Three-Dimensional Numerical and Experimental Simulation of Wave Run-Up Due to Wave Impact With a Vertical Surface

Abstract

This paper describes a numerical simulation of the interaction of a single nonlinear wave with a solid vertical surface in three dimensions. A coupled volume of fluid (VOF) and level set method (LSM) is used to simulate the wave-body interaction. A Cartesian-grid method is used to model immersed solid boundaries with constant grid spacing for simplicity and lower storage requirements. Mesh refinement is implemented near the wall boundaries due to the complex behavior of the free surface around the body. The behavior of the wave impact, the water sheet, and the high-speed jet arising from the wave impact are all captured with these methods. The numerical scheme is implemented using parallel computing due to the high central processing unit and memory requirements of this simulation. The maximum wave run-up velocity, instant wave run-up velocity in front of the vertical surface, the sheet break-up length, and the maximum impact pressure are computed for several input wave characteristics. Results are compared with a laboratory experiment that was carried out in a tow tank in which several generated waves were impacted with a fixed flat-shaped plate model. The numerical and experimental data on sheet breakup length are further compared with an analytical linear stability model for a viscous liquid sheet, and good agreement is achieved. The comparison between the numerical model and the experimental measurements of pressure, the wave run-up velocity, and the break-up length in front of the plate model shows good agreement.