AFTERBODY SHAPING AND TRANSITION PREDICTION FOR A LAMINAR-FLOW UNDERWATER VEHICLE

The afterbody design of a laminar-flow underwater vehicle is considered with particular emphasis on integrating the propeller design with that of the hull. A relatively simple cruciform fin and single stage propeller is adopted for the low-drag hull and thrust deduction effects are discussed. Two well-known empirical correlations for predicting transition were evaluated. The two-dimensional form of the Cebeci-Smith correlation equation appears to work well, even in this axisymmetric case, although there is little theoretical justification for using such a model.