Theoretical and experimental comparison between the resistance components of a fast catamarn in different configurations.

The investigation performed by the Authors represents the most recent development of a research presented in [1] and [2], in which the geometrical solutions of the hull have been obtained through an optimization process, made by using the CFD numerical methods. The most important result of this optimization was the wave resistance reduction, which arrived up to 20% of the total initial resistance. In this further process the hull catamaran model has been built and tested at the towing tanks of the Universities of Naples and Trieste. The results obtained in the numerical process have been compared with the experimental ones and the reliability of the numerical results will be proved. Then the numerical investigation has been extended further on, through a numerical process made by using the linear theories of the wave resistance and a general comparison between the results has been made