On application of three-dimensional linearized potential-flow model for shallow-water planing

Hydrodynamics of planing hulls is affected by proximity to the seabed floor in shallow waters. In this study, a three-dimensional steady linearized model based on the potential theory is applied to model flat planing surfaces at finite water depth and finite Froude numbers. Modeling results for shallow waters agree with experimental data in the subcritical and supercritical regimes sufficiently far from the critical speed that corresponds to the depth Froude number of unity. At the critical speed, nonlinear and unsteady effects become important, and a different modeling approach is required.