Wake Characteristics and Thermal Properties of Underwater Vehicle Based on DDES Numerical Simulation

Investigating the coupled hydrodynamic and thermal wakes induced by underwater vehicles is vital for non-acoustic detection and environmental monitoring. Here, the standard SUBOFF model is simulated under eight operating conditions—speeds of 10, 15, and 20 kn; depths of 10, 20, and 30 m; and both wi...

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Main Authors: Yu Lu, Jiacheng Cui, Bing Liu, Shuai Shi, Wu Shao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/7/1371
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author Yu Lu
Jiacheng Cui
Bing Liu
Shuai Shi
Wu Shao
author_facet Yu Lu
Jiacheng Cui
Bing Liu
Shuai Shi
Wu Shao
author_sort Yu Lu
collection DOAJ
description Investigating the coupled hydrodynamic and thermal wakes induced by underwater vehicles is vital for non-acoustic detection and environmental monitoring. Here, the standard SUBOFF model is simulated under eight operating conditions—speeds of 10, 15, and 20 kn; depths of 10, 20, and 30 m; and both with and without thermal discharge—using Delayed Detached Eddy Simulation (DDES) coupled with the Volume of Fluid (VOF) method. Results indicate that, under heat emission conditions, higher speeds accelerate wake temperature decay, making the thermal wake difficult to detect downstream; without heat emission, turbulent mixing dominates the temperature field, and speed effects are minor. With increased speed, wake vorticity at a fixed location grows by about 30%, free-surface wave height rises from 0.05 to 0.15 m, and wavelength remains around 1.8 m, all positively correlated with speed. Dive depth is negatively correlated with wave height, decreasing from 0.15 to 0.04 m as depth increases from 5 to 20 m, while wavelength remains largely unchanged. At a 10 m submergence depth, the thermal wake is clearly detectable on the surface but becomes hard to detect beyond 20 m, indicating a pronounced depth effect on its visibility. These results not only confirm the positive correlation between vessel speed and wake vorticity reported in earlier studies but also extend those findings by providing the first quantitative evaluation of how submergence depth critically limits thermal wake visibility beyond 20 m. This research provides quantitative evaluations of wake characteristics under varying speeds, depths, and heat emissions, offering valuable insights for stealth navigation and detection technologies.
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spelling doaj-art-e88458badc514818ae83f2a4d3047c2c2025-08-20T02:45:49ZengMDPI AGJournal of Marine Science and Engineering2077-13122025-07-01137137110.3390/jmse13071371Wake Characteristics and Thermal Properties of Underwater Vehicle Based on DDES Numerical SimulationYu Lu0Jiacheng Cui1Bing Liu2Shuai Shi3Wu Shao4Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering College, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian 116026, ChinaNaval Architecture and Ocean Engineering College, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian 116026, ChinaWuhan Second Ship Design and Research Institute, Wuhan 430205, ChinaNaval Architecture and Ocean Engineering College, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian 116026, ChinaNaval Architecture and Ocean Engineering College, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian 116026, ChinaInvestigating the coupled hydrodynamic and thermal wakes induced by underwater vehicles is vital for non-acoustic detection and environmental monitoring. Here, the standard SUBOFF model is simulated under eight operating conditions—speeds of 10, 15, and 20 kn; depths of 10, 20, and 30 m; and both with and without thermal discharge—using Delayed Detached Eddy Simulation (DDES) coupled with the Volume of Fluid (VOF) method. Results indicate that, under heat emission conditions, higher speeds accelerate wake temperature decay, making the thermal wake difficult to detect downstream; without heat emission, turbulent mixing dominates the temperature field, and speed effects are minor. With increased speed, wake vorticity at a fixed location grows by about 30%, free-surface wave height rises from 0.05 to 0.15 m, and wavelength remains around 1.8 m, all positively correlated with speed. Dive depth is negatively correlated with wave height, decreasing from 0.15 to 0.04 m as depth increases from 5 to 20 m, while wavelength remains largely unchanged. At a 10 m submergence depth, the thermal wake is clearly detectable on the surface but becomes hard to detect beyond 20 m, indicating a pronounced depth effect on its visibility. These results not only confirm the positive correlation between vessel speed and wake vorticity reported in earlier studies but also extend those findings by providing the first quantitative evaluation of how submergence depth critically limits thermal wake visibility beyond 20 m. This research provides quantitative evaluations of wake characteristics under varying speeds, depths, and heat emissions, offering valuable insights for stealth navigation and detection technologies.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/7/1371underwater vehiclethermal wakedelayed detached eddy simulation (DDES)volume of fluid (VOF)speeddiving depth
spellingShingle Yu Lu
Jiacheng Cui
Bing Liu
Shuai Shi
Wu Shao
Wake Characteristics and Thermal Properties of Underwater Vehicle Based on DDES Numerical Simulation
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
underwater vehicle
thermal wake
delayed detached eddy simulation (DDES)
volume of fluid (VOF)
speed
diving depth
title Wake Characteristics and Thermal Properties of Underwater Vehicle Based on DDES Numerical Simulation
title_full Wake Characteristics and Thermal Properties of Underwater Vehicle Based on DDES Numerical Simulation
title_fullStr Wake Characteristics and Thermal Properties of Underwater Vehicle Based on DDES Numerical Simulation
title_full_unstemmed Wake Characteristics and Thermal Properties of Underwater Vehicle Based on DDES Numerical Simulation
title_short Wake Characteristics and Thermal Properties of Underwater Vehicle Based on DDES Numerical Simulation
title_sort wake characteristics and thermal properties of underwater vehicle based on ddes numerical simulation
topic underwater vehicle
thermal wake
delayed detached eddy simulation (DDES)
volume of fluid (VOF)
speed
diving depth
url https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/7/1371
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AT bingliu wakecharacteristicsandthermalpropertiesofunderwatervehiclebasedonddesnumericalsimulation
AT shuaishi wakecharacteristicsandthermalpropertiesofunderwatervehiclebasedonddesnumericalsimulation
AT wushao wakecharacteristicsandthermalpropertiesofunderwatervehiclebasedonddesnumericalsimulation