This study presents a numerical research on the open-water performance of a pumpjet propulsor at different scales. Simulations were performed by an in-house viscous CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamic) code. The Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) method with SST k-ω turbulence model is employed. A dynamic overset grid is used to treat the relative motion between the rotor and other parts. The numerical results are compared with the model test data and they agree well. Comparisons for the open-water performance between the pumpjet propulsors with two scales are carried out. The results indicate that the total thrust coefficient of the large-scale pumpjet propulsor is greater than that of the small-scale one while the torque coefficient is smaller. Therefore, the efficiency of the large-scale pumpjet propulsor is about 8~10% higher than that of the small-scale pumpjet propulsor. The open-water performance of the rotor, pre-swirl stator and duct is obtained separately to estimate the discrepancies on the thrust and torque coefficients between different scales. To analyze the scale effect from different parts, the research on flow field and pressure distribution are carried out. The variation of total thrust and torque coefficient comes mainly from the rotor, which is caused by the flow field, influenced by the duct and stator.

Waterjet–hull interaction is the hot point and research focus in the research of waterjet-propelled crafts. This paper presents numerical studies on the interaction between a waterjet system and a catamaran. Numerical simulations of both bare hull and self-propulsion hull were carried out based on the URANS method. The SST k-ω model is selected for the closure of the URANS equations. The level set method together with the dynamic overset grid approach is used for the simulations. The body force model with the PI speed controller is used to simulate the rotational motion of the rotor in the simulations for the self-propulsion hull. Moreover, uncertainty analyses of the numerical method are conducted to verify the accuracy of the numerical solver. The numerical results of the bare hull and self-propulsion hull are compared in detail, such as the wave pattern, pressure distribution, hull attitude, and so on. The waterjet reduces the pressure on the hull surface near the stern and makes the height of the wave near the stern lower. This leads to a more violent change in hull attitude and the thrust deduction is positive, ranging from 0.1 to 0.2. The energy conversion is analyzed based on the ITTC recommended procedures, which shows the overall efficiency of the waterjet behind the hull is about 0.75~0.8 times the free stream efficiency.