Hydrodynamic efficiency of partially immersed caissons supported on piles

The efficiency of the breakwater, which consists of caissons supported on two or three rows of piles, was studied using physical models. The efficiency of the breakwater is presented as a function of the transmission, reflection and the wave energy dissipation coefficients. Regular waves with wide ranges of wave heights and periods and constant water depth were used. Different characteristics of the caisson structure and the supporting pile system were also tested. It was found that, the transmission coefficient (k_t) decreases with increasing the relative breakwater draft D/L, increasing the relative breakwater width B/h, and decreasing the piles gap-diameter ratio G/d. It is possible to achieve k_t values less than 0.25 when D/L≥0.1. The reflection coefficient takes the opposite trend especially when D/L≤0.15. The proposed breakwater dissipates about 10-25% of the incident wave energy. Also, simple empirical equations are developed for estimating the wave transmission and reflection. In addition, the proposed breakwater model is efficient compared with other floating breakwaters.     

A study of spar buoy floating breakwater

A floating breakwater produces less environmental impact, but is easily destroyed by large waves. In this paper, the spar buoy floating breakwater is introduced with a study on the wave reflection and transmission characteristics and mooring line tension induced by the waves. Mei (The Applied Dynamics of Ocean Surface Waves, Wiley, New York (1983) 740 p) proposed a theoretical solution for the reflection and transmission coefficients as the wave propagates through a one-layer slotted barrier. For a multiple-layer fence system, the analytical solution is proposed linearly. The results show that the theoretical computations agree well with the experimental trends. For a multiple-layer fence system, the transmission coefficients become maximal as the layer spacing to wavelength ratio moves to 1/2. Conversely, the coefficients become minimal, as the ratio moves to 0.3. To estimate the maximum tension of the mooring line, both numerical calculations and laboratory experiments were executed. The numerical calculation results were similar to the experimental results.     

A Numerical Investigation of the Reduction of Solitary Wave Runup by A Row of Vertical Slotted Piles

To improve the current understanding of the reduction of tsunami-like solitary wave runup by the pile breakwater on a sloping beach, we developed a 3D numerical wave tank based on the CFD tool OpenFOAM in this study. The Navier Stokes equations were applied to solve the two-phase incompressible flow, combined with an LES model to solve the turbulence and a VOF method to capture the free surface. The adopted model was firstly validated with existing empirical formulas for solitary wave runup on the slope without the pile structure. It is then validated using our new laboratory observations of the free surface elevation, the velocity and the pressure around a row of vertical slotted piles subjected to solitary waves, as well as the wave runup on the slope behind the piles. Subsequently, a set of numerical simulations were implemented to analyze the wave reflection, the wave transmission, and the shoreline runup with various offshore wave heights, offshore water depths, adjacent pile spaces and beach slopes. Finally, an improved empirical equation accounting for the maximum wave runup on the slope was proposed by taking the presence of the pile breakwater into consideration.     

Wave reflection and transmission by curtainwall–pile breakwaters using circular piles

This paper presents a mathematical model which computes the hydrodynamic characteristics of a curtainwall–pile breakwater (CPB) using circular piles, by modifying the model developed for rectangular piles by Suh et al. [2006. Hydrodynamic characteristics of pile-supported vertical wall breakwaters. Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal and Ocean Engineering 132(2), 83–96]. To examine the validity of the model, laboratory experiments have been conducted for CPB with various values of draft of curtain wall, spacing between piles, and wave height and period. Comparisons between measurement and prediction show that the mathematical model adequately reproduces most of the important features of the experimental results. The mathematical model based on linear wave theory tends to over-predict the reflection coefficient as the wave height increases. As the draft of the curtain wall increases and the porosity between piles decreases, the reflection and transmission coefficient increases and decreases, respectively, as expected. As the relative water depth increases, however, the effect of porosity disappears because the wave motion is minimal in the lower part of a water column for short waves.     

Wave interaction with one or two rows of closely spaced rectangular cylinders

Experimental results are reported on the wave reflection from and transmission through one row or two rows of closely spaced rectangular cylinders. An empirical expression is proposed for the friction factor which models the head loss due to closely spaced rectangular cylinders. Algebraic expressions are presented to calculate the reflection and transmission coefficients of regular waves for a single slotted wall or double slotted walls. The model is validated by the published and present experimental results. The proposed method can be used for the preliminary design of slotted-wall breakwaters.     

Closed-form solutions for wave reflection and transmission by vertical slotted barrier

In this paper, we introduce the closed-form solution developed by Kim in 1998 for calculating the reflection and transmission coefficients of a vertical slotted barrier, which is not well known because it is presented in his thesis. It is then compared with other closed-form solutions developed by different authors. It is shown that all the solutions give a wrong result for long waves, i.e., large reflection and small transmission. It is also shown that the inertia term is important for intermediate-depth and deep water waves so that the solution including the inertial effect gives better prediction than those neglecting the inertial effect. The accuracy of the existing closed-form solutions is not satisfactory, even though they have been developed based on fundamental fluid mechanics principles. We propose a hybrid solution several parameters of which are based on empirical formulas. The hybrid solution better predicts the reflection and transmission coefficients than the existing solutions. Moreover, it gives a correct result, i.e., small reflection and large transmission, for long waves.     

A three-point method for estimating wave reflection of obliquely incident waves over a sloping bottom

A three-point method for estimating wave reflection is proposed to account for monochromatic oblique incident waves propagating over a sloping beach. The amplitudes of reflected wave and incident wave are separated using wave amplitudes measured at three fixed wave gauges with a distance. The applicability of the theory is verified by comparing the simulated results with the available theoretical, numerical and experimental results for the estimation of wave reflection. The sensitivity is also tested to provide a more accurate prediction of the reflection coefficient.     

Hydrodynamic characteristics of a single-row pile breakwater

The present paper extends the impedance analytical method to the study of the interaction of regular plane waves with a row of rectangular piles. The dissipative energy is estimated from the flow resistance for the row of piles. Formulas of wave reflection and transmission coefficients and the wave force for the row of piles are derived. Predictions obtained using the present model agree with experimental data in the literature.     

Hydrodynamic pressures and forces on quadrant front face pile supported breakwater

Quadrant front face pile supported breakwater is a combination of semicircular and closely spaced pile breakwaters which couples the advantages of these two types. This type of structure consists of two parts. The bottom portion consists of closely spaced piles and the top portion consists of a quadrant solid front face on the seaside. The leeward side of the top portion with a vertical face would facilitate the berthing of vessels. An experimental investigation on this breakwater model in a wave flume is carried out for three water depths. For each water depth, three different spacings between the piles were adopted for the investigation. The dynamic pressures exerted along the quadrant front face due to regular waves were measured. The variation of dimensionless pressures with respect to scattering parameter for different gap ratio (spacing between the piles/diameter of pile) and for relative pile depth (water depth/pile height) are presented and discussed. In addition, the dimensionless total forces exerted on the breakwater model as well as its reflection characteristics as a function of scattering parameter are reported.     

Wave reflection from partially perforated-wall caisson breakwater

In 1995, Suh and Park developed a numerical model that computes the reflection of regular waves from a fully perforated-wall caisson breakwater. This paper describes how to apply this model to a partially perforated-wall caisson and irregular waves. To examine the performance of the model, existing experimental data are used for regular waves, while a laboratory experiment is conducted in this study for irregular waves. The numerical model based on a linear wave theory tends to over-predict the reflection coefficient of regular waves as the wave nonlinearity increases, but such an over-prediction is not observed in the case of irregular waves. For both regular and irregular waves, the numerical model slightly over- and under-predicts the reflection coefficients at larger and smaller values, respectively, because the model neglects the evanescent waves near the breakwater.     

Interaction of flexural gravity waves with shear current in shallow water

In the present study, the effect of shear current on the propagation of flexural gravity waves is analyzed under the assumptions of linearized shallow-water theory. Explicit expressions for the reflection and transmission coefficients associated with flexural gravity wave scattering by a step discontinuity in both water depth and current speed are derived. Further, trapping and scattering of flexural gravity waves by a jet-like shear current with a top-hat profile are examined and certain limiting conditions for the waves to exist are derived. The effects of change in water depth, current speed, incident wavelength and the angle of incidence on the group and phase velocities as well as on the reflection and transmission characteristics are analyzed through different numerical results.     

Wave interactions with multiple-row curtainwall-pile breakwaters

In this study, a mathematical model has been developed that can compute various hydrodynamic characteristics of a multiple-row curtainwall-pile breakwater. To examine the validity of the developed model, laboratory experiments have been conducted for double- and triple-row breakwaters with various combinations of drafts of curtain walls, porosities between piles, and distances between rows. Comparisons between measurement and prediction show that the mathematical model adequately reproduces most of the important features of the experimental results. As a whole, the transmission coefficient decreases with an increase in relative water depth, whereas the reflection coefficient, normalized run-up and force exhibit an opposite trend in their variations. With fixed values of the draft of the curtain wall and the porosity of lower perforated part of the first row of a double-row breakwater, as these values of the second row increase and decrease, respectively, the transmission coefficient decreases, as expected. On the other hand, their effects on wave reflection, run-up, and wave force change with the relative depth. As for the distance between the rows, the transmission coefficient becomes a maximum when it is about one half of the wave length, suggesting that this condition should be avoided to achieve the advantage of the breakwater in reducing wave transmission. It is shown that for prototype breakwaters, on an average, the transmission coefficient would be smaller than 0.3 for wave periods less than 6.0 s, and it would be about 0.45 even for the wave period of 9.0 s, although there would be a variation depending on the geometry of the breakwater. It is also shown that wave transmission is significantly reduced by multiple-row breakwaters compared with a single-row breakwater, while the difference between double-row and triple-row breakwaters is marginal. Finally, engineering monograms are provided for double-row breakwaters to be used in practical engineering applications of the breakwaters.     

Wave kinematics of partial reflection from a vertical wall

A third-order perturbation approximation for the partial reflection from a vertical wall is presented in this paper. The wave parameters are expressed in terms of the amplitude of incident waves. The reflection coefficient is defined as the ratio of the height of reflected waves to incident waves. The numerical results demonstrate the significant influences of reflected coefficient on the wave profile and wave frequency bifurcation. For example, the critical angle of wave frequency bifurcation with partial reflection is about 7.5 degrees, not 21 degrees as reported previously for fully reflection.     

Hydrodynamic behavior of curtainwall-pile breakwaters

A numerical model is developed that can predict the interaction of regular waves normally incident upon a curtainwall-pile breakwater; the upper part of which is a vertical wall and the lower part consists of an array of vertical piles. The numerical model is based on an eigenfunction expansion method, and utilizes a boundary condition nearby the vertical piles that accounts for wave energy dissipation. Numerical solution comprises a finite number of terms, which is a superposition of propagating waves and a series of evanescent waves. The modeling is validated by comparison with previous experimental studies and overall agreement between measurement and calculation is fairly good. The numerical results are related to reflection, transmission, and dissipation coefficient; wave run-up, wave force, and wave overturning moment are also presented. Effect of porosity, relative draft, and relative water depth are discussed; the choice of suitable range of them is described. The relative draft is more effective for shallow water waves. Model shows decrease in relative draft and leads to reduction of relative wave force, overturning moment, and runup. It is shown that curtainwall-pile breakwaters can operate both effectively and efficiently in the range of relative draft between 0.15 and 0.75. The range 0.5 to 0.2 is also recommended for porosity.     

Hydrodynamic performance of double rows of piles suspending horizontal c shaped bars

The wave transmission, reflection, and energy dissipation of the double rows of vertical piles suspending horizontal steel C shaped bars are experimentally and theoretically studied under normal regular waves. Different wave and structural parameters are investigated e.g. the wave length, the C shaped bars draft and spacing, the supporting piles diameter and spacing, and the space between the double rows. Also, the theoretical model based on an eigenfunction expansion method is developed to study the hydrodynamic breakwater performance. In order to examine the validity of the theoretical model, the theoretical results are compared with the experimental and theoretical results obtained by different authors. Comparison between experiments and predictions showed that theoretical model provides a good estimate to the different hydrodynamic coefficients when the friction factors of the upper and the lower parts are f_U = 1.5 and f_L = 0.75. The present breakwater physical model gives efficiency near other similar systems of different shapes.     

Scattering of oblique waves by permeable vertical flexible membrane wave barriers

The interaction of obliquely incident surface gravity waves with a vertical flexible permeable submerged membrane wave barrier is investigated in the context of three-dimensional linear water wave theory. From the general formulation of the submerged membrane barrier, the performance of bottom-standing, surface-piercing and fully extended membrane wave barriers are analyzed for various values of wave and structural parameters. The analytic solution of the physical problem is obtained using eigenfunction expansion method and a coupled boundary element-finite difference method has been used to get the numerical solution. In the boundary element method, since the boundary condition on the membrane barrier is not known a priori, the membrane response and velocity potentials are solved simultaneously using appropriate discretization with the help of finite difference scheme. The convergence of the analytic and numerical solution techniques is discussed. The study reveals that for suitable combination of wave and structural parameters, approximately (45–50)% incident wave energy can be dissipated irrespective of membrane barrier configurations. Further, in certain situations, nearly full wave reflection and zero transmission occur for all barrier configurations. The study will be useful in the design of flexible permeable membrane to act as an effective wave barrier for creation of tranquility zone in the marine environment.     

Wave interaction with twin plate wave barrier

The wave transmission and reflection characteristics and wave induced pressures on single surface plate and twin plate barriers were investigated experimentally for a wide range of wave heights and periods in regular and random waves. Seven different spacing between the plates were tested. It is found in general, hydrodynamically the twin plate is better than the single surface plate to reduce the wave transmission and increase the wave reflection. It is found that the transmission coefficient of twin plate reduced from 0.8 to 0.3 when the relative plate width is increased from 0.18 to 0.84. Transmission coefficient of twin plate barrier shows oscillating behavior, when relative plate width is increased due to blocking and pumping effect. The reflection coefficient increased from 0.25 to 0.65, when the relative width of the plate is increased from 0.18 to 0.84. The increase in spacing between the plates was also found to increase the reflection coefficient. The transmission coefficient, K_t for 98% probability of non-exceedence was found to be minimum and is about 0.60 when the relative spacing between the plate is about 0.12, compared to K_t=0.76 for single surface plate. The reflection coefficient for 98% probability of non-exceedence was found to exceed 0.66 for single surface plate, whereas it is 0.73 for twin plate with relative spacing of about 0.40. From the investigation with wide range of input parameters, it is found that the twin plate barrier needs to be designed for highest 98% pressure ratio of 2.0, which is equal to the static pressure induced by the design incident wave height.     

Wave interaction with a wave absorbing double curtain-wall breakwater

This study examines the hydrodynamic performance of a wave absorbing double curtain-wall breakwater. The breakwater consists of a seaward perforated wall and a shoreward impermeable wall. Both walls extend from above the seawater to some distance above the seabed. Then the below gap allows the seawater exchange, the sediment transport and the fish passage. By means of the eigenfunction expansion method and a least square approach, a linear analytical solution is developed for the interaction of water waves with the breakwater. Then the reflection coefficient, the transmission coefficient and the wave forces acting on the walls are calculated. The numerical results obtained for limiting cases agree very well with previous predictions for a single partially immersed impermeable wall, the double partially immersed impermeable walls and the bottom-standing Jarlan-type breakwater. The predicted reflection coefficients for the present breakwater also agree reasonable with previous experimental results. Numerical results show that with appropriate structure parameters, the reflection and transmission coefficients of the breakwater may be both below 0.5 at a wide range of the relative water depth. At the same time, the magnitude of wave force acting on each wall is small. This is significant for practical engineering.     

Laboratory investigation on wave transmission through two rows of perforated hollow piles

Experimental investigations on perforated hollow piles in two rows were conducted in a two dimensional wave flume. The influence of water depth, incident wave steepness, clear spacing between the piles and the spacing of pile rows on transmission coefficient have been studied. The effect of staggering of piles in rows is investigated. The results are also compared with the results of experiments on piles without perforations. The investigations have revealed that perforated piles attenuate more wave energy than non-perforated piles. The transmission coefficient K_t decreases as the wave steepness increases for both non-perforated and perforated piles. For non-perforated piles as relative clear spacing between the piles (b/D) decreases, for waves of higher steepness, K_t decreases while for perforated piles as b/D decreases, K_t is decreasing for all the steepness considered. As the relative clear spacing between the pile rows (B/D) increases K_t initially decreases till B/D is around one and later it starts increasing for both non-perforated and perforated piles. Staggering of piles has little effect on K_t. It is also found that water depth has insignificant influence on transmission coefficient at higher steepness for both perforated and non-perforated piles. Wave period alone does not directly influence transmission coefficient K_t.     

Investigation of Π-type breakwaters performance under regular and irregular waves

In this paper, performance of solid and perforated Π-type breakwaters was investigated experimentally. Both regular and irregular waves were used during testing. Four depths of immersions were selected for each breakwater and wave type. Different wave groups were generated over these breakwaters, and the transmission, reflection and energy-dissipation characteristics were determined. The results of the experimental study were evaluated and some empirical expressions based on the results were suggested to define the transmission, reflection and energy-dissipation coefficients for different immersion depths of solid and perforated breakwaters under regular and irregular waves. Moreover, performance of solid and perforated Π-type breakwaters were compared with that of solid and perforated U-type breakwaters investigated by Günaydın and Kabdaşlı [2006. Performance of solid and perforated U-type breakwaters under regular and irregular waves. Ocean Engineering 31, 1377–1405]. These comparisons showed that the most reasonable model and wave type are selected to determine requiring performance parameters.