Objectives Cavitation, as one of the most important noise sources around propellers, significantly enhances far-field radiated noise and brings many adverse effects. To effectively suppress propeller cavitation noise, it is necessary to carry out research on its noise characteristics and sound generation mechanism.

Method In this study, the cavitation noise around a PPTC propeller is simulated using a large eddy simulation (LES) combined with the permeable Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings (PFW-H) equation, focusing on the effect of cavitation on the spectral characteristics of far-field noise and the cavitation noise generation mechanism.

Results The predicted hydrodynamic results agree well with the experimental data. It is found that there is a significant periodicity in the evolution of both the sheet cavity (SC) and tip vortex cavity (TVC) around the propeller, thus both contribute high intensity dominant frequency noise. SC evolves with incipient and collapsing processes which are accompanied by transient cavity volume variations, leading to an intensification of high-frequency broadband noise. TVC evolves with a volume rebound behavior which induces high-intensity continuous acoustic pressure pulsations and thus induces significant noise peaks at frequencies above the dominant frequency.

Conclusion This paper provides a theoretical basis for the proposal and implementation of propeller cavitation noise control strategies in engineering.