The Quicksilver World Water Speed Record Challenge
The quest to go faster on water has challenged both man and machine for centuries. Whether for trading, waging war, or simply winning a coveted trophy, the desire for higher speeds has been relentless down the ages.
Designing and building the fastest waterborne craft in history is not an easy task, but the Quicksilver team benefits from the accumulated experience of chief designer Ken Norris, who co-designed Campbell's legendary Bluebird.
The Quicksilver team is using Fluent's CFD software and expertise to optimize the design of its speed-record challenger. Fluent is a Technical Partner in the project, which is supported by over £1 million in sponsorship from British and multinational companies.
Windtunnel testing has provided some, but not enough, answers to the team's questions about how the craft will behave when it is traveling at very high speeds across the unpredictable surface of a large lake. There is a tendency for this type of craft to experience a "flip over" if stability is lost, even for a brief moment. The Quicksilver design team is particularly wary of vortices which can be shed from the forward part of the craft and then reattach themselves further back to cause unwelcome lift and instability. CFD studies are allowing the team to understand more fully the behavior of these vortices, and their interactions with the craft's hull at high speeds, prompting subtle - but significant - changes to the baseline design.
Lessons were learned from the fatal accident involving Donald Campbell in January 1967. With his and other lives having been lost in the past, the design of any new challenger for the World Water Speed Record must be rigorously tested, and FLUENT is playing a crucial role in this process.
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