Experimental Investigation of Propeller Wake Wash

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Navigation in ice-covered waters requires that vessels be capable of operating in natural ice conditions, such as broken pack ice and intact level ice. Conventional ice-breaking operations rely largely on the mass and power of the vessel to break through ice. The ship's structure must be correspondingly strong. Recent innovations in marine propulsion technology have provided opportunities to use propeller wake wash as another means to break, clear, and otherwise manage ice. Icebreaking operations employing propeller wake wash can reduce significantly the ship structure-ice interaction involved in conventional icebreaking, thereby reducing the likelihood of structural damage and accidental spills of fuel or cargo, and improving the operation’s energy efficiency. Propeller wake wash has been used for years by mariners to clear broken ice from shipping channels, but it has only been since the advent of azimuthing types of propulsors that it has been incorporated into operations by design. At present, the design is done on an ad hoc basis as there is limited fundamental understanding of how the wake wash develops downstream of the propeller and subsequently interacts with sea ice at the free surface. The proposed research will address this knowledge gap.