Time-domain hydrodynamic analysis of pontoon-plate floating breakwater

The hydrodynamic behaviors of a floating breakwater consisting of a rectangular pontoon and horizontal plates are studied theoretically. The fluid motion is idealized as two-dimensional linear potential flow. The motions of the floating breakwater are assumed to be two-dimensional in sway, heave, and roll. The solution to the fluid motion is derived by transforming the governing differential equation into the integral equation on the boundary in time domain with the Green＇s function method. The motion equations of the floating breakwater are established and solved with the fourth-order Runge-Kutta method to obtain the displacement and velocity of the breakwater. The mooring forces are computed with the static method. The computational results of the wave transmission coefficient, the motion responses, and the mooring forces of the pontoon-plate floating breakwater are given. It is indicated that the relative width of the pontoon is an important factor influencing the wave transmission coefficient of the floating breakwater. The transmission coefficient decreases obviously as the relative width of the pontoon increases. The horizontal plates help to reduce the wave transmission over the floating breakwater. The motion responses and the mooring forces of the pontoon-plate floating breakwater are less than those of the pontoon floating breakwater. The mooring force at the offshore side is larger than that at the onshore side.

Hydrodynamic Analysis of Elastic Floating Collars in Random Waves

As the main load-bearing component of fish cages, the floating collar supports the whole cage and undergoes large deformations. In this paper, a mathematical method is developed to study the motions and elastic deformations of elastic floating collars in random waves. The irregular wave is simulated by the random phase method and the statistical approach and Fourier transfer are applied to analyze the elastic response in both time and frequency domains. The governing equations of motions are established by Newton＇s second law, and the governing equations of deformations are obtained based on curved beam theory and modal superposition method. In order to validate the numerical model of the floating collar attacked by random waves, a series of physical model tests are conducted. Good relationship between numerical simulation and experimental observations is obtained. The numerical results indicate that the transfer function of out-of-plane and in-plane deformations increase with the increasing of wave frequency. In the frequency range between 0.6 Hz and 1.1 Hz, a linear relationship exists between the wave elevations and the deformations. The average phase difference between the wave elevation and out-of-plane deformation is 60° with waves leading and the phase between the wave elevation and in-plane deformation is 10° with waves lagging. In addition, the effect of fish net on the elastic response is analyzed. The results suggest that the deformation of the floating collar with fish net is a little larger than that without net.

Numerical study of roll motion of a 2-D floating structure in viscous flow

In the present study,an open source CFD tool,Open FOAM has been extended and applied to investigate roll motion of a 2-D rectangular barge induced by nonlinear regular waves in viscous flow.Comparisons of the present Open FOAM results with published potential-flow solutions and experimental data have indicated that the newly extended Open FOAM model is very capable of accurate modelling of wave interaction with freely rolling structures.The wave-induced roll motions,hydrodynamic forces on the barge,velocities and vorticity fields in the vicinity of the structure in the presence of waves have been investigated to reveal the real physics involved in the wave induced roll motion of a 2-D floating structure.Parametric analysis has been carried out to examine the effect of structure dimension and body draft on the roll motion.