Prediction of geometrical properties of perfect breaking waves on composite breakwaters

Breaking wave loads on coastal structures depend primarily on the type of wave breaking at the instant of impact. When a wave breaks on a vertical wall with an almost vertical front face called the “perfect breaking”, the greatest impact forces are produced. The correct prediction of impact forces from perfect breaking of waves on seawalls and breakwaters is closely dependent on the accurate determination of their configurations at breaking. The present study is concerned with the determination of the geometrical properties of perfect breaking waves on composite-type breakwaters by employing artificial neural networks. Using a set of laboratory data, the breaker crest height, h_b, breaker height, H_b, and water depth in front of the wall, d_w, from perfect breaking of waves on composite breakwaters are predicted using the artificial neural network technique and the results are compared with those obtained from linear and multi-linear regression models. The comparisons of the predicted results from the present models with measured data show that the h_b, H_b and d_w values, which represent the geometry of waves breaking directly on composite breakwaters, can be predicted more accurately by artificial neural networks compared to linear and multi-linear regressions.     

近破波作用下沉箱式防波堤运动特性的模型实验研究

对近破波作用下沉箱式防波堤的运动特性进行了模型实验研究。实验中测量了沉箱模型与基床的摩擦系数、基床刚度和阻尼系数;不同水位情况下作用于沉箱模型上的近破波波压力时程;近破波作用下沉箱模型的位移和转角响应时程等,并与数学模型计算结果进行了比较分析。实验结果表明,若沉箱的滑移力大于沉箱与基床间的摩擦力,在连续波浪作用下,沉箱将连续出现间歇式滑移运动,数学模型可较好地模拟这一运动过程。     

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.     

Verification of a VOF-based two-phase flow model for wave breaking and wave–structure interactions

The objective of the present study is to develop a volume of fluid (VOF)-based two-phase flow model and to discuss the applicability of the model to the simulation of wave–structure interactions. First, an overview of the development of VOF-type models for applications in the field of coastal engineering is presented. The numerical VOF-based two-phase flow model has been developed and applied to the simulations of wave interactions with a submerged breakwater as well as of wave breaking on a slope. Numerical results are then compared with laboratory experimental data in order to verify the applicability of the numerical model to the simulations of complex interactions of waves and permeable coastal structures, including the effects of wave breaking. It is concluded that the two-phase flow model with the aid of the advanced VOF technique can provide with acceptably accurate numerical results on the route to practical purposes.     

Surface tension effects on energy dissipation by small scale,experimental breaking waves

Much of the existing knowledge about breaking waves comes from physical model experiments scaled using Froude's law. A widely held assumption is that surface tension effects are not significant at typical laboratory scales and specifically for waves longer than 2 m. Since, however, smaller wavelengths are not untypical in small to medium scale laboratory facilities, a consideration of surface tension effects is indeed important. Although some emphasis has been given in the past, little is known regarding the importance of surface tension following impingement of the breaking-wave crest and especially on the overall energy dissipation by laboratory breaking waves.     

Performance of solid and perforated U-type breakwaters under regular and irregular waves

An experimental investigation of U-type breakwaters was carried out in a laboratory channel. Both regular and irregular waves were used during testing. Two types of breakwaters such as solid and perforated were studied to analyse the porosity effect of structures. In order to investigate performance of these breakwaters for different immersion depths, four depths of immersions of the solid and perforated breakwaters were selected. Different wave groups were generated over these breakwaters, and the transmission, reflection and energy dissipation characteristics of each breakwater were determined. Three coefficients such as transmission, reflection and energy dissipation coefficients, which were named as C_t, C_r, and C_l, respectively, were used during the evaluation of the test results. The most important parameters governing performance of these breakwaters were determined by using earlier investigations and experimental results. These parameters were expressed as a dimensionless group by using π theory. Based on the test results, empirical expressions were formulated to describe the C_t, C_r, and C_l for different immersion depths of solid and perforated breakwaters under regular and irregular waves.     

Dynamic response and sliding distance of composite breakwaters under breaking and non-breaking wave attack

Over the last 15 years improved awareness of wave impact induced failures has focused attention on the need to account for the dynamic response of maritime structures to wave impact load. In this work a non-linear model is introduced that allows evaluating the effective design load and the potential sliding of caisson breakwater subject to both pulsating and impulsive wave loads. The caisson dynamics is modelled using a time-step numerical method to solve numerically the equations of motion for a rigid body founded on multiple non-linear springs having both horizontal and vertical stiffness. The model is first shown to correctly describe the dynamics of caisson breakwaters subject to wave attack, including nonlinear features of wave–structure–soil interaction. Predictions of sliding distances by the new method are then compared with measurements from physical model tests, showing very good agreement with observations. The model succeeds in describing the physics that stands behind the process and is fast, accurate and flexible enough to be suitable for performance design of caisson breakwaters.     

Prediction of breaking waves with neural networks

The height of a wave at the time of its breaking, as well as the depth of water in which it breaks, are the two basic parameters that are required as input in design exercises involving wave breaking. Currently the designers obtain these values with the help of graphical procedures and empirical equations. An alternative to this in the form of a neural network is presented in this paper. The networks were trained by combining the existing deterministic relations with a random component. The trained network was validated with the help of fresh laboratory observations. The validation results confirmed usefulness of the neural network approach for this application. The predicted breaking height and water depth were more accurate than those obtained traditionally through empirical schemes. Introduction of a random component in network training was found to yield better forecasts in some validation cases.     

Laboratory study of deep-water breaking waves

In an attempt to elucidate the mechanics of deep-water wave breaking, a variety of breaking waves, including spilling and plunging waves, of different length scales and geometries was studied. The waves were generated through wave-wave interactions using wave packets with constant-steepness components, constant-amplitude components, and also components following the Pierson-Moskowitz distribution. Wave steepening prior to breaking were found to cause an increase in the high frequency spectral slope of the wave spectrum. The slopes were correlated to the type of breaking and the intensity of the breaking. The energy loss through breaking varied with the spectral characteristics of the wave packet. On the other hand, it was also noted that, irrespective of the wave packet, the losses were from the higher frequency end of the first harmonics.     

Numerical investigation on the dynamics of a vertical wall defenced by an offshore breakwater

The numerical and experimental investigations on the performance of an offshore-submerged breakwater in reducing the wave forces and wave run-up on vertical wall are presented. A two-dimensional finite-element model is employed to study the hydrodynamic performance of the submerged breakwater under the action of regular and random waves. The numerical prediction has been supported with experimental measurements. The wave forces and wave run-up on the vertical wall were measured for different breakwater configurations. The applicability of linear theoretical model in the prediction of wave forces on the wall by a submerged breakwater has been discussed.     

Numerical evaluation of liquefaction-induced damages in composite breakwaters and its application for performance-based improvement design

Breakwaters provide a calm sea basin for ships and protect harbor facilities by reflecting wave energy toward the open sea area. Their performance under environmental loadings is the main concern for coastal engineers. Liquefaction susceptibility of loose sediments of seabed threatens performance of these structures. The article investigates soil liquefaction effects on the seismic performance of Iran liquefied natural gas (LNG) composite breakwater. Performance-based design method, considering both grade of the breakwater and acceptable level of damages, was selected as design philosophy. Liquefaction-induced damages to the breakwater were determined by numerical analysis. Since the obtained level of deformations did not meet allowable damages, soil improvement against liquefaction was considered. Different improvement patterns were proposed based on distribution of pore pressure ratio (r_u) beneath the breakwater to control its seismic performance. This investigation revealed that the most important area for soil improvement is located near the toes of breakwater to control the slope instability and performance of the breakwater.     

Application of a Boussinesq model for the computation of breaking waves: Part 2: Wave-induced setdown and setup on a submerged coral reef

Based on a set of Boussinesq-type equations with improved linear frequency dispersion characteristics in deeper water, the present paper incorporates the simplified effect of spilling wave breaking into the equations. The analysis is restricted to a single horizontal dimension but the method can be extended to include the second horizontal dimension. Inside the surf zone the vertical variation of the horizontal velocity profile is assumed to be composed of an (initially unknown) organised velocity component below the roller and a surface roller travelling with the wave celerity. This leads to a new set of equations which is capable of simulating the transformation of waves before, during and after wave breaking. The model is calibrated and verified by comparison with several wave flume measurements. The results show that the model produces sound physical results.     

Examination of empirical formulas for wave shoaling and breaking on steep slopes

Estimation of the wave height transformation of shoaling and breaking is essential for the nearshore hydrodynamics and the design of coastal structures. Many empirical formulas have been well recognized to the wave height transformation, but most of them were only applicable for gentle slopes. This paper reports the experimental results of wave shoaling and breaking over the steep slopes to examine the applicability of the previous empirical formulas. Two steep bottom slopes of 1/3 and 1/5, and one gentle slope of 1/10 were conducted in the present experiments. Experimental results show that the shoaling distance of steep slopes become short and the surface waves may be partially reflected from the steep bottom, thus the estimation of wave shoaling using the well-known previous formula did not conform completely to the experimental results. The previous empirical formulas for the wave breaking criteria were also examined, and the modified equations to the steep beaches were proposed in this work. A numerical model was finally adopted to calculate the wave height transformation in the surf zone by introducing the modified breaking index.     

A coupled numerical model for simulation of wave breaking and hydraulic performances of a composite seawall

A numerical model is developed by combining a porous flow model and a two-phase flow model to simulate wave transformation in porous structure and hydraulic performances of a composite type low-crest seawall. The structure consists of a wide submerged reef, a porous terrace at the top and an impermeable rear wall. The porous flow model is based on the extended Navier-Stokes equations for wave motion in porous media and k−ε turbulence equations. The two-phase flow model combines the water domain with the air zone of finite thickness above water surface. A unique solution domain is established by satisfying kinematic boundary condition at the interface of air and water. The free surface advection of water wave is modeled by the volume of fluid method with newly developed fluid advection algorithm. Comparison of computed and measured wave properties shows reasonably good agreement. The influence of terrace width and structure porosity is investigated based on numerical results. It is concluded that there exist optimum value of terrace width and porosity that can maximize hydraulic performances. The velocity distributions inside and in front of the structure are also investigated.     

Effects of wave breaking on wave statistics for deep-water random wave train

The experimental studies of the breaking effects on wave statistics for deep-water random waves are presented. It is especially focused on the behavior of kurtosis of surface elevations due to wave breaking. Wave breaking suppresses the maximum limit of kurtosis of the surface elevation, although skewness depends on characteristic wave steepness. The mean instantaneous wave steepness of breaking waves defined using the zero-down-crossing method was much lower than expected from the Stokes waves.     

斜坡堤典型胸墙波浪力的影响因素

为探求斜坡堤典型胸墙迎浪面所受波浪力大小的影响因素,设计前仰式、深弧式、后仰式和直立式4种结构型式胸墙进行相关的物理模型试验。通过在典型胸墙迎浪面间隔布置压力测点,获取所受波浪压力,并将其进行积分求和,得到胸墙所受波浪力,进而讨论相对波高、相对波长、斜坡坡度和胸墙结构型式对波浪力的影响。结果表明,相对波高与相对波长对胸墙所受波浪力影响显著;波浪力随着相对波高的增大而增大,随着相对波长的增大呈现先增大、后减小、再增大的变化趋势;波浪力随着斜坡坡度的增大而减小。斜坡堤弧形胸墙所受波浪力明显大于直立式胸墙所受波浪力;在斜坡堤弧形胸墙中,前仰式胸墙受力较其余两种型式胸墙受力小。研究结果将加深波浪对斜坡堤胸墙作用力的理解,为后续工程设计提供理论指导。     

可控深水破碎波的实验室生成方法研究

实验室一般采用波浪聚焦方法生成深水破碎波,通过各组分波浪的波幅叠加生成一个波高显著增大的大波,使其波陡超过极限波陡发生破碎。利用该方法生成深水破碎波浪的破碎次数通常并不唯一,导致波浪破碎后的流场特征不明显;造波参数不易于选取导致研究工况的设置难度大,直接影响深水破碎精细化实验的效果和效率。本文采用聚焦波理论计算波面,并利用上跨零点法定义的波高和波长计算理论波陡,结合物理模型实验统计波浪沿程破碎次数与剧烈程度,研究以JONSWAP谱为造波输入谱型时,聚焦波幅、谱峰频率、频宽等造波输入参数对于波浪破碎情况的影响,从而建立深水波浪破碎次数与造波输入参数之间的近似定量关系,为实验造波参数的选取提供参考,提高实验效率。     

Core made of geotextile sand containers for rubble mound breakwaters and seawalls: Effect on armour stability and hydraulic performance

A systematic armour stability and the hydraulic performance, including wave reflection, wave transmission, experimental study in the twin-wave flumes of Leichtweiss-Institute (LWI) is performed on a geocore breakwater and a conventional rubble mound breakwater in order to comparatively determine the wave run-up and wave overtopping. The geocore breakwater consists of a core made of sand-filled geotextile containers (GSC) covered by an armour made of rock. The geocore is more than an order of magnitude less permeable than the quarry run core of a conventional breakwater. As expected, the core permeability substantially affects the armour stability on the seaside slope, the wave transmission and the wave overtopping performance. Surprisingly, however, wave reflection and hydraulic stability of the rear slope are less affected. Formulae for the armour stability and hydraulic performance of the geocore breakwater are proposed, including wave reflection, transmission, run-up and overtopping.     

Investigating the impact of surface wave breaking on modeling the trajectories of drifters in the northern Adriatic Sea during a wind-storm event

An accurate numerical prediction of the oceanic upper layer velocity is a demanding requirement for many applications at sea and is a function of several near-surface processes that need to be incorporated in a numerical model. Among them, we assess the effects of vertical resolution, different vertical mixing parameterization (the so-called Generic Length Scale –GLS– set of k–ε, k–ω, gen, and the Mellor–Yamada), and surface roughness values on turbulent kinetic energy (k) injection from breaking waves.First, we modified the GLS turbulence closure formulation in the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) to incorporate the surface flux of turbulent kinetic energy due to wave breaking. Then, we applied the model to idealized test cases, exploring the sensitivity to the above mentioned factors. Last, the model was applied to a realistic situation in the Adriatic Sea driven by numerical meteorological forcings and river discharges. In this case, numerical drifters were released during an intense episode of Bora winds that occurred in mid-February 2003, and their trajectories compared to the displacement of satellite-tracked drifters deployed during the ADRIA02-03 sea-truth campaign.Results indicted that the inclusion of the wave breaking process helps improve the accuracy of the numerical simulations, subject to an increase in the typical value of the surface roughness z₀. Specifically, the best performance was obtained using α_CH = 56,000 in the Charnok formula, the wave breaking parameterization activated, k–ε as the turbulence closure model. With these options, the relative error with respect to the average distance of the drifter was about 25% (5.5 km/day). The most sensitive factors in the model were found to be the value of α_CH enhanced with respect to a standard value, followed by the adoption of wave breaking parameterization and the particular turbulence closure model selected.     

中长周期波作用下的斜坡堤胸墙波浪力试验研究

在印度洋、大西洋沿岸,海岸工程设计波浪周期多在14 s以上,具有显著的中长周期波特征。通过以往工程项目的试验结果发现中长周期波下,规范计算的斜坡堤胸墙波浪力明显小于试验结果。因此,通过系列物理模型试验研究了中长周期波下的斜坡堤胸墙波浪力。分析斜坡坡度、肩台宽度和波浪条件对胸墙波浪力的影响。通过将试验结果与我国现有规范中的经验公式计算所得结果进行对比,发现规范更适用于胸墙底淹没的情况,而对于肩台出水情况,规范计算结果小于试验结果。由此提出了一种新的波浪力计算方法,计算准确度得到明显提高。