Scattering of water waves by a submerged thin vertical elastic plate

Abstract

The problem of water wave scattering by a thin vertical elastic plate submerged in infinitely deep water is investigated here assuming linear theory. The boundary condition on the elastic plate is derived from the Bernoulli–Euler equation of motion satisfied by the plate. This is converted into the condition that the normal velocity of the plate is prescribed in terms of an integral involving the difference in velocity potentials (unknown) across the plate multiplied by an appropriate Green’s function. The reflection and transmission coefficients are obtained in terms of integrals involving combinations of the unknown velocity potential on the two sides of the plate and its normal derivative on the plate, which satisfy three simultaneous integral equations, solved numerically. These coefficients are computed numerically for various values of different parameters and are depicted graphically against the wave number for different situations. The energy identity relating these coefficients is also derived analytically by employing Green’s integral theorem. Results for a rigid plate are recovered when the parameters characterizing the elastic plate are chosen negligibly small.