Assessment of Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes/Blade Element Theory Body Force Method for Propeller Modeling

This work presents an actuator disk-like body force method designed for propeller modeling, which is based on a full coupling between computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and blade element theory (BET). An analysis is conducted on the model to identify best practices for source term distribution. It is found that the source term volume shape has no impact on propeller loads and flowfield and that the velocities used for the BET analysis at each radial section should be evaluated exactly where half the source terms have been distributed in the CFD domain. Four tip-loss corrections, including two from literature, are also analyzed and compared to lifting-line and Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) blade-resolved computations. The best practices and the most effective tip-loss correction lead to a final model that is compared to lifting-line, RANS, and unsteady RANS computations for different pitch angles and incidence angles, on the ONERA HAD-1 three-bladed light propeller. The RANS/BET body force model predicts thrust within 3% for axial flow and 8% for cases with incidence. The same accuracy is obtained for wake prediction.