A novel decomposition of the quadratic transfer function (QTF) for the time-domain simulation of non-linear wave forces on floating bodies

In the present study, a novel method is proposed for the separation of the second-order sum- and difference-frequency wave forces-that is, quadratic transfer functions (QTFs)-on a floating body into three components due to wave-wave, wave-motion, and motion-motion action. By applying the new QTF components, the second-order wave forces on a floating body can be strictly computed in the time domain. In this work, the boundary value problems (BVPs) corresponding to the three kinds of QTF components were derived, and non-homogeneous boundary conditions on the free surface and the body surface were obtained. The second-order diffraction potentials were determined using the boundary integral equation method. In the solution procedure, the highly oscillatory and slowly converging integral on the free surface was evaluated in an accurate and effective manner. Furthermore, the application of the QTF components in the time domain was demonstrated. The second-order exciting forces in the time domain were divided into three parts. Each part of these forces was computed via a two-term Volterra series model based on the incident waves, the first-order motion response, and the QTF components. This method was applied to several numerical examples. The results demonstrated that this decomposition yields satisfactory results.