WATERJET PROPULSION FOR FAST CRAFT - OPTIMIZED INTEGRATION OF HULL AND PROPULSOR

This paper examines the challenges associated with the correct selection of waterjet propulsors for a vessel designed to perform a given mission or meet a set of specific operational requirements. When the primary purpose of a proposed new ship has been defined in terms of payload, range, speed, endurance, sea state and other environmental factors, the ship design proceeds as an iterative process to define the optimum hull geometric parameters, the optimum propulsor type and size, the internal arrangements, auxiliary equipment and many other important features. The object of the exercise is to arrive at the ship design which best meets the requirements of the mission with the minimum financial outlay and the maximum economic return. The use of a whole-ship design integration tool is described to show how the above objective is achieved with waterjets and the chosen method of propulsion.