Numerical simulation of deep-water wave breaking using RANS: Comparison with experiments

Abstract

Wave breaking is a multifaceted physical phenomenon that is not fully understood and remains challenging to model. An effective method for investigating wave breaking involves utilising the two-phase Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations to directly simulate breaking waves. In this study, we apply a RANS model with an adaptively refined mesh to simulate breaking waves in deep water using the stabilised RANS model proposed by Larsen and Fuhrman. This approach enables a more efficient simulation of the physics of breaking waves compared to Direct Numerical Simulations, as it places less stringent demands on grid resolution. Our findings demonstrate that the RANS model compares well with deep water wave breaking experiments in terms of surface elevation. We also give estimates of the breaking strength parameter of our RANS simulations and compared them with the literature.