Numerical analysis of ice impacts on azimuth propeller

Abstract

Incorporating an azimuth/podded propulsion into an ice-capable ship brings concern in the propellers durability and lifecycle. An ice impact model was constructed to have a better understanding of collisions occurring between ice and azimuth/podded propeller for ice operation ships. A typical propeller profile was created using MATLAB and modeled in SolidWorks using realistic material properties. The ANSYS Explicit Dynamics solver was used to simulate the ice-propeller impact. By conducting a parametric study, the ice impact model displayed situations and instances to avoid shortening the use of propellers in ice operation. Therefore, using the ice impact model will allow further study to provide better understanding of the collision a piece of ice has on a propeller.