Numerical simulation of fish swimming with rigid pectoral fins

The numerical simulation of the self-propelled motion of a fish with a pair of rigid pectoral fins is presented. A Navier-Stokes equation solver incorporating with the multi-block and overset grid method is developed to deal with the multi-body and moving body problems. The lift-based swimming mode is selected for the fin motion. In the lift-based swimming mode, the fin can generate great thrust and at the same time have no generation of lift force. It can be found when a pair of rigid pectoral fins generates the hydrodynamic moment, it may also generate a lateral force opposite to the centripetal direction, which has adverse effect on the turn motion of the fish. Furthermore, the periodic vortex structure generation and shedding, and their effects on the generation of hydrodynamic force are also demonstrated in this article.