• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.475-485
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• 2014

Seawater flow characteristics around a manganese nodule mining device in deep sea were analyzed through numerical investigation. The mining device influences the seawater flow field with complicated velocity distributions, and they are largely dependent on the seawater flow speed, device moving speed, and injection velocity from the collecting part. The flow velocity and turbulent kinetic energy distributions are compared at several positions from the device rear, side, and top, and it is possible to predict the distance from which the mining device affects the seawater flow field through the variation of turbulent kinetic energy. With the operation of the collecting device the turbulent kinetic energy remarkably increases, and it gradually decreases along the seawater flow direction. Turbulent kinetic energy behind the mining system increases with the seawater flow velocity. The transient behavior of nodule particles, which are not collected, is also predicted. This study will be helpful in creating an optimal design for a manganese nodule collecting device that can operate efficiently and which is eco-friendly.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.136-146
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• 2020

In this study, numerical simulations are used to analyze the effect of the south breakwater and weir on seawater flow change and circulation within the Gamcheon port. Flow patterns in the eastern direction are particularly affected by the breakwater during the ebb tide and current velocity is slightly reduced by construction of the weir. Additionally, seawater circulation is reduced by both features. In order to increase seawater circulation, a seawater flux structure is needed on the west breakwater. A weir-type structure will be more efficient than a seawater flux culvert.

• Journal of Korean Society of Coastal and Ocean Engineers
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.77-83
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• 2012

Numerical analyses through Computational Fluid Dynamics have been performed to investigate the seawater flow field characteristics for various shrouds used in horizontal axis tidal current turbine systems. Seawater flow characteristics are largely influenced under constant tidal current velocity by the shroud geometry and there is considerable difference in fluid velocity distributions around the shrouds. Especially the location and magnitude of maximum seawater flow velocity directly affect turbine performance for power generation. For the cylinder-diffuser type shroud system whose cylinder and diffuser parts have the same length accelerated flow region is formed in the overall cylinder part while maximum velocity in the nozzle-diffuser type whose nozzle and diffuser parts have the same length with symmetry, locally appears near the minimum sectional area. In case of cylinder-diffuser type shroud fluid velocity increases rather high compared with current velocity. And fluid velocity at the centerline gradually increases from the entrance, and then decreases rapidly after reaching a peak close to the middle of the cylinder part unlike the nozzle-diffuser while there is not much variation near the rear of the shroud. These results of the seawater flow characteristics with various shroud geometries can be applied to optimal design for the development of efficient tidal current power generation systems.

• Journal of Korean Society of Coastal and Ocean Engineers
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.242-252
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• 2018

It is well known that an Oscillating Water Column Wave Energy Converter (OWC-WEC) is one of the most efficient wave absorber equipment. This device transforms the vertical motion of water column in the air chamber into the air flow velocity and produces electricity from the driving force of turbine as represented by the Wells turbine. Therefore, in order to obtain high electric energy, it is necessary to amplify the water surface vibration by inducing resonance of the piston mode in the water surface fluctuation in the air chamber. In this study, a new type of OWC-WEC with a seawater channel is used, and the wave deformation by the structure, water surface fluctuation in the air chamber, air outflow velocity from the nozzle and seawater flow velocity in the seawater channel are evaluated by numerical analysis in detail. The numerical analysis model uses open CFD code OLAFLOW model based on multi-phase analysis technique of Navier-Stokes solver. To validate model, numerical results and existing experimental results are compared and discussed. It is revealed within the scope of this study that the air flow velocity at nozzle increases as the Ursell number becomes larger, and the air velocity that flows out from the inside of the air chamber is larger than the velocity of incoming air into the air chamber.

• Journal of Power System Engineering
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.63-68
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• 2014

The numerical analysis of fluid flow in the tube cleaning system is examined. The working flow used in this study is seawater, and the temperature change is not considered as the temperature change of seawater in the tube cleaning system is negligible. Also, the analysis is performed under the assumption of steady state. The screens of complicated morphologies are simplified for the analysis, and only one fourth of the tube cleaning system is modeled as the system has a symmetrical shape. The velocity inlet boundary condition is employed for the seawater inlet, whereas the outflow boundary condition is employed for two seawater outlets. In applying the outflow boundary condition for the system with more than two outlets, the flow rate can be arbitrarily assigned. In the analysis, the finite-volume method based numerical analysis tool, the pressure based solver, the standard k-$\varepsilon$ model are utilized, and the under relaxation factor is modified appropriately. From the analysis, the distribution of velocity vectors, pressure and path lines are obtained, and the physical characteristics of fluid flow in the tube cleaning system is well-examined.

• Journal of the Society of Naval Architects of Korea
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• v.59 no.1
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• pp.46-54
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• 2022

A magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) seawater propulsion thruster has been proposed to reduce propeller noise, propeller pitting, and vessel vibration originated from the propeller cavitation. The MHD thruster was also focused to overcome the limitation of propulsion velocity for the special purpose of marine ships. The research trends and key technologies in the worldwide leading countries are reviewed for the development of MHD propulsion thrusters in Korea. A small performance test device was developed firstly with a conventional solenoid magnet of ≤0.6 Tesla and a helical-type cylindrical duct(inner diameter of 5 cm) of thruster. The artificial seawater was fabricated by a salt solution including a conductivity of 5~6 S/m. The measured flow velocity of artificial seawater in the test device was 0.03~0.42 m/s (0.06~0.84 Knot) with a magnetic field strength of 0.6 Tesla and the applied currents of 10~80 A including the change of anode materials. It was found that the flow direction of seawater was reversed by the directional change of applied current in the solenoid magnet.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.263-269
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• 2012

Copper alloys are commonly applied to ship's propellers, pumps and valves which are serviced in seawater due to their good castability and corrosion resistance. In the environment of high flow velocity, however, erosion damage predominates over corrosion damage. In particular, the cavitation in seawater environment accelerates surface damage to copper alloys, resulting in degradation of products and economic losses and also threatening safety. The surface was coated with WC-27NiCr by high velocity oxygen fuel(HVOF) spraying technique to attain durability and cavitation resistance of copper alloys under high velocity/pressure flow. The cavitation test was performed for the WC-27NiCr coating deposited by HVOF in seawater at the amplitude of $30{\mu}m$ with seawater temperature. The cavitation at $15^{\circ}C$ caused exfoliation of the coating layer in 17.5 hours while that of $25^{\circ}C$ caused the exfoliation in 12.5 hours. When the temperature of seawater was elevated to $25^{\circ}C$ from $15^{\circ}C$, more damage was induced by over 160%. Although WC-27NiCr has good durability, corrosion resistance and eletrochemical stability, the cavitation damage rate of the coating layer could remarkably increase at the elevated temperatures under cavitation environments.

• Journal of Korean Society of Coastal and Ocean Engineers
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.253-262
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• 2018

Oscillating Water Column (OWC) Wave Energy Converters (WEC) harness electricity through a Power-Take-Off (PTO) system from the induced-airflow by seawater oscillating inside a chamber. In general, an air chamber with a relatively small cross-sectional area is required compared to seawater chamber to obtain high-velocity air in the PTO system, and in order to simulate an accurate air flow rate in the air chamber, a three-dimensional study is required. In this study, the dynamic response of OWC-WEC that is equipped with the channel of seawater exchange for the case of irregular waves has been numerically studied. The open source CFD software, OLAFLOW for the simulation of wave dynamics to the openFOAM and FOAM-extend communities, was used to simulate the interaction between the device and irregular waves. Based on the numerical simulation results, we discussed the fluctuation characteristics of three dimensional air flow in the air-chamber, wave deformation around the structure and the seawater flow inside the channel of seawater exchange. The numerical results the maximum air flow velocity in the air-chamber increases as the Ursell value of the significant wave increases, and the velocity of airflow flowing out from the inside of air chamber to the outside is greater than the speed of flowing into the air chamber from the outside.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.288-295
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• 2020

This study investigated the erosion-corrosion characteristics of 5038-H321 aluminum alloy in a natural seawater solution through various electrochemical experiments and flow rate parameters. Cathodic polarization experiments were conducted at flow rates ranging from 4 to 12 knots. Considering the concentration polarization section representing a relatively low current density, the range of the potentiostatic experiment was determined to be -1.6 to -1.0 V. The potentiostatic experiment was conducted at various potentials for 180 minutes in seawater. After the experiment, the corrosion characteristics were evaluated by observing surface morphology and measuring surface roughness. As a result, as the applied potential was lower, the amount of calcareous deposits increased and the roughness tended to increase. On the other hand, it was confirmed that the roughness was larger in the static condition than the flow rate condition due to the influence of the flow velocity. Variations in the chemical composition with flow rate variations were analyzed by energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). In conclusion, the cathodic potential of AA5083-H321 in seawater was determined to be -1.0 V.

• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
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• v.45 no.6
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• pp.264-271
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• 2012

Due to the good corrosion resistance and machinability, copper alloy is commonly employed for shipbuilding, hydroelectric power and tidal power industries. The Cu alloy, however, has poor durability, and the seawater application at fast flow condition becomes vulnerable to cavitation damage leading to economic loss and risking safety. The HVOF(High Velocity Oxygen Fuel) thermal spray coating with WC-10Co4Cr were therefore introduced as a replacement for chromium or ceramic to minimize the cavitation damage and secure durablility under high-velocity and high-pressure fluid flow. Cavitation test was conducted in seawater at $15^{\circ}C$ and $25^{\circ}C$ with an amplitude of $30{\mu}m$ on HVOF WC-10Co4Cr coatings produced by thermal spray. The cavitation at $15^{\circ}C$ and $25^{\circ}C$ exposed the substrate in 12.5 hours and in 10 hours, respectively. Starting from 5 hours of cavitation, the coating layer continued to show damage by higher than 160% over time when the temperature of seawater was elevated from $15^{\circ}C$ to $25^{\circ}C$. Under cavitation environment, although WC-10Co4Cr has good wear resistance and durability, increase in temperature may accelerate the damage rate of the coating layer mainly due to cavitation damage.