Numerical Simulation of the Turbulent Flow around an Oval-Sail

This paper presents numerical study of an oval-sail, a bluff-body equipped with a grid all along the span. Suction based flow control is applied to this body that is developed for wind assisted ship propulsion. First,achoiceofnumericalturbulencemodelisdiscussedthroughresultsofanoval-sail without suction. Three turbulence models are applied: the Rij SSG, the Rij EBRSM and the v2f model. Then, computations are performed for the oval-sail fitted with suction grid. These last simulations are carried out with the low-Reynolds-number Rij EBRSM turbulence model. The influence of the grid geometry on the oval-sail aerodynamic performances is highlighted. All simulations are carriedoutforthesailsetatzeroincidence. TheReynoldsnumberbasedonthefreestreamvelocity and the profile chord is Re = 5105. Results are compared to available experimental data.