Experimental and numerical investigation of the hydrodynamic response of an aquaculture vessel

The hydrodynamic performance of a novel deep-sea aquaculture vessel is investigated by experimental and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) methods. The free decay motion in calm water and the motion response in regular waves under different filling conditions were analyzed. Two typical filling levels of 81.5% and 47.4% are considered. In addition, for the design filling level (81.5%), the inner-tank water was substituted with an equivalent solid weight to clarify the effect of sloshing. The uncertainty of model tests and numerical calculations was evaluated. The sloshing effect and filling level have significant effects on the natural period and Response Amplitude Operator (RAO) of roll motion but have limited effects on the natural period and RAO of pitch motion. The natural period of transverse sloshing of the tanks is small than half that of roll motion, the double-row tank arrangement scheme adopted by this vessel can reduce the coupling effect of sloshing and hull motion effectively. The study will contribute to the design of the aquaculture vessel.