Design Optimization of Ship Hulls via CFD Techniques

Numerical shape optimization of a tanker ship hull has been carried out with the aid of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques and experimentally verified. The choice of a specific objective function is based on the needs of the user. In the present study, total resistance and wave pattern have been used either separately or linearly combined. In the optimization process, three different algorithms have been tested, coupled together with a CFD flow solver. A perturbation surface has been used to modify the shape of the hull, allowing for a sharp reduction of the number of design variables. Accordingly, with different objective functions and geometrical constraints, several new optimized shapes of the bulb of a tanker ship have been automatically obtained. Among them, two optimized models have been built and tested, in the INSEAN towing tank, against the original design. In both cases the measured data have confirmed the success of the optimization process.