After a period of technical research, equipment debugging and model processing, the first podded propeller performance test has been conducted in the cavitation tunnel. The ship model of this test is a roll-on passenger ship while the propulsion system is a pull-type podded propulsor consisting of two sets of pods and propellers.

Since large uncertainty existed in the thrust measurement of popped propeller in the past, the model and real ship torque coefficient method has been adopted in this test to determine the working condition of cavitation test. But in consideration of the fact that the podded propulsion was conducted for the first time in the cavitation tunnel, the cavitation test based on the equal thrust coefficient method has also been carried out for comparison of test results.

This test has solved the technical problems of the power transmission between podded propulsor dynamometer and the motor, video camera arrangement of cavitation observation, waterproofness of measuring equipment, and successfully worked out a set of observation method for podded propulsor hydrodynamic measurement and cavitation morphology, providing technical and hardware support for the future investigation and tests of the relative podded propulsors.