Application of Boundary Element Method to 3 D Submerged Structures With Open Ends (RESEARCH NOTE)

Abstract

This paper presents a three dimensional application of direct Boundary-Element Method (BEM) for computing interaction of sinusoidal waves with a large submerged open bottom structure near the floor with finite depth. The wave diffraction problem is formulated within the framework of linearized potential theory and solved numerically with direct BEM. A computer program based on BEM is developed to calculate the wave-exciting hydrodynamic forces. Comparisons of the results with those obtained by several previous investigators reveal a good agreement. In this study, we are primarily interested in the wave forces on a shell defined by an open-end surface. The formulation of this problem is similar to that for a solid, except that the solution is contained in a singular integral equation. This solution is extended to a cylindrical open bottom structure and the wave forces are compared to those for the corresponding seated structures. This method, however, can be applied for any 3-D geometrical objects with or without open ends.