An extended analytic solution for combined refraction and diffraction of long waves over circular shoals

Abstract

A new analytic solution of the mild-slope long wave equation is derived for studying the effects of bottom topography on combined refraction and diffraction. The solution is essentially of a series form involving the Bessel functions of real orders but is found to be singular as the bottom tends to be parabolic. Numerical evaluation of the solution nearby the singularity requires some special considerations. The particular solution under the singular condition is also given. Study on combined refraction and diffraction for waves around a circular island on the top of a shoal, which is radially described by a power function with two independent parameters, indicates that there exist an extremely high wave zone near the top of a hyperparabolic shoal. It is also found that the intensity of wave ray focusing increases significantly as the mean slope decreases. A direct consequence of the wave ray focusing is the concentration of wave energy and an increase of the maximal wave runup height around the island.