Cavitation Number As a Function of Disk Cavitator Radius: A Numerical Analysis of Natural Supercavitation

Due to the greater viscosity and density of water compared to air, the maximum speed of underwater travel is severely limited compared to other methods of transportation. However, a technology called supercavitation — which uses a disk-shaped cavitator to envelop a vehicle in a bubble of steam — promises to greatly decrease skin friction drag. While a large cavitator enables the occurrence of supercavitation at low velocities, it adds substantial drag at higher speeds. Based on CFD results, we propose a new relationship between drag coefficient and disk cavitator radius, and we predict the optimum cavitator radius for a particular torpedo design.