Interaction of a Solitary Wave with Vertical Fully/Partially Submerged Circular Cylinders with/without a Hollow Zone

Chih-Hua Chang

doi:10.3390/jmse8121022

Abstract

In this article, a three-dimensional, fully nonlinear potential wave model is applied based on a curvilinear grid system. This model calculates the wave action on a fully/partially submerged vertical cylinder with or without a hollow zone. As basic verification, a solitary wave hitting a single fully or partially submerged circular cylinder is tested, and our numerical results agree with the experimental results obtained by others. The influence of cylinder immersion depth and size on the wave elevation change on the cylinder surface is considered. The model is also applied to investigate the wave energy of a solitary wave passing through a hollow circular cylinder to determine the effect of the size and draft on the wave oscillating in the hollow zone.

Highlights

Upright pillars are often used as the foundation of marine platforms
A 3D fully nonlinear potential wave model was applied to consider the interaction of a solitary wave with a vertical cylinder piercing the water at different depths with or without a hollow zone
A solitary wave with A0 = 0.3 was used as the typical incident condition, and the model was first compared with the experimental data obtained by other researchers for verification, and

Summary

Introduction

Upright pillars are often used as the foundation of marine platforms. An abundance of studies have been conducted on the waves diffracted by vertical circular cylinders. Chen and Wang [45] developed a 3D fully nonlinear wave model using multi-block grids to solve the problem of a solitary wave interacting with a half-submerged circular cylinder. These authors measured the wave elevations near the front and rear of the cylinder for comparison. Mavrakos’s research group conducted a number of experimental and numerical studies of the hydrodynamic problem of the OWC device where regular waves act on an arrangement of a single concentric cylinder or a set of compound concentric cylinders [51,52,53]. From an engineering point of view, this article has two main applications: (1) analysis of a long wave encountering the circular support cylinder (pile) of a marine platform and (2) simulation of the heave and drop of water levels when a long wave passes through an OWC device (a hollow cylinder)

Flow-Field Equations

Solitary Wave Hitting a Circular Cylinder with Different Drafts and Sizes

Conclusions