\documentclass[a4paper, twocolumn]{article} \usepackage{polyglossia} \usepackage{authblk} \usepackage[sfdefault]{inter} \usepackage{graphicx} \setmainlanguage{english} \usepackage[ backend=biber, style=iso-authoryear, sorting=nyt, ]{biblatex} \bibliography{library} \title{Analysis of the displacement of a large concrete block under an extreme wave} \author[1]{Edgar P. Burkhart} \author[*,1]{Stéphane Abadie} \affil[1]{Université de Pau et des Pays de l’Adour, E2S-UPPA, SIAME, France} \affil[*]{Corresponding Author, stephane.abadie@univ-pau.fr} \begin{document} \maketitle \section{Introduction} % Displacement of blocks studies Displacement of large blocks or boulders by waves is an interesting phenomenon in the study of extreme historical coastal events. The existence of block deposits at unusual heights can be a clue to past events such as extreme storms or tsunamis. For instance, \textcite{cox2018} studied coastal deposits on the coast of Ireland in relation to the storms from winter 2013--2014, and extracted criteria for analysing such deposits. Similarly, \textcite{shah2013} found boulder deposits on the mediterranean coast to be evidence of extreme storms in the Little Ice Age. % Need for analytical equations In order for those studies to be possible, analytical criterias are needed in order to ascertain the cause of the displacement of a block. \textcite{nott1997,nott2003} proposed a set of equations that have been widely used for that purpose. Those equations rely on an equilibrium relation between the lift force produced by a wave and restraining forces depending on the initial setting of the block, allowing to extract a minimal flow velocity necessary for movement initiation. A parametrisation of waves depending on their source is also used to provide minimal wave heights depending on the type of scenario --- wave or tsunami. Those equations were later revised by \textcite{nandasena2011}, as they were found to be partially incorrect. A revised formulation based on the same considerations was provided. The assumptions on which \citeauthor{nott2003, nandasena2011} are based were then critisized by \textcite{weiss2015}. In fact, according to them, the initiation of movement is not sufficient to guarantee block displacement. \textcite{weiss2015} highlights the importance of the time dependency on block displacement. A method is proposed that allows to find the wave amplitude that lead to block displacement. % Lack of observations -> observation Whether it is \textcite{nott2003}, \textcite{nandasena2011} or \textcite{weiss2015}, all the proposed analytical equations suffer from a major flaw; they are all based on simplified analytical models and statistical analysis. Unfortunately, no block displacement event seems to have been observed directly in the past. In this paper, we study such an event. On February 28, 2017, a 50T concrete block was dropped by a wave on the crest of the Artha breakwater. Luckily, the event was captured by a photographer, and a wave buoy located 1.2km offshore captured the seastate. Information from the photographer allowed to establish the approximate time at which the block displacement occured. The goal of this paper is to model the hydrodynamic conditions near the breakwater that lead to the displacement of the 50T concrete block. % Modeling flow accounting for porous media Several approaches can be used when modelling flow near a breakwater. Depth-averaged models can be used to study the transformation of waves on complex bottoms. Studying the hydrodynamic conditions under the surface can be achieved using smoothed-particles hydrodynamics (SPH) or volume of fluid (VOF) models. SPH models rely on a Lagrangian representation of the fluid, while VOF models rely on an Eulerian representation. VOF models are generally more mature for the study of multiphase incompressible flows. In this paper, we first use a one-dimensionnal depth-averaged non-linear non-hydrostatic model to verify that the signal measured by the wave buoy can be used as an incident wave input for the determination of hydrodynamic conditions near the breakwater. For this model, we use a SWASH model \parencite{zijlema2011} already calibrated by \textcite{poncet2022} on a domain reaching 1450m offshore of the breakwater. Then, we use a nested VOF model in two vertical dimensions that uses the output from the larger scale SWASH model as initial and boundary conditions to obtain the hydrodynamic conditions on the breakwater. The models uses olaFlow \parencite{higuera2015}, a VOF model based on volume averaged Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes (VARANS) equations, and which relies on a macroscopic representation of the porous armour of the breakwater. The model is qualitatively calibrated using photographs from the storm of February 28, 2017. Results from the nested models are finally compared to the analytical equations provided by \textcite{nandasena2011}. \section{Results} \subsection{Identified wave} Preliminary work with the photographer allowed to identify the time at which the block displacement event happened. Using the data from the wave buoy located 1250m offshore of the Artha breakwater, a seamingly abnormally large wave of 14m amplitude was identified that is supposed to have lead to the block displacement. Initial analysis of the buoy data plotted in Figure~\ref{fig:wave} shows that the movement of the buoy follows two orbitals that correspond to an incident wave direction. These results would indicate that the identified wave is essentially an incident wave, with a minor reflected component. \begin{figure*} \centering \includegraphics{fig/ts.pdf} \includegraphics{fig/out_orbitals.pdf} \caption{\textit{Left}: Free surface measured during the extreme wave measured on February 28, 2017 at 17:23UTC. \textit{Right}: Trajectory of the wave buoy during the passage of this particular wave.}\label{fig:wave} \end{figure*} \subsection{Reflection analysis} The results from the large scale SWASH model using two configurations --- one of them being the real bathymetry, and the other being a simplified bathymetry without the breakwater --- are compared in Figure~\ref{fig:swash}. The results obtained with both simulations show a maximum wave amplitude of 13.9m for the real bathymetry, and 12.1m in the case where the breakwater is removed. The 13\% difference between those values highlights the existence of a notable amount of reflection at the buoy. Nonetheless, the gap between the values is still fairly small and the extreme wave identified on February 28, 2017 at 17:23:08 could still be considered as an incident wave. \begin{figure*} \centering \includegraphics{fig/maxw.pdf} \caption{Free surface obtained with the SWASH model in two configurations. \textit{Case 1}: With breakwater; \textit{Case 2}: Without breakwater.}\label{fig:swash} \end{figure*} \section{Discussion} \section{Methods} \printbibliography \end{document}