Modeling of Vertical Breakwater Wall under Bilateral Seawater Load

Abstract

Floating breakwaters are widely used due to their various advantages over stationary breakwaters. Lots of researches have been done on hydrodynamics and the type of bracing of these kinds of structures in recent years. In this study, numerical modeling of stresses caused by collision waves has been investigated. For this purpose, samples of floating breakwaters have been modeled in ANSYS software. First, AQWA tool in ANSYS finite element software has been used. After calculating the force caused by the waves from this software module, the results are entered into the MECHANICAL module and the stress analysis is performed by this module. Next, the results of modeling have been validated with laboratory values. Finally, the stresses in the breakwater body have been investigated. The results show that highest amount of stresses caused by waves collision occur under a wave having a period equal to one of the natural periods of the structure and also due to the period distribution against the wave height, the highest possible wave altitude that occurs during a specific period causes the greatest stress.