Computational and experimental study on local ship loads in short and steep waves

Abstract

Currently, little information exists on the validity of interface-capturing methods in predicting local ship wave loads in short and steep waves. This study compares computational and experimental results in such a case (kA = 0.24, L wave /L ship = 0.16). The results allow the variation of wave loading between ten locations in the bow area of the ship to be observed. The computations were performed with an unstructured RANS solver that models free-surface flows with a volume-of-fluid method. In the model tests, the wave loads were measured with pressure sensors. The analysis of the results focuses on the wave conditions and on the pressure histories of the local wave loads. The computational and experimental results are in good qualitative agreement and encourage the further use of the computational results. © 2013 The Author(s).