential contributor to the ships noise and a lot of scientific research has been undertaken and considerable progress has been achieved in estimating the hydro-acoustic performance of marine propellers. In light of this, the scope of this paper is to review and critically examine the various methods used for estimating the hydro-acoustic performance of marine propellers, particularly in the non-cavitating regime, over the past many years. This review paper brings out the details, applicability, merits and demerits of various methods, extrapolation laws to obtain full scale results, scientific conclusion of all the know-how on this subject and the scope of further research as perceived by the authors. This paper also presents a numerical methodology to estimate the noise radiated by a DTMB 4119 model propeller in the non-cavitating regime in open water condition. The hydrodynamic analysis of the propeller was performed using commercial CFD software STARCCM+, closure was achieved using standard k-ε turbulence model and hydro-acoustic predictions have been performed using FWH acoustic analogy. The results compare very well with the published literature.

Aeroacoustic noise prediction of a vertical axis wind turbine using large eddy simulation

This study investigates the numerical prediction for the aerodynamic noise of the vertical axis wind turbine using large eddy simulation and the acoustic analogy. Low noise designs are required especially in residential areas, and sound level generated by the wind turbine is therefore important to estimate. In this paper, the incompressible flow field around the 12 kW straight-bladed vertical axis wind turbine with the rotor diameter of 6.5 m is solved, and the sound propagation is calculated based on the Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings acoustic analogy. The sound pressure for the turbine operating at high tip speed ratio is predicted, and it is validated by comparing with measurement. The measured spectra of the sound pressure observed at several azimuth angles show the broadband characteristics, and the prediction is able to reproduce the shape of these spectra. While previous works studying small-scaled vertical axis wind turbines found that the thickness noise is the dominant sound source, the loading noise can be considered to be a main contribution to the total sound for this turbine. The simulation also indicates that the received noise level is higher when the blade moves in the downwind than in the upwind side.

Hydroacoustic and hydrodynamic investigation of bio-inspired leading-edge tubercles on marine-ducted thrusters

Underwater radiated noise (URN) has a negative impact on the marine acoustic environment where it can disrupt marine creature's basic living functions such as navigation and communication. To control the ambient ocean noise levels due to human activities, international governing bodies such as the International Maritime Organization (IMO) have issued non-mandatory guidelines to address this issue. Under such framework, the hydroacoustic performance of marine vehicles has become a critical factor to be evaluated and controlled throughout the vehicles' service life in order to mitigate the URN level and the role humankind plays in the ocean. This study aims to apply leading-edge (LE) tubercles of the humpback whales’ pectoral fins to a benchmark ducted propeller to investigate its potential in noise mitigation. This was conducted using CFD, where the high-fidelity improved delayed detached eddy simulations (IDDES) in combination with the porous Ffowcs-Williams Hawkings (FW-H) acoustic analogy was used to solve the hydrodynamic flow field and propagate the generated noise to the far-field. It has been found that the LE tubercles have shown promising noise mitigation capabilities in the far-field, where the OASPL at J = 0.1 was reduced to a maximum of 3.4 dB with a maximum of 11 dB reduction in certain frequency ranges at other operating conditions. Based on detailed flow analysis researching the fundamental vortex dynamics, this noise reduction is shown to be due to the disruption of the coherent turbulent wake structure in the propeller slipstream causing the acceleration in the dissipation of turbulence and vorticity-induced noise.

Analysis of Propagation and Distribution Characteristics of Leakage Acoustic Waves in Water Supply Pipelines

Leakage detection methods based on the analysis of leakage acoustic signals provide an effective technical approach for detecting small leaks in water supply pipelines. From a technical perspective, the study of the propagation characteristics of acoustic waves generated by the leakage in the water supply pipeline is necessary for detecting the leak location on the basis of acoustic signals. In this study, a 3D transient leakage acoustic wave propagation equation was derived by combining the principles of fluid dynamics and Lighthill acoustic analogy theory. The propagation of the leakage-induced noise in water supply pipeline was modelled theoretically. We simulated the propagation of a leakage acoustic wave under different conditions for different target scenarios encountered in actual pipeline inspections. Specifically, we analysed the effect of different factors, such as the pipe size and acoustic source characteristics, on acoustic propagation. Finally, the simulated experiments were practically performed using a self-designed simulated water supply pipeline and self-developed spherical water supply pipeline detector to validate the simulation analysis. The results of this study provide a theoretical guidance and basis for the analysis of characteristics of leakage acoustic wave signals and the recognition of leakage conditions in water supply pipelines.

Numerical prediction of noise generated from airfoil in stall using LES and acoustic analogy

This article presents the aerodynamic noise prediction of a NACA 0012 airfoil in stall region using Large Eddy Simulation and the acoustic analogy. While most numerical studies focus on noise for an airfoil at a low angle of attack, prediction of stalled noise has been made less sufficiently. In this study, the noise of a stalled airfoil is calculated using the spanwise correction where the total noise is estimated from the sound source of the simulated span section based on the coherence of turbulent flow structure. It is studied for the airfoil at the chord-based Reynolds number of 4.8 × 105 and the Mach number of 0.2 with the angle of attack of 15.6° where the airfoil is expected to be under stall condition. An incompressible flow is resolved to simulate the sound source region, and Curle’s acoustic analogy is used to solve the sound propagation. The predicted spectrum of the sound pressure level observed at 1.2 m from the trailing edge of the airfoil is validated by comparing measurement data, and the results show that the simulation is able to capture the dominant frequency of the tonal peak. However, while the measured spectrum is more broadband, the predicted spectrum has the tonal character around the primary frequency. This difference can be considered to arise due to insufficient mesh resolution.

Numerical investigation into effects of gas concentration and bubble collapse on tip vortex cavitation noise of NACA16-020 wing

In this study, the effects of gas concentration and bubble collapse on tip vortex cavitation noise of NACA16-020 wings are investigated using coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian method based on sequential application of Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) solver, bubble dynamics model and acoustic analogy. The bubble dynamics model used in the preceding study (Ku et al., 2020) is modified by including the gas pressure terms and the bubble collapse model, which depends on the timing and threshold of bubble collapse, the number, initial radius and location of divided bubbles. The validity of the modified bubble dynamics model is confirmed through its application to a benchmark problem where single bubble is triggered by laser. Then, the coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian method based on the modified bubble dynamic model is applied for the prediction of tip-vortex cavitation noise of NACA16-020 wing. The predicted results of the tip vortex pattern and acoustic pressure spectrum are compared with the measured results, which shows closer agreements between two results than those in the previous study.

Development of virtual fan flow and acoustic performance testers based on RANS solvers and acoustic analogy

As the potential of computational resources dramatically increases, the so-called computer-aided engineering readily replaces experiment-based engineering in related industrial fields. In this study, the virtual fan flow and acoustic performance testers are developed using the RANS solvers and the acoustic analogy. Two types of forward-curved centrifugal fans are selected for numerical and experimental investigations into its flow and acoustic performances. First, to experimentally evaluate the performances of the centrifugal fan units, their P-Q curves and sound power levels are measured using a fan flow performance tester and a semi-anechoic chamber, respectively. Second, the virtual fan flow and acoustic performance testers are constructed using the RANS solvers and the acoustic analogy based on the FW-H equation and CFD method. The validity of the current virtual methods is confirmed by comparing the prediction results with the measured ones. During the validation, the effects of the wall functions, y+ distribution, and turbulence models on predicted flow performance accuracy are closely examined. The effects of the integral surfaces used for the computation of the FW-H equations are also assessed on the predicted spectral levels of sound pressure.

Analytical Solution of Heat Conduction from Turbulence with an Isotropic Example

Aerodynamic heating due to turbulence significantly affects the operation of high-speed vehicles and the entrainment of fluid by turbulent plumes. In this paper, the heat generated and convected by fluid turbulence is examined by rearranging the Navier-Stokes equations into a single equation for the fluctuating dependent variables external to unsteady chaotic motions. This equation is similar to the nonhomogeneous heat equation where sources are terms resulting from this rearrangement. Mean and fluctuating quantities are introduced, and under certain circumstances, a heat equation for the fluctuating density results with corresponding mean and fluctuating source terms. The resultant equation is similar to Lighthill’s acoustic analogy and is a “heat analogy.” A solution is obtained with the use of Green’s function as long as the observer is located outside the region of chaotic motion. Predictions for the power spectrum are shown for high Reynolds number isotropic turbulence. The power spectrum decays as the inverse of the wavenumber of the turbulent velocity fluctuations. The developed theory can easily be applied to other turbulent flows if the statistics of unsteady motion can be estimated.