Research on the hydrodynamic characteristic of a vertical axis propeller

This paper presents a new vertical axis propeller, which combines the turbine with the rudder and can generate thrust in all directions. It describes the modelling of the vertical axis propeller and presents the results of simulations under various conditions. The two-dimensional (2D) simulations investigate the influence of parameters such as advance coefficient, blade number and spacing distance between two propellers on the hydrodynamic performance. The three-dimensional (3D) simulations study the distribution of the pressure forced on the blades and the consequences. The simulation results indicate that the vertical axis propeller yields very good performance under a variety of initial conditions. It is also demonstrated that, by optimizing the parameters of the propeller, the vertical axis propeller proves capable of achieving a high power coefficient. This work constitutes a preliminary step towards the development of an advanced concept of vertical axis propeller.