Measurements and visualization in the flowfield behind a model propeller

An experimental investigation of the flowfield behind a two-bladed propeller was conducted by using both smoke-wire flow visualization and hot-wire anemometer techniques. The mean-time and the ensemble-averaged distributions and velocity unsteadiness data were obtained. The results revealed the tip-vortex formation mechanism and the reverse flow in the outer region of the flowfield as well as a strong defect in the dow directly behind the blades. High unsteadiness was found within the blade wake, while much lower values were observed with the increasing distance downstream of the wake region. Also, the transformation of the core-flow from a jet-like to a wake-like flow and the influences of hub-vortex shedding into the wake were reported.