A design tool for predicting the flow past submerged hydrofoils is described, intended to give the designer guidelines in estimating efficiency of alternative hydrofoil configurations in motion at arbitrary Froude number below the free surface. A complete set of hydrodynamic characteristics may be evaluated, stored and represented by simple and exhaustive diagrams for each hydrofoil. The flow is simulated numerically by a finite number of singularities positioned along the foil's camber line. The exact free-surface boundary condition is replaced by a linearized condition since eventual inaccuracies in results may be not so relevant in many engineering applications. Numerical results of the performance characteristics are given for a NACA 16-012 symmetrical wing section which is particularly suitable for high-speed hydrofoil applications because of its low cavitation number.
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