The Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tools needed to incorporate viscous effects into design trade­off studies have finally matured to the point where practical guidance can be provided within design cycle tum-around times. The required techniques are known as Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) solvers, and saw their first practical application to yacht design during America's Cup XXX. The team of America One, for example, utilized RANS for upwind sail design and VPP aerodynamic force predictions. RANS was also used in the keel design process, and to provide "virtual prototyping" for investigating new concepts before building them. This paper presents some of these groundbreaking applications, and demonstrates the types of guidance available to the designer using RANS.

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