Open Access

ARTICLE

Wave Reflection by Rectangular Breakwaters for Coastal Protection

Hasna Akarni^*, Hamza Mabchour, Laila El Aarabi, Soumia Mordane

Laboratory of Polymer Physics, Mechanical Sciences and Materials, Faculty of Sciences Ben M’Sik, Hassan II University of Casablanca, Casablanca, 20670, Morocco

* Corresponding Author: Hasna Akarni. Email:

Fluid Dynamics & Materials Processing 2024, 20(3), 579-593. https://doi.org/10.32604/fdmp.2023.043080

Received 21 June 2023; Accepted 20 September 2023; Issue published 12 January 2024

Abstract

In this study, we focus on the numerical modelling of the interaction between waves and submerged structures in the presence of a uniform flow current. Both the same and opposite senses of wave propagation are considered. The main objective is an understanding of the effect of the current and various geometrical parameters on the reflection coefficient. The wave used in the study is based on potential theory, and the submerged structures consist of two rectangular breakwaters positioned at a fixed distance from each other and attached to the bottom of a wave flume. The numerical modeling approach employed in this work relies on the Boundary Element Method (BEM). The results are compared with experimental data to validate the approach. The findings of the study demonstrate that the double rectangular breakwater configuration exhibits superior wave attenuation abilities if compared to a single rectangular breakwater, particularly at low wavenumbers. Furthermore, the study reveals that wave mitigation is more pronounced when the current and wave propagation are coplanar, whereas it is less effective in the case of opposing current.

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Keywords

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