Dynamic strain measurements of marine propellers under non-uniform inflow

Abstract

An experimental investigation was conducted to determine the dynamic strain characteristics of marine propellers under non-uniform inflow. Two 7-bladed highly skewed model propellers of identical geometries, but different elastic characteristics were tested at various rotational speeds and free stream velocities in the water tunnel. Two kinds of wire mesh wake screens located 400mm upstream of the propeller plane were used to generate four-cycle and six-cycle inflows. A laser doppler velocimetry (LDV) system located 100mm downstream of the wake screen plane was used to measure the axial velocity distributions produced by the wake screens. Strain gauges were bonded onto the propeller blades in different positions. A customized underwater data acquisition system which can record data off-line was used to record the dynamic strain. The results show that the frequency properties of the blade dynamic strain are determined by the harmonics of the inflow and that the stiffness of the propeller has an essential effect on the dynamic strain amplitudes.