Comparison of the Hydrodynamic Performance of Three Different Propeller Foil Types: NACA 66 (Mod), Ogival and NACA Symmetrical Section

Efforts are needed to improve the hydrodynamic performance of marine propellers. Several studies have been carried out to improve the propeller performance. This study investigates the propeller performance by changing the shape of the propeller blade foil. Three foil types were considered: NACA 66 (Mod) foil, Ogival foil and NACA foil with a symmetrical section. The propeller outline utilizes the B4-40 B-series. Changing the foil blade will affect the thrust and torque generated by the propeller. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) based on Reynolds-averaged Navier Stokes Equations (RANSE) with explicit algebraic stress models (EASM) are utilized to analyse the fluid flow around the propeller blades. CFD results show that the propeller with the Ogival foil has the highest efficiency of 0.576. The propeller with the NACA 66 (Mod) foil has an efficiency of 0.550, while the propeller with NACA symmetrical section has an efficiency of 0.564. By improving the propeller efficiency obtained from this study, the ship's engine power utilization will be more efficient, leading to a reduction in fuel consumption and carbon emissions.