Numerical simulation with a macroscopic CFD method and experimental analysis of wave interaction with fixed porous cylinder structures

Abstract

Porous structures have been widely applied in the coastal and ocean engineering due to their wave energy dissipation mechanism. The macroscopic computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approach where the quadratic pressure drop condition of porous surface is introduced to model the wave interaction with porous cylinders. A series of CFD simulations of waves interacting with a single porous cylinder and the combined structure of a porous cylinder with a concentric inner solid column are performed, with corresponding tank tests conducted. The CFD method is compared with experiments, linear potential model, and the quadratic BEM (boundary element method) model. The effects of porosity and porous cylinder radius on wave force and wave heights inside porous cylinder are analyzed to evaluate the performance of porous shell reducing wave loads and wave surface elevation, and the wave force variation with incident wave amplitudes are also investigated. The results demonstrate that the established CFD model is reliable for engineering analysis and thereby being of great significance for reference purpose in the CFD simulations of waves interacting with porous structures.