Structural optimization and drag reduction research of biomimetic hydrofoils inspired by pufferfish

Abstract The underwater glider will be subjected to fluid resistance during operation, which greatly reduces its endurance and fuel conversion efficiency. Therefore, reducing its surface fluid resistance is an effective way to improve its working capacity and reduce energy consumption. With the development of bionics, people begin to learn various functional surfaces. In this paper, inspired by pufferfish, the tiny spinal protrusions of pufferfish are simplified into microstructure and arranged on NACA0012 airfoil for research. The performance of the bionic microstructure is affected by many factors. The orthogonal test is designed to optimize its structure to evaluate the influence of different heights, bottom radius, arrangement position, and arrangement spacing on the resistance of the hydrofoil. The SST k-ω turbulence model is used for numerical simulation. The bionic hydrofoil has a drag reduction effect of about 6.05 %, which means that the bionic microstructure will be further optimized in the future to be applied to other airfoils.