Spray Cloud Formation Over Marine Vessels by a Water Breakup Model

Water breakup affects the variety of droplet sizes and velocities in a cloud of spray resulting from a sea wave striking a vessel bow. The Weber and Reynolds numbers of droplets are the main parameters for water breakup phenomena. “Stripping breakup” is a faster phenomenon than “bag breakup” and occurs at higher velocities and with larger diameters of droplets. A water breakup model employs droplet trajectories to develop a predictive model for the extent of spray cloud. The governing equations of breakup and trajectories of droplets are solved numerically. Stripping breakup is found as the major phenomenon in the process of the formation of wave-impact sea spray. Bag breakup acts as a complementary phenomenon to the stripping breakup. The extent of the spray as well as wet heights, for a Mediumsized Fishing Vessel (MFV), are obtained by numerical solutions. The results show that bag breakup occurs at higher heights. In addition, there is no breakup when droplets move over the deck.