This paper explores a novel concept in maritime vessels, known as the Submersible Surface Vessel (SSV), designed to meet the needs of specialized maritime missions. This innovative vessel combines the navigational advantages of both surface ships and underwater vehicles in its design, offering the capability to operate in surface, submerged, and semi-submerged states, thereby exhibiting superior maritime adaptability. With its exceptional flexibility and adaptability, the SSV is suitable for applications in information relay, three-dimensional maritime search and rescue, and environmental monitoring.
The study focuses on a slender type of SSV, using the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) method to investigate its resistance components in both surface and submerged states. The resistance components were compared with those of the standard ship models DTMB 5415 and SUBOFF-B, highlighting the differences and elucidating the characteristics of this SSV design. In terms of surface navigation resistance, the SSV model, compared to the DTMB5415 model, exhibits a minor abrupt change in resistance at Froude number =0.28∼0.38. This paper analyzes the issue, attributing it to the deck wetting caused by the vessel's low freeboard. To address this, the initial center of gravity position was adjusted, effectively reducing the additional frictional resistance coefficient caused by deck wetting by about 12.3%. The study also analyzes the increase in residual resistance due to the longitudinal position change of the center of gravity affecting the vessel's posture.
The Submersible Surface Vessel (SSV) is a new concept vessel that combines the advantages of both surface ships and underwater vehicles. It offers high speed and excellent wave resistance when navigating on the surface and has the capability to submerge underwater in rough seas to avoid risks. Therefore, it has a unique advantage in executing all-weather, cross-domain missions, attracting attention from various countries.
According to existing literature, SSVs mainly fall into two categories: displacement vessels and non-displacement vessels. Displacement vessels are characterized by large displacement, strong endurance, and suitability for complex sea conditions, but their downside is poor lateral stability and less flexible state transitions. Examples of this type include DCNS (2014, France) launching the SMX-25 concept vessel and JFD (2023) developing the Shadow Seal vessel. SubSea Craft (2020,UK) produces the VICTA transport vessel, and STIDD (2015,USA) manufactures the MRCC transport vessel, both examples of non-displacement vessels, primarily planing boats. These vessels are characterized by their smaller scale, making them more flexible, but they have weaker endurance and poor resistance to wind and waves, limiting their application to inland rivers or nearshore areas.
This paper focuses on a slender type of displacement SSV, analyzing its resistance components in both surface and submerged states using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), and studying the issue of wave-making at high-speed surface navigation.
