Experimental study on dynamic structure of propeller tip vortex

Propeller cavitation is a main source of fluctuating pressure and noise induced by propellers, and the tip vortex cavitation is the principal source. The present study measures the flow fields near the blade tip using the 2D-PIV technique. The experimental setup and scheme are introduced. We monitor the process of generation and shedding of the propeller tip vortex in real time and analyse the dynamic structure of the tip vortex by testing the propeller wake field under different phases of the axial plane. The distribution characteristics of radial and axial velocity are also analysed. The influence range and the vorticity of the tip vortex and trailing vortex are obtained. All of the measured quantitative data are useful for future propeller design.