Fluid dynamic modeling collaboration

It is a huge buyer's market out there Johannes - and remember these are just asking prices, which are probably overly optimistic.
You need to be ruthless, and submit what might seem a ridiculously low offer if you see a boat that appeals to you.
But make the offer subject to passing a satisfactory survey - get a professional to assess the state of the hull (and everything else) for you.
And read up about it as well - there is a LOT of info out there.
You could start off here -
Yacht Survey Online: Buying, Owning, Maintaining a Boat or Yacht by David Pascoe, Marine Surveyor(Retired) https://www.yachtsurvey.com/
If you are still keen on boats after reading Mr Pascoe's articles of doom and gloom then congratulations - but be aware that all of the things mentioned by David can happen, and have happened - hence why he is reporting on them. Be careful.

Re an inboard engine, it should not require more expensive maintenance, and a well maintained diesel engine in a yacht should easily be capable of reaching 5,000+ hours of usage with routine maintenance. If you use it for perhaps 100 hours a year (which is a lot) it will last 50 years - but you will then need to replace parts due to age rather than usage.
Perhaps more importantly, a 30 hp diesel engine in a 35' sailing yacht is going to be a LOT more effective in pushing the boat than a 30 hp O/B motor attached to a bracket on the transom. The propeller of the O/B motor will be resembling an egg beater, and not doing an awful lot to help push the boat forwards. And if you have to make way in a head sea, forget it. When the boat pitches, the propeller will probably come out of the water - and that is not good.

Am thinking I will then purchase a second-hand one. So, if anybody has a high-impact application for CFD which could be published (in a journal), then I might consider to code it (if it appears feasible). The DIY aspect on my side I would then satisfy by considering to make smaller auxiliaries, maybe portable fuel tanks (I don't like to run out of fuel in the Indian ocean), though probably these are likely as well more conveniently obtained off-the-shelf, anything incremental that makes sense to be custom made, or maybe building a self-righting dinghy that can be transported with the Yacht. Long term I was also fantasizing about an unmanned solar self-righting dinghy with Arduino control to stoichally follow the Yacht to carry additional fuel or as an additional life raft.
Probably that is precluded in some territorial waters. Maybe the yacht could carry the Arduino-controlled dinghy into international waters and then offload it to be lighter. I wonder whether it would have to have its own AIS.

I looked at the significant wave height forecasts for ocean wave climates. As also larger waves can occur with a certain probability, I wonder about the utility of a self-righting dinghy as a lifeboat.
"By 2007, it was further proven via satellite radar studies that waves with crest to trough heights of 20 ... to 30 metres (98 ft), occur far more frequently than previously thought. It is now known that rogue waves occur in all of the world's oceans many times each day." [Wiki]
I do not anticipate such skyscraper waves but wonder about a relative rogue event with e.g. a twofold-height in a sea state with e.g. 2 to 3 m significant wave heights.

TANSL said:

Perhaps I am wrong and I am not approaching the issue well but, considering that fluid dynamics studies are only a small part of the calculations and studies necessary to design a yacht, and that in many cases these studies are not necessary, I don't know if the exchange you propose is fair. I don't want you to be upset, I have a very high regard for those studies, but, as I say, perhaps the proportion is not adequate.
Regardless of whether my opinion is correct or not, if I can help you in the design of your yacht, in exchange for something else, I will gladly do so.

Click to expand...

I don't know anything about CFD, but I hope that you can find a situation or application where you can apply your skills in this field.

Re your proposed yacht, again you are over-thinking this enormously re the 'dangers' and the safety equipment.

This family crossed the Indian Ocean very happily and safely on their 25' yacht, and they did not have a self righting lifeboat -
https://www.goodoldboat.com/pdfs/JF05MartinDream.pdf

Building a dinghy for your yacht is an excellent idea - but you are not going to find any that are 'self righting' - they all need human intervention to right them.
There are literally hundreds of good and well proven plans out there for dinghies.

If you are very keen on a combination dinghy and lifeboat, have a look at the Portland Pudgy - you would have to find a yacht that would have room to stow her on deck easily though.
Dinghy | Rowboat | Lifeboat | Dinghy Sailboat | Dinghy Motor https://portlandpudgy.com/
If deck space is limited there are some 'nesting' dinghy designs that are in two parts, and the bow section stows inside the stern section - so a 10' dinghy might only take up about 5'6" of length on deck.

wave size isn't the problem, it's the weather that creates big waves and the danger of one breaking at just the wrong moment over you. I'm with Bajansailor, don't over think it. My approach would be to go small and make it safe. A drone life raft is a great fanciful idea, but you may get more value out of making sure your primary vessel is also your life raft.