Scattering of water waves by rows of cylinders with/without a backwall

The scattering of small amplitude water waves impinging on several rows of vertical cylinders of arbitrary cross section with or without a backwall is studied theoretically and experimentally. First, a method of matched asymptotic expansions is developed without considering real fluid effects. The energy loss caused by flow separation near cylinders is modeled by introducing a complex blockage coefficient. The present theory with the empirical coefficients determined for an array of cylinders agrees well with experimental results obtained using different scales of models with or without a backwall. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.