An experimental study of run-up and loads on a vertical truncated cylinder in a solitary wave

Abstract

This work aims to investigate the nonlinear interaction between the tsunami-like wave and the offshore cylinder-style structure. An experimental study on the process of the wave-induced run-up and loads on the cylinder in a solitary wave is presented. An image capture technique is developed to trace the time-varying process of run-up. The secondary run-up is observed in the case of large wave amplitude. The observed streaming collision at the cylinder backside supports the argument on the cause of the secondary peak. The measurement from a six-component force balance shows that the inertial wave force and the buoyancy dominate the inline force and vertical force on the cylinder, respectively. The secondary peak exists in both forcing processes due to the violent motion of the free surface at the large wave amplitude. The influence of different wave amplitudes and truncated depths on the hydrodynamic characters is discussed. The visualized observation and the quantified data provide the benchmark for the theoretical study and the numerical simulation on the coastal protection related to the tsunami issue.