Schottel Expanding CFD Capabilities

German propulsion manufacturer Schottel said that it will spend in six-digit euro range to increase the company’s computational fluid dynamics (CFD) capabilities.

The company said findings obtained during CFD simulations are used for optimizing the propulsion solutions.

“At Schottel, CFD simulations have been an integral part of the hydrodynamic design process for years,” said Manfred Heer, vice president Technology. “At Schottel, CFD calculations can be used to simulate and analyze a wide range of different applications, such as open-water propeller performance, vessel resistance and towing power, manoeuvrability, risk of cavitation or noise development. In addition, this method enables us to obtain valuable load data for the mechanical components of our propulsion systems. By this means, for example, it is possible to simulate extreme operating conditions which would not be tested in real ship operation for safety reasons.

“By increasing our capacities, we can ensure CFD calculations of the highest possible quality. The degree of detail in the calculations can be enhanced to practically any level required by the task at hand. It is measured against the relevance of the results and is carefully adjusted while taking into account the predicted computing time and the available computing capacity. This means that we can calculate everything that is relevant to fluid dynamics. Beyond this, we are able to support every development project with CFD and make even more precise assertions about the flow behavior.”

CFD calculations benefit from the fact that the model can be freely expanded, scaled and modified at any time and with minimal effort, the company said. In this way, the simulations can also be applied to flows for which experiments are difficult to implement or empirical measurements cannot be determined.