Wave propagation over a deformable sea floor

The propagation of water waves over a deformable bottom is examined theoretically for the case where the soil beneath the water is regarded as an elastic solid. Equations are given for calculating wave speeds, soil displacements and stresses, and water motion and pressure. Detailed wave-speed solutions are worked out for the case of an incompressible soil. The effects of soil inertia are included in the analysis, and it is shown that such effects cannot generally be ignored without committing serious error.