Abstract
Cavitation phenomena appearing on ship propellers have long been interested and recent theoretical analysises give good results comparing with model tests. In accordance with a continuous rise in heavy powered and high speed ships, hull forms have been changed and loads acting on the propeller surface have also been increased, and they result in various and particular cavitations. In some cases, cavitation appears not only on the back but also on the face of the propeller and it causes additive pressure fluctuations and erosion of the propeller and reduces propulsion efficiency of the ship. In this study, we predict the face cavity inception using unsteady propeller analysis based on the panel method and compare the results with experimental observations.
