Experimental investigation of the interaction between waves and net structures-Damping mechanism

One of the possibilities to expand sea-based fish farming is to move aquaculture installations away from the conflicts of the coastal zone, and into more open ocean locations. However, open ocean aquaculture places different demands on structures than aquaculture in sheltered locations. In this context, it is necessary to understand the behaviour of the aquaculture structures as they are exposed to large sea-loads from waves and current. Flexible netting is the main part of most sea-based aquaculture structures, and in this paper the interaction between waves and netting is studied. Experiments were conducted at the narrow wave flume facility at the University of Oslo, Norway, where several different regular wave cases were run through netting with different solidity. The wave geometry was measured on each side of the net to determine how the wave changed as it moved trough the net. In particular, the damping effect of the net on the passing wave was analysed, but also more subtle features, such as crest steepness and asymmetry factors where studied.