Experimental and numerical investigation of a surface-fixed horizontal porous wave barrier

Abstract

Experimental and numerical investigations were conducted to study the performance of a surface-fixed horizontal porous wave barrier in regular waves. The characteristics of the reflection and transmission coefficients, energy dissipation, and vertical wave force were examined versus different porosities of the barrier. Numerical simulations based on 3D Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes equations with standard low-Re k-e turbulent closure and volume of fluid approach were accomplished and compared with the experimental results conducted in a 2D wave tank. Experimental measurements and numerical simulations were shown to be in satisfactory agreement. The qualitative wave behavior propagating over a horizontal porous barrier such as wave run-up, wave breaking, air entrapment, jet flow, and vortex generation was reproduced by CFD computation. Through the discrete harmonic decomposition of the vertical wave force on a wave barrier, the nonlinear characteristics were revealed quantitatively. It was concluded that the surface-fixed horizontal barrier is more effective in dissipating wave energy in the short wave period region and more energy conversion was observed from the first harmonic to higher harmonics with the increase of porosity. The present numerical approach will provide a predictive tool for an accurate and efficient design of the surface-fixed horizontal porous wave barrier.