Experimental Study of Wave Motion and Pore Pressure Around a Submerged Impermeable Breakwater in a Sandy Seabed

摘要

Wave-seabed-structure interaction has become one of the main concerns of coastal engineers and researchers, as it may largely affect seabed instability and structure safety. In this study, a series of experiments has been carried out in a wave flume to investigate wave motion and wave-induced pore pressure around a submerged impermeable breakwater as well as in conditions without a breakwater. Pore pressure within the sandy bed and water surface elevation are measured simultaneously in the experiments, which are used to investigate the effects of wave height, wave period, and breakwater structure on the wave-seabed-structure interactions at different water depths. Comparison of the experimental results of two different constraint conditions (around a submerged impermeable breakwater as well as in conditions without a breakwater) shows that the interaction of water waves and a submerged breakwater causes a significant change of wave motion and wave-induced pore pressure within the sandy bed. Meanwhile, it is found that the values of pore pressure along both the wave propagation direction and vertical seabed depth are largely dependent on water depth.