Experiments on Tsunami Impact with a Vertical Sea Wall

Research output: Contribution to conferencePaperpeer-review

Abstract

The impact of tsunami with a vertical sea wall is examined in a series of large scale physical model tests. Of interest to the design engineer is the maximum value and time-history of the force and moments recorded at the wall for a given tsunami wave amplitude and period. This paper presents preliminary selected results from an extensive test programme. Scaled trough-led tsunami periods ranging between approximately 17 – 79 s are generated using a pneumatic long-wave generator. The waves impact a model vertical sea wall which is instrumented with an array of pressure transducers and a multi-axis load cell. The maximum and time-history of the loading is recorded. The results show breaking waves impart dynamic loads while longer non-breaking waves impart a hydrostatic load. The strongest positive correlations between the wave parameters and the maximum force and moment was with amplitude. Weaker negative correlations with wavelength are observed. Potential energy does not appear to influence the force which is proposed to be due to the distribution of the energy in the waveform, implying wave steepness is more important.
Original languageEnglish
Publication statusPublished - 28 Jun 2016
Event1st International Conference on Natural Hazards & Infrastructure -
Duration: 28 Jun 2016 → …

Conference

Conference1st International Conference on Natural Hazards & Infrastructure
Period28/06/16 → …

Keywords

  • Pressue
  • Force
  • Tsunami
  • Wall

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