Assessing Caisson Breakwater Integrity Against Scour Through Ground-Structure System Vibrations

Abstract

Taking into consideration the prevalence of rocking vibrations in structures featuring rectangular cross-sections, we introduced an approach for precise determination of the inherent frequencies of such structures. To validate the effectiveness of our proposed method for identifying natural frequencies, we carried out an extensive experimental campaign using a scaled model of a caisson-type breakwater. The study aimed to assess the feasibility of our method in evaluating the structural integrity of the breakwater under varying degrees of scouring. Our findings underscored the potential of microtremor measurements in detecting the advancement of scouring in the caisson-type breakwater.