A Review on Developments of Floating Breakwaters

Floating breakwaters (FBS) are an emerging solution in coastal engineering, designed to attenuate wave energy and protect coastal infrastructure. Conventional breakwaters, owing to their large size and mass, face constraints such as impacts on natural resources, construction and armoring challenges, limited suitability in deep water, disruption of circulation within harbor basins, high construction and installation costs, and environmental concerns. Meanwhile, the growth of maritime transport and the increasing size and draft of vessels have intensified the need for protection in deeper waters, directing engineering practice toward FBs. This review aims to synthesize existing knowledge through a systematic assessment of laboratory and numerical studies to identify and elucidate the principal parameters governing performance. The findings indicate that increasing structural porosity, optimizing the effective width and the width-to-wavelength ratio, adjusting pontoon spacing, incorporating substructures and auxiliary elements, and deploying energy-absorbing layers can reduce the wave transmission coefficient, enhance energy dissipation, lower mooring loads, and improve structural stability. Collectively, these insights chart a pathway toward more efficient and environmentally compatible designs for deepwater applications.

کلیدواژه ها:

Floating breakwater ، Wave attenuation ، Transmission coefficient ، Energy dissipation