Characteristics of Ocean Waves

Prof. K.P.P. Pathirana

Faculty of Engineering
University of Peradeniya

19th June
J
2015

Mainly two types of waves (wind waves):

i. Sea waves
ii Swell
ii.
S ll waves

Sea Waves:- Waves that are under the influence of wind field.
Wave Period: 2 20 sec
Sharp crests and long troughs

Swell Waves

travel out of a stormy or windy area and continue on in the

direction of the winds that originally formed them as sea
waves.
Wave Period (Swell Waves): 8 20 sec
may travel for thousands of miles before dying away.
its length
g increases until it is approximately
y from 35 to 200 or
more times its height.
normally come from a direction different from the direction of
the prevailing wind and sea waves at the time of observation.

Difference Between Sea (Wind) and Swell Waves:

"Sea (Wind) Waves" are produced by local winds and
measurements show they are composed of a chaotic mix of height
and period. In general, the stronger the wind the greater the amount
of energy transfer and thus larger the waves are produced.

As sea waves move away from where they are generated they
change
h
iin character
h
t and
db
become swellll waves.

Difference Between Sea (Wind) and Swell Waves:

"Swell Waves" are generated by winds and storms in
another area.

As the waves travel from their point of origin they organize

themselves into groups (Wave trains) of similar heights and periods.
These groups of waves are able to travel thousands of miles
unchanged in height and period.

Swell waves are uniform in appearance, have been sorted by

period, and have a longer wave length and longer period than sea
waves Because these waves are generated by winds in a different
waves.
location, it is possible to experience high swell waves even when the
local winds are calm.

Sea Waves
ocean waves are mostly irregular
waves and random. (Non-repeating
wave profile)

analysis of wave record for height

and period is important.

(Periodic)

(Irregular wave non-Periodic)

Analysis of Sea Waves

Two methods:
- Short-term Wave Analysis
Analysis of waves that occur within one wave
train or within one storm.
- Long-term Wave Analysis
This requires wave measurements over many
years use statistical analysis of wave record.

Short-term Wave Analysis

y
Two methods:
1) W
Wave- by
b wave analysis:
l i
Statistical analysis of wave height (H) and wave
period (T ) on individual waves in the record.
2) Spectral methods:
Using
g Fourier Analysis
y
of the wave record to develop
p
wave spectrums.

Wave- by wave analysis

Wave height distribution (a segment of a typical wave record)

A time-history of sea surface at a point is used:

- the
t eu
undulations
du at o s a
are
e identified
de t ed as waves
a es a
and
d stat
statistics
st cs of
o
the record are developed.
primary
y drawback of this method is that it cannot
- The p
tell anything about the direction of the waves.

Identification of Waves by Zero-Crossing method

In Zero-up crossing method, we identify points where the
water surface crosses the MSL in the upward direction.
direction
Similarly, in Zero-down crossing method, we identify points
where
h
th
the water
t surface
f
crosses the
th MSL in
i th
the d
downward
d
direction.

Zero-Crossing Methods
Zero-down crossing wave height (H) = Vertical distance
between the maximum and minimum water levels that lie
b t
between
two
t
subsequent
b
t zero-down
d
crossings.
i
y, small ripples
pp
and undulations that do not cross MSL
In this way,
are not considered as waves and they are disregarded from the
analysis.

Zero-Crossing
g Methods (Cont/.)
(
)
The time elapsed between the consecutive points is taken as
th Wave
the
W
Period
P i d (T)
(T).
A long record of wave heights (H) and wave periods (T) can
b generated.
be
d
Both methods (zero-up crossing and zero-down crossing)
usually yield similar mean values of wave parameters.
Wave p
periods and heights
g
of irregular
g
waves are not constant
with time, but changing from wave to wave.
The distribution of wave heights
g
and p
periods in this record can
be now analysed using statistical methods.

Various definitions of wave height

(for irregular waves)
1. Average wave height (Havg or H100)
2. H1/n = the average of the highest 1/n% of all wave heights in the
record.
eg.
eg
H1/10 = the average of the highest 10% of the wave heights
H1/3 = the average of the highest 33% (or one third)
of the wave heights (Significant Wave Height - Hs)
3. Hmax = Maximum wave height
g ((Hrms) ; H
4. Root mean square wave height
rms

2
H
i

N = Total number of waves

Probability
y Distribution of Wave Heights
g

The probability that a wave height (H) is greater (less) than

or equall tto a design
d i wave h
height
i ht (Hd),
) may be
b ffound
d ffrom;

n
p (H H d )
N
n
p (H H d ) 1
N
where, n is the number of waves higher than Hd.
N is the total number of waves

n
Probability
obab ty of
o exceedance:
e ceeda ce Q ( H )
N

Rayleigh Probability Distribution

The wave heights in a short-term wave record are
di t ib t d according
distributed
di tto th
the ffollowing
ll i ffunction:
ti

2H
( H / H max ) 2
p (H )
e
2
( H rms )
where, p(
p(H)) = Probabilityy of occurrence of the height
g H
(Probability distribution function)

Hrms = Root mean square wave height

H rms

2
H
i

N = Total number of waves

Rayleigh Probability Distribution

Use of this distribution requires:
Waves should be from a single storm.
Wave spectrum
p
has a single
g narrow banded.
Individual waves are randomly distributed.

Some useful relationships:

H s 1.414H rms ,
H100 0.886H rms ,
H1% 1.67H s ,
H10% 1.27H s

The cumulative probability distribution P(H) is the

probability of having a wave height that is equal to or
less than H and which is given by;
H

P( H ) p ( H ).dH 1 e
0

( H / H rms ) 2

But in our purpose, we require the probability of having

wave height that is greater than a given height:

1 P( H ) e

( H / H rms ) 2

Probability of Exceedence;

Q( H ) e

( H / H rms ) 2

eq:
q

Compute
p
the p
probability
y of exceedence of significant
g
wave height Hs.

H s 1.414 H rms

Q( H s ) e

( H s / H rms ) 2

(1.414 ) 2

0.135 13.5%

13.5%
3 5% off th
the waves iin a storm
t
wave record
d can h
have
heights that are greater than Hs.

a: Prob. that any wave height will exceed

the height
g (H);
( ); [[= ((n/N)]
)]

2%

0.33

b: the average height of the n

highest fraction of the waves

Hs/Hrms=1.42

Maximum wave height

No upper limit to the wave heights defined by the

Rayleigh distribution.

However in a storm, highest wave that can be expected

depends on;
i)

Length of the storm

ii) Strength
S
h off the
h storm

In a storm having a relatively larger number of waves N,

height of the highest wave expected, Hmax;

H max 0.707 H s ln N
where N = Total number of waves
where,