Influence of oblique wave attack on wave overtopping and forces on rubble mound breakwater crest walls

Oblique Wave Attack on Rubble Mound Breakwater Crest Walls of Finite Length

“…Guidelines for crest walls design [1][2][3] exist, but they are only valid within their range of tested cross sections. In Jacobsen et al [4], a numerical model is presented to estimate wave loads on the crest walls of rubble mound breakwaters.…”

“…This model provides valuable estimates of the wave loads for cross-sections that have not been tested before (under perpendicular wave attack). Oblique wave attack has been proven to affect the wave loads on crest walls in [3,5]. Van Gent et al conducted a systematic study on the reduction of the wave loads on crest walls due to the obliqueness of waves and derived a method to account for such an effect [5].…”

“…In other words, methods in the literature assume a rectangle-shaped force diagram all along the crest wall length. This means that the actual reduction in the forces on the entire crest wall due to the oblique waves is more significant than simply applying the method proposed by [3,5], which is valid for one position (chainage) along the breakwater. Therefore, this study is focused on the influence of finite length on crest walls under oblique wave attack.…”

“…In Section 2, a brief overview of the methods in the literature to estimate wave forces on crest walls is presented. A summary of the findings in [5] is given, since it is the only systematic study found in the literature on the reduction of the wave loads on crest walls due to the oblique wave attack. In Section 3, the physical model tests are described.…”

“…In Section 3, the physical model tests are described. Here, the tests conducted by [5] in a wave basin are used. In Section 4, the analysis of the tests results is presented.…”