Wave-induced vibrations of flood gates: modelling, experimentation and design

Flood gates form an essential part of many flood defence systems in coastal areas. During storm events, these gates are subjected to extreme loads from various sources. This dissertation addresses the dynamic behaviour of flood gates induced by wave impacts. A semi-analytical fluid-structure interaction model is developed to predict vertical flood gate vibrations. This model aims to overcome both the lack of accuracy involved with existing engineering methods and the high computational costs of numerical finite element methods. Scale experiments have been performed of wave impacts on flexible gate structures with an overhang to validate this model. The resulting dataset is made available for further research on the involved physical phenomena. Methods are then presented to design and assess the safety of flood gates subjected to wave impacts. At the Afsluitdijk in the Netherlands, wave impacts on the flood gates have played a major role in the design. Several case studies are performed in this dissertation based on that situation.