Abstract:
To propel the application of a bottom-hinged flap breakwater in real sea conditions, a two-dimensional computational fluid dynamics numerical model was conducted to investigate the pitching motion response and wave attenuation in random waves. First, the flow velocity distribution characteristic of the pitching flap at typical times was summarized. Then, the effects of random wave and flap parameters on the flap’s significant pitching angle amplitude
θs and hydrodynamic coefficients were investigated. The results reveal that
θs and wave reflection coefficient
Kr values increase with increasing significant wave height
Hs, random wave steepness
λs, and flap relative height. As
Hs and
λs increase, the wave transmission coefficient
Kt increases while the wave dissipation coefficient
Kd decreases. Additionally,
Kt decreases with increasing flap relative height. With increasing equivalent damping coefficient ratio,
θs and
Kt decrease, while
Kr and
Kd increase. The relationships between
λs and flap relative height on the one hand and
θs,
Kr,
Kt, and
Kd in random waves on the other hand are compared to those in regular waves. Based on the equal incident wave energy and the equal incident wave energy flux, the pitching flap performs better in the wave attenuation capability under random waves than in regular waves. Finally, the dimensionless parameters with respect to random wave and flap were used to derive the
Kr and
Kt formulae, which were validated with the related data.