Better coastal defenses against large waves
Coastal defenses have to withstand great forces and there is always a risk of water overtopping or penetrating these structures; Liverpool University’s mathematician says we need new concepts for coastal defenses
Mathematicians at Liverpool University, working with physicists at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) and Aix-Marseille Universite, have designed and tested a new structure that could reduce the risk of large water waves overtopping coastal defenses. The new structure is cylindrical and consists of rigid pillars that guide water along concentric corridors. The pillars interact with the water, guiding it in different directions along the corridors and increasing its speed as it nears the center of the structure — similar to a whirlpool.
“Coastal defenses have to withstand great forces and there is always a risk of water overtopping or penetrating these structures. Water crashes against these defenses, breaking the wave and causing a lot of damage to property hidden behind them,” said Sebastien Guenneau, from Liverpool University’s Department of Mathematical Science.
What is unique about the new structure is its interaction with the water, guiding it to a particular destination, rather than breaking it up and sending it everywhere. It is as though the defenses are invisible to the wave, and as such it does not recognize the structure as an obstacle. “We now need to investigate how to replicate this effect in a real-life situation to protect land from natural disasters such as tsunamis, and defend other structures such as oil rigs in the ocean,” added Guenneau.
The research was led by Professor Alexander Movchan’s applied mathematics team at Liverpool in collaboration with Dr. Stefan Enoch’s physics team at the Fresnel Institute.
