On reflection and diffraction due to a detached breakwater

Wave reflection and diffraction due to the presence of a detached breakwater are studied with the aid of directional wave fields. At first, experiments were carried out for the case where a breakwater is the sole factor affecting the wave field. It is shown that, estimated directional spectra in front of a detached breakwater can be separated into two parts in the spatial domain. Denoting these as the incident and reflected part of the total energy, an estimate of the reflection coefficient can be obtained. An empirical equation is proposed. This equation relates the reflection coefficients with the distances of the measuring stations away from the breakwater, as well as directionality of the wave field. This equation was then applied to the experiments where the fishing harbour Ba-Do-Zhi (BDZ) was used as model. It is shown that favorable results are obtained. On the other hand, diffraction due to the detached breakwater was also studied in a similar way. It is shown that predictions based on the empirical equation are in quantitative agreements with measurements. It is proposed that these empirical equations can be used in engineering applications.