A comparison of complete and approximate solutions for second-order diffraction loads on arrays of vertical cicular cylinders

This paper presents a comparison between two theoretical methods for computing the second-order diffraction loads on arrays of bottom-mounted, surface-piercing vertical circular cylinders in regular waves. One method presents a complete solution for the second-order hydrodynamic loads on the cylinder array via a numerical integration over the mean fluid free-surface. The other method is based on a large spacing approximation between the array members and involves the solution of a set of equivalent isolated body problems to obtain estimates for the second-order hydrodynamic loads. Numerical results for a pair of cylinders indicate very good agreement between the two methods at center-to-center spacing of both three and five radii, indicating that the approximate method may be sufficient to compute hydrodynamic interference effects to the second-order in many practical engineering situations.