Behaviour of caisson breakwater subject to breaking waves

Abstract

The behavior of caisson breakwater subject to breaking waves has been studied by means of centrifuge modelling. The effects of wave irregularities, such as wave spike and suction wave, were observed to be much more significant than the effects of sand relative density during regular, non-reversal wave loading. Parametric studies were conducted to examine the effects of RD of soil bed, caisson width, caisson weight, presence of rock berm, slamming on top slab of caisson and cyclic preloading on the performance of caisson breakwater. For the case of reversal wave loading, the results suggest that densification of sand bed is a possible solution to reduce the caisson displacements and pore pressure build-up. On the other hand, analytical study was conducted to simulate the permanent caisson tilt displacement during wave spikes. By appropriate normalization, the tilt angle per wave cycle is summarized in chart form for predictive purposes.