Effects of building arrangement on flow and pressure fields generated by a solitary wave interacting with developed coasts

Abstract

A series of laboratory experiments and Large-Eddy Simulation (LES) carried out to study the interactions of a solitary wave with arrays of blocks, representing idealized beachfront buildings positioned at different arrangements, show that formation of jet-type channelized flow significantly alters the flow hydrodynamics, delays wave breaking and influences the total loading on the blocks in the back row. The staggered layout yields a 30–60% increase in the maximum force on the block in the back row compared to those of the single-row and straight layouts while the latter creates the highest shielding effect. The total number of primary vortices forming around the blocks is proportional to the number of sharp edges of the blocks. The dimensions of the vortex tubes are controlled by the width of the block. Although vorticities were not directly measured, the critical phenomena are accurately represented by the simulated flow field which was thoroughly validated using observations and measurements.