In the present study, an experimental investigation of the decay of the maximum velocity and its turbulent characteristics behind a ship propeller, in ＂bollard pull＂ condition （zero speed of advance）, is reported. Velocity measurements were performed in laboratory by use of a Laser Doppler Anemometry （LDA） measurement system. Earlier researchers described that the maximum axial velocity is constant at the initial stage of a ship＇s propeller jet （Fuehrer and Romisch, 1977; Blaauw and van de Kaa, 1978; Berger et al, 1981; Verhey, 1983） as reported in a pure water jet （Albertson et al., 1950; Lee et al., 2002; Dai, 2005）, but a number of researchers disagreed with the constant velocity assumption. The present study found that the maximum axial velocity decays in the zone of flow establishment and the zone of established flow with different rates. The investigation provides an insight into the decays of both the maximum velocity and the maximum turbulent fluctuation in axial, tangential and radial components and the decay of the maximum turbulent kinetic energy. Empirical equations are proposed to allow coastal engineers to estimate the jet characteristics from a ship＇s propeller.
