University of Sharjah

Dept. of Civil and Env. Engg.

0401444 - Intro. To Coastal Eng.

CHAPTER 5: INTRODUCTION TO
COASTAL STRUCTURES

DR. MOHSIN SIDDIQUE

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR

1
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES
• Coastal protection, shore protection and sea defense
• Protection of the coast and the shore against the erosive forces of waves,
currents and storm surge can be performed in many ways, and protection
of coast areas against flooding adds ever more types to the protection
defense measures.
• A summary of the various types of protection and management
measures are categories as follows:
• Coastal protection
• Shore protection
• Beach construction
• Management solution
• Sea defense

2
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES
• Coastal protection, shore protection and sea defense
• Coastal protection
• Sea wall, revetment, emergency protection, bulkhead
• Shore protection
• Regulation of coastal land scape, nourishment, beach de-watering or
beach drain
• Mixed Coastal/Shore protection
• Groynes, detached breakwaters, headlands, perched beach, cove
and artificial pocket beach
• Beach construction
• Artificial beach, beach parks, and beach reclamation
• Management solution
• Land use restrictions
• Sea defense
• Sea dike, artificial dune, Marsh/Magrove platform restoration

3
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Coastal Structures

Sea dike

Sea wall

Revetment

Emergency protection Today’s
content for

Bulkheads discussion

Groynes

Jetty

Breakwater

Headland

4
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Sea dike
• Sea dikes are onshore structures with the principal function of protecting
low-lying areas against flooding.
• Sea dikes are usually built as a mound of fine materials like sand and clay
with a gentle seaward slope in order to reduce the wave runup and the
erodible effect of the waves.
• The surface of the dike is armored with grass, asphalt, stones, or concrete
slabs.

Cross-section of a sea dike

Sea dike near Westkapelle
(the Netherlands) 5
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Sea wall
• A seawall is defined as a structure separating land and water.
• It is designed to prevent coastal erosion and other damage due to wave
action and storm surge, such as flooding.
• Sea walls are normally very massive structures because they are
designed to resist the full force of wave and storm surge.

6
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Sea wall
Applicability: A sea wall is passive structure, which protects the coast
against erosion and flooding.
Seawalls are often used at location off exposed city fronts, where good
protection was needed and where space was scarce.

7
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Revetments:
• Revetments are onshore structures
with the principal function of
protecting the shoreline from
erosion.
• Revetment structures typically
consist of a cladding of stone,
concrete, or asphalt to armor
sloping natural shoreline profiles.
• In the Corps of Engineers, the
functional distinction is made
between seawalls and revetments
for the purpose of assigning project
benefits; however, in the technical
literature there is often no
distinction between seawalls and
revetments.

http://www.pilebuck.com/highways-coastal-environment-second-
edition/chapter-6-coastal-revetments-wave-attack/ 8
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES
Revetments can be an exposed as well as a buried structure.

9
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Damaged flex slab revetment South of Merang in Terengganu, Malaysia

10
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Revetments:

Concrete block revetment Damaged Gabion revetment

Revetment constructed using geotextile Revetment constructed using grain bags

and tubes and piles 11
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Revetments:
Applicability: A revetment is a passive structure, which protects
against erosion caused by wave action, storm surge and currents.
• The main difference in the function of a sea wall and a revetment
is that a seawall protects against erosion and flooding, whereas a
revetment only protects against erosion.
• A revetment is thus a passive coastal protection measure and is
used in locations exposed to erosion or as a supplement to
seawalls or dikes at location exposed to both erosion and flooding.
• Revetments are used on all types of coasts

12
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Emergency protection:

Emergency protection is a quick
installation of a temporary
revetment type structure made by
available material as “response” to
unexpected coastal erosion.

It is normally applied for securing
building or infrastructure against
unexpected erosion.

There are by nature quickly build
and not well designed.

Rock dumping Emergency revetment constructed by
rubble concrete

Sand bagging

Dumping of any other easily
available material

13
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Emergency protection:
Applicability: Private and public land owners are sometime forced
to “construct” emergency protection at locations where “unexpected”
erosion occurs.
• The emergency protection is installed in order to prevent further
damage to coastal installation.
• “Unexpected” can have different causes as discussed below:
• It can be in forms of a rare extreme events
• It can be development of ongoing chronic erosion at locations
where it has not been possible to provide fund for a proper and
timely protection.

14
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Bulkheads:
• A bulkhead is a structure or
partition used to retain or prevent
sliding of the land.
• A secondary purpose is to protect
the coast against damage from
wave action.
• Bulkhead area normally smaller
than seawalls, as their primary
function is to retain fill at locations
with only limited wave action and
not to resist coastal erosion. Bulkhead structure constructed by
• A bulkhead cannot really be Gabion mesh boxes
characterized as a coastal
protection structure; it is rather a
structure that is used to retain fills
along the water perimeter of
reclaimed areas and in port basins.

15
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Bulkhead:

Applicability: These function well as a separation between land and
sea in marine basins and along protected shorelines.

These are used along natural shorelines and along filled area, where a
well defined separation between land and sea is required.

These can be used against sea level rise if adjusted in height and if the
area is still protected against wave despite the sea level rise.

These are not used to protect against erosion.

16
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Groynes:
• These are normally straight structures perpendicular (could be slightly
oblique) to the shoreline. They work by blocking the littoral drift (sediment
transport), whereby they trap/maintain sand on their upstream side.

17
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Groynes:

Groyne field at south coast of Beira, An old groyne field at Danish north sea
Mozambique coast

18
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Groynes:
• They can have special shapes and they can be emerged, sloping
or submerged, they can be constructed as single structure or as a
groyne field.
• They are build a rubble mound structures but they can be
constructed in other materials such as concrete, timber, geo-tube
etc.

Applicability: These are generally applicable against chronic

erosion as groynes are active when there is a net longshore
transport. Groynes are not applicable against acute erosion.
• Groins retain their protective capability on the upstream coast
during sea level rise provided they are high enough and that they
are not backcut but the leeside erosion will increase.

19
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Jetty or Jetties:
• They are shore-normal stone structures commonly used for
training navigation channels and stabilizing inlets.
• They prevent intrusion of long shore sediment transport
• They cause higher flow velocity that scour the channel to a depth
required for safe navigation

The panru jetty, Estonia 20

INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Detached breakwaters-Emerged breakwaters;

It is structure parallel or close to parallel, to the coast, build inside or
outside the surf-zone.

Detached breakers are mainly with two purposes, either to protect a
ship wharf from wave action or as a coast/shore protection measure.

Segmented detached breakwater scheme

Breakwater
coastalresearch.sakura.ne.jp

21
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Detached breakwaters-Emerged breakwaters;

22
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Detached breakwaters-Emerged breakwaters:

A detached breakwater provides
shelter from waves, whereby the
littoral transport behind the
breakwater is decreased and the
transport pattern adjacent to the
breakwater is modified.

23
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Detached breakwaters-offshore breakwaters:
• These are located relatively far outside the surf zone x*>3. The purpose
of an offshore breakwater is normally to protect an offshore ship wharf
against wave action, which means that offshore breakwater is a special
type of port.

Sand accumulation forming a salient in

shore line behind offshore breakwater
24
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Detached breakwaters-coastal breakwaters:
• These are located within a distance from the shoreline of half the width of
surf-zone, up to twice the width of the surf-zone, 2>x*>0.5.
• Such breakwaters trap sand within the part of the littoral zone they cover,
thus ensuring that part of the coastal profile against erosion.

Coastal breakwater, which has form (an unstable)

tombolo, (Sri lanka)

25
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Detached breakwaters-beach breakwaters:
• These are located within less than half the width of the surf-zone from the
shoreline, x*<0.5.
• Beach breakwater traps sand on the foreshore without interfering
significantly with the overall transport pattern.

26
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES
• A segment breakwater
scheme provides many
possibilities ranging from
total coastal protection to
mid shore protection

27
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Applicability:

Breakwater are able to protect sections of shoreline in a more
diversified and less harmful way than groynes

A breakwater can, for example, trap sand on a coast line with a
perpendicular wave approach, which is hardly the case for a groyne.

The applicability of breakwater to different types of needs to be studies
before opting a particular design.

28
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Other type of breakwater:

Submerged breakwater

Floating breakwater

Special type breakwater

29
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Other type of breakwater:

Submerged breakwater: They function by provoking wave-breaking
and by allowing some wave transmission so that a milder wave
climate is obtained in lee of the submerged structure, although it is
not as mild as if the structure was emerged.

30
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Other type of breakwater:

Floating breakwater: They work by dissipating and reflecting part of
wave energy. No surplus water is brought into the sheltered area in
this situation.

Floating breakwater and wave attenuator

Example of floating breakwater http://www.wavebrake.com/
(Fezzano,SP-Italy)
http://www.coastalwiki.org/wiki/Floating_bre
akwaters

31
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Other type of breakwater:

Special type breakwater: Various specially designed concrete
element type submerged and permeable breakwaters and flexible
tube breakwaters have been introduced onto the market.

Geo-textile Tubes for Breakwaters and Beach

Restoration in Mexico [https://www.geosynthetica.net/]

32
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Headlands or modified
breakwater:

A series of breakwater and
groynes constructed in an
“attached” fashion.

33
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Headlands or modified breakwater:

http://www.vims.edu/

34
INTRODUCTION TO COASTAL STRUCTURES

Headlands or modified breakwater:

Applicability:
• The curved breakwater, the breakwater connected to the shore, and
headland are useful substitute for traditional groyne and breakwaters
on coasts.
• The curved breakwater can be used for all types of coasts, while
choice of traditional breakwater depends on coast type.
• Neither the breakwater connected to the shore nor the headland can
be used as replacement for traditional segmented breakwater with
small gaps and pocket beaches.
• The impact of sea water level on curve breakwater is same as for the
traditional breakwater
• Headland are generally applicable against chronic erosion as
headlands are active when there is a net longshore transport.

35
SUMMARY

36
 REFERENCE
Shore protection guideline, DHI
Coastal Engineering manual

37
THANK YOU

38
DESIGN OF COASTAL STRUCTURES

Detached breakwaters-Emerged Breakwaters;

It is structure parallel or close to parallel, to the coast, build inside or
outside the surf-zone.

Detached breakers are mainly with two purposes, either to protect a
ship wharf from wave action or as a coast/shore protection measure.

Segmented detached breakwater scheme

Breakwater
coastalresearch.sakura.ne.jp

39
DESIGN OF COASTAL STRUCTRUES
Types of Breakwaters

Floating Breakwater

40
DESIGN OF COASTAL STRUCTURES
Types of Breakwaters:
• Rubble Mound Breakwater - consists of interior graded layers of stone
and an outer armor layer. Armor layer may be of stone or specially
shaped concrete units.

www.fao.org

41
DESIGN OF COASTAL STRUCTURES
Types of Breakwaters:
• Rubble Mound Breakwater

• Adaptable to a wide range of water depths, suitable on nearly all

foundations
• Layering provides better economy (large stones are more expensive) and
the structure does not typically fail catastrophically (i.e. protection
continues to be provided after damage and repairs may be made after the
storm passes).
• Readily repaired.
• Armor units are large enough to resist wave attack, but allow high wave
energy transmission (hence the layering to reduce transmission). Graded
layers below the armor layer absorb wave energy and prevent the finer
soil in the foundation from being undermined.
• Sloped structure produces less reflected wave action than the wall type.
• Require larger amounts of material than most other types
42
DESIGN OF COASTAL STRUCTURES
• Composite or Wall-Type Breakwaters - typically consist of cassions (a
concrete or steel shell filled with sand or gravel) sitting on a gravel base
(also known as vertical wall breakwater). Exposed faces are vertical or
slightly inclined (wall-type)

http://constructionmanuals.tpub.com/

43
DESIGN OF COASTAL STRUCTURES
• Composite or Wall-Type Breakwaters

• Sheet-pile walls and sheet-pile cells of various shapes are in common

use.
• Reflection of energy and scour at the toe of the structure are important
considerations for all vertical structures.
• If forces permit and the foundation is suitable, steel-sheet pile structures
may be used in depths up to about 40 feet.
• When foundation conditions are suitable, steel sheet piles may be used to
form a cellular, gravity-type structure without penetration of the piles into
the bottom material.

44
 DESIGN OF COASTAL STRUCTURES
The main design concern for
composite breakwaters is
stability of the vertical section.
DESIGN OF COASTAL STRUCTURES
Advantages and disadvantages of breakwaters

46
DESIGN OF COASTAL STRUCTURES
Floating Breakwaters: potential application for boat basin protection, boat
ramp protection, and shoreline erosion control.

Example of floating breakwater (Fezzano,SP-Italy)

http://www.coastalwiki.org/wiki/Floating_breakwaters

47
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Layout Options for Rubble Mound Breakwaters and Jetties
• General Description
• Design Wave
• Water Levels and Datums
• Design Parameters
• Design Concept/ Procedure
• Structure Elevation, Run-up and Overtopping
• Crest/Crown Width
• Armor Unit Size and Stability
• Underlayer Design
• Bedding and Filter Design
• Toe Structures
• Low Crested Breakwaters

48
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Layout Options for Rubble Mound Breakwaters and Jetties
Attached or Detached.
a. Jetties: usually attached to stabilize an inlet or eliminate channel shoaling.
b. Breakwaters: attached or detached.
Overtopped or Non-overtopped.
a. Overtopped: crown elevation allows larger waves to wash across the
crest >> wave heights on the protected side are larger than for a non-
overtopped structure.
b. Non-overtopped: elevation prevents any significant amount of wave
energy from coming across the crest.
Emerged or submerged.

49
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• General description

50
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• General description
• Multi-layer design. Typical design has at least three major layers:
• 1. Outer layer called the armor layer (largest units, stone or specially
shaped concrete armor units)
• 2. One or more stone underlayers
• 3. Core or base layer of quarry-run stone, sand, or slag (bedding or
filter layer below)

• Designed for non-breaking or breaking waves, depending on the

positioning of the breakwater and severity of anticipated wave action
during life.
• Armor layer may need to be specially shaped concrete

51
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Design Wave

1. Usually H1/3, but may be H1/10 to reduce repair costs (USACE recommends
H1/10)
2. The depth limited breaking wave should be calculated and compared with
the unbroken storm wave height, and the lesser of the two chosen as the
design wave. (Breaking occurs in water in front of structure)
3. Use Hb/hb~ 0.6 to 1.1
4. For variable water depth, design in segments

52
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Design Wave
The design breaker height (Hb) depends on the depth of water some
distance seaward from the structure toe where the wave first begins to break.
This depth varies with tidal stage.
Therefore, the design breaker height depends on the critical design depth at
the structure toe, the slope on which the structure is built, incident wave
steepness, and the distance traveled by the wave during breaking.
Assume that the design wave plunges on the structure >>

h=d

If the maximum design depth at the structure toe and the incident wave
period are known, the design breaker height can be determined from the
chart below (Figure 7-4 of the SPM, 1984). Calculate ds/(gT2), locate the
nearshore slope and determine Hb/ds.
53
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN

Figure 7-4 of the SPM, 1984

RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Water level and datum
Both maximum and minimum water levels are needed for the designing of
breakwaters and jetties.
Water levels can be affected by storm surges, seiches, river discharges,
natural lake fluctuations, reservoir storage limits, and ocean tides.
• High-water levels are used to estimate maximum depth-limited
breaking wave heights and to determine crown elevations.
• Low-water levels are generally needed for toe design.

• Tide prediction

• Datum Plane

55
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Design Parameters

56
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Design Parameters
• h =water depth of structure relative to design high water (DHW)
• hc =breakwater crest relative to DHW
• R =freeboard, peak crown elevation above DHW
• ht =depth of structure toe relative to still water level (SWL)
• B =crest width
• Bt =toe apron width
• α =front slope (seaside)
• αb =back slope (lee)
• t =thickness of layers
• W =armor unit weight

• DHW varies >> may be MHHW, storm surge, etc.

• SWL may be MSL, MLLW, etc.
• Wave setup is generally neglected in determining DHW 57
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Design Concept/ Procedure

1. Specify Design Condition: design wave (H1/3, Hmax, To, Lo, depth, water
elevation, overtopping, breaking, purpose of structure, etc.)
2. Set breakwater dimensions: h, hc, R, ht, B, α, αb
3. Determine armor unit size/type and underlayer requirements
4. Develop toe structure and filter or bedding layer
5. Analyze foundation settlement, bearing capacity and stability (not
discussed here)
6. Adjust parameters and repeat as necessary

58
SUMMARY

59
SUMMARY

60
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Structural elevation, run-up and overtopping

Wave breaking on a slope causes up-rush and down-rush. The maximum

and minimum vertical elevation of the water surface from SWL is called run-
up (Ru) and run-down (Rd).
Non-dimensionalize with respect to wave height >>Ru/H and Rd/H.

61
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Structural elevation, run-up and overtopping
• Overtopping occurs if the freeboard (R) is less than the [set-up + Ru]
• Generally neglect wave setup for sloped structures
• Freeboard may be zero if overtopping is allowed. Freeboard may also be
set to achieve a given allowed overtopping.
• Run-up and run-down are functions of surf similarity parameter, ξ,
permeability, porosity and surface roughness of the slope.
• Effects of Permeability - Flow fields induced in permeable structures by
wave action result in reduced run-up and run-down, but increased
destabilizing forces (see diagram).

62
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Structural elevation, run-up and overtopping
Run-up may be determined by surf similarity parameter (ξm) and core
permeability (Abbot and Price, 1994)

63
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Structural elevation, run-up and overtopping

Run-down is typically 1/3 to ½ of the run-up and may be used to determine

the minimum downward extension of the main armor and a possible
upper level for introducing a berm with reduced armor size.

64
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Structural elevation, run-up and overtopping
Designing to an Allowable Overtopping - Overtopping depends on relative
freeboard, R/Hs, wave period, wave steepness, permeability, porosity, and
surface roughness. Usually overtopping of a rubble structure such as a
breakwater or jetty can be tolerated only if it does not cause damaging
waves behind the structure.

65
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Structural elevation, run-up and overtopping

Concrete Caps - considered for strengthening the crest, increasing crest

height, providing access along crest for construction or maintenance.
Evaluate by calculating cost of cap vs. cost of increasing breakwater
dimensions to increase overtopping stability

66
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Crest/ Crown Width
Depends on degree of allowed overtopping. Not critical if no overtopping is
allowed. Minimum of 3 armor units or 3 meters for low degree of overtopping.

67
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Wave Transmission
Wave transmission behind rubble mound breakwaters is caused by wave
regeneration due to overtopping and wave penetration through voids in the
breakwater.
It is affected by: Crest elevation; Crest width; seaside and lee-side face
slopes; Rubble size; Breakwater porosity; Wave height, and wave length
and water depth

Given an acceptable lee-side wave height, the crest elevation (hc) and width
(B) can be determined by using the diagram below (note: the diagram is
based on experiments by N. Tanaka, 1976, on a symmetric breakwater with
1:2 seaside and lee-side slopes.)
68
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability

69
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability
Considerations:

• Slope: flatter slope >> smaller armor unit weight but more material required
• Seaside Armor Slope - 1:1.15 to 1:2
• Harbor-side (leeside) Slope
• Minor overtopping/ moderate wave action - 1:1.25 to 1:1.5
• Moderate overtopping/ large waves - 1:1.33 to 1:1.5
• * harbor-side slopes are steeper, subject to landslide type failure

70
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability
Considerations:
• Trunk vs. head (end of breakwater) >> head is exposed to more
concentrated wave attack >> want flatter slopes at head (or larger armor
units)
• Overtopping >> less return flow/ action on seaward side but more on
leeward
• Layer dimensions >> thicker layers give more reserve stability if damaged
• Special placement >> reduces size requirements, generally limited to
concrete armor units
• Concrete armor units (may be required for more extreme wave
conditions)

71
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability
Advantage - increase stability, allow steeper slopes (less material required),
lighter weight
Disadvantage - breakage results in lost stability and more rapid deterioration.
Hydraulic studies have indicated that up to 15 percent random breakage of
doles armor units may be experienced before stability is threatened, and up
to five broken units in a cluster can be tolerated.
Considerations
• 1. Availability of casting forms
• 2. Concrete quality
• 3. Use of reinforcing (required if > 10-20t)
• 4. Placement
• 5. Construction equipment availability

**When using special armor units, underlayers are sized based on stone armor unit weight
72
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability
Hudson's Formula for Determining Armor Unit Weight:
Ref. Hudson, R. Y. (1959)
Formula is based on a balance of forces to ensure each armor unit maintains
stability under the forces exerted by a given wave attack.

W = median weight of armor unit

D = diameter of armor unit
γ
a= unit weight of armor
H = design wave height (note affect of cubic power on armor wt.)
KD = stability coefficient (Table 1 below, from SPM)
SG = γa/γw = ρa/ρw (gen. SG = 2.65 for quarry stone, 2.4 for concrete)
α = slope angle from the horizontal 73
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability
Hudson's Formula for Determining Armor Unit Weight:
Restrictions on Hudson equation:
1. KD not to exceed Table 1 (from SPM) values
2. Crest height prevents minor wave overtopping
3. Uniform armor units: 0.75W to 1.25W
4. Uniform slope: 1:1.5 to 1:3
5. 120 pcf ≤ γa ≤ 180 pcf (1.9 t/m3 ≤ γa ≤ 2.9 t/m3)

Not considered in Hudson equation

• incident wave period
• type of breaking (spilling, plunging, surging)
• allowable damage level (assumes no damage)
• duration of storm (i.e. number of waves)
• structure permeability
74
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability
Bottom elevation of Armor Layer (How deep should armor extend?)
Armor units in the cover layer should be extended downslope to an elevation
below minimum still water level equal to 1.5H when the structure is in a
depth greater than 1.5H. If the structure is in a depth of less than 1.5H, armor
units should be extended to the bottom.
Toe conditions at the interface of the breakwater slope and sea bottom are a
critical stability area and should be thoroughly evaluated in the design.
The weight of armor units in the secondary cover layer, between -1.5H and -
2H, should be approximately equal to one-half the weight of armor units in
the primary cover layer (W/2). Below -2H. the weight requirements can be
reduced to approximately W/l5 .
When the structure is located in shallow water, where the waves break,
armor units in the primary cover layer should be extended down the entire
slope.
75
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability
The previously-mentioned ratios between the weights of armor units in the
primary and secondary cover layers are applicable only when stone units
are used in the entire cover layer for the same slope.
When pre-cast concrete units are used in the primary cover layer, the weight
of stone in the other layers should be based on the equivalent weight of
stone armor.

γstone=165lb/ft3
SGstone=2.34

From Table

76
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability

77
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN

78
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN

79
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability
Modified Allowable Wave Height Based on Damage
The concept of designing a rubble-mound breakwater for zero damage is
unrealistic, because a definite risk always exists for the stability criteria to be
exceeded in the life of the structure.
Table 3 shows results of damage tests where H/HD=0 is a function of the
percent damage, D, for various armor units. H is the wave height
corresponding to damage D. HD=0 is the design wave height corresponding to
0 to 5 percent damage, generally referred to as the no-damage condition.
Information presented in table 3 may be used to estimate anticipated annual
repair costs, given appropriate long-term wave statistics for the site.
If a certain level of damage is acceptable, the design wave height may be
reduced.

81
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Armor Unit Size and Stability
3

82
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Under layer design
Underlayers Design
Armor Layer provides structural stability against external forces (waves)
Underlayers prevent core or base material from escaping.
Requirements:
• 1. Prevent fine material from leaching out.
• 2. Allow for sufficient porosity to avoid excessive pore pressure build-up
inside the breakwater that could lead to instability or liquefaction in
extreme cases

Note: requirements are in conflict, Engineer must provide an optimum

solution

83
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Under layer design

84
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Under layer design
(Guidance from Shore Protection Manual)
First Underlayer (directly under the armor units)
• minimum two stone thick (n = 2)
• (1) under layer unit weight = W/10
• if cover layer and first underlayer are both stone
• if the first underlayer is stone and the cover layer is concrete armor units
with KD ≤ 10

• (2) under layer unit weight = W/15 when the cover layer is of armor units
with KD > 10
Second Underlayer
• Minimum two stone thick, (n = 2)
• Under layer unit weight= W/200

85
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Bedding of Filter Layer Design

• Layer between structure and foundation or between cover layer and bank
material for revetments.
• Purpose is to prevent base material from leaching out, prevent pore
pressure build-up in base material and protect from excessive settlement.

• Should be used except when:

1. Depths > 3Hmax, or
2. Anticipated currents are weak (i.e. cannot move average foundation
material), or
3. Hard, durable foundation material (i.e. bedrock)

86
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Bedding of Filter Layer Design
• Cohesive Material: May not need filter layer if foundation is cohesive
material. A layer of quarry stone may be placed as a bedding layer or
apron to reduce settlement or scour.
• Coarse Gravel: Foundations of coarse gravel may not require a filter
blanket.
• Sand: a filter blanket should be provided to prevent waves and currents
from removing sand through the voids of the rubble and thus causing
settlement.
• When large quarry-stone are placed directly on a sand foundation at depths
where waves and currents act on the bottom (as in the surf zone), the rubble
will settle into the sand until it reaches the depth below which the sand will
not be disturbed by the currents.
Large amounts of rubble may be required to allow for the loss of rubble
because of settlement. This, in turn, can provide a stable foundation.
87
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Bedding of Filter Layer Design

88
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Bedding of Filter Layer Design

General guidelines for stability against wave attack.

• Bedding Layer thickness should be:
• 2-3 times the diameter for large stone
• 10 cm for coarse sand
• 20 cm for gravel

• For foundation stability Bedding Layer thickness should be at least 2 feet

• Bedding Layer should extend 5 feet horizontally beyond the toe cover
stone.
Geotextile filter fabric may be used as a substitute for a bedding layer or filter
blanket, especially for bank protection structures.

89
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Toe Structures
No rigorous criteria. Design is complicated by interactions between main
structure, hydrodynamic forces and foundation soil. Design is often ad hoc or
based on laboratory testing. Toe failure often leads to major structural failure.

Functions of toe structure:

• 1. support the armor layer and prevent it from sliding (armor layer is
subject to waves and will tend to assume the equilibrium beach profile
shape)
• 2. protect against scouring at the toe of the structure
• 3. prevent underlying material from leaching out
• 4. provide structural stability against circular or slip failure

90
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Toe Structures

91
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Toe Structure

92
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Toe Structure

93
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Toe Structure

94
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Low Crested Breakwater (from Sorensen)

Highest part of breakwater is at or below MSL

• 1. Stabilize beach/ retain sand after nourishment
• 2. Protect larger structures
• 3. Cause large storm waves to break and dissipate energy before
reaching the beach
Traditional high-crested breakwaters with a multi-layered cross section may
not be appropriate for a structure used to protect a beach or shoreline.
Adequate wave protection may be more economically provided by a low-
crested or submerged structure composed of a homogeneous pile of stone.
** Failure occurs by loss of stones from the crest. 95
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Rubble Mound Breakwater Design
• Low Crested Breakwater (from Sorensen)

96
DESIGN EXAMPLE

Rubble Mound Breakwater Design

RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Design Example

99
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
• Solution:

10
0
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Specify Design Condition
Still water level (SWL) = 5.5 m,
Design high water (DHW) = 1.7 m
Water depth h (or d) = 5.5 + 1.7 = 7.2m

Assume listed conditions are at structure toe.

Hs = H1/3 = 2 m
T = 8 sec
Lo = 100 m
Using dispersion relation, calculate L at h =7.2m [take d=h]
Lm=62m

101
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Specify Design Condition
Calculate depth limited breaking wave height at structure toe, compare with
unbroken wave height and use less of the two for design

Hb/hb ~ 0.78** [simplified breaking criteria]

at DHW: Hb = 0.78×7.2 = 5.6 m [hb=db]
at SWL: Hb = 0.78×5.5 = 4.3 m
**Alternative breaking methods may be applied.

Both waves heights are greater than Hs which means waves are not
breaking and design H=Hs=2m

10
2
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Set BW Dimensions (controlled by height & slope):

Set-up: waves are not breaking per the previous calculation therefore no set-
up
η =0
NOTE: there will be a set-down, but this will be neglected and considered an
added factor of safety unless required to reduce the structure size
Wave set up,

Overtopping Discharge (CEM VI-5, pp. 19-33)

10
3
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Overtopping Discharge (CEM VI-5, pp. 19-33)

From Table VI-5-8 ( given above):

slope 1:2 >> a = 0.013, b = 22
rock riprap > 2D50 thick >> γr ~ 0.55 104
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Solving we get;

Note
q=Q

105
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Run up:

106
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Run up:

107
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Run up:

108
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
BW Dimension Summary:
• Assumed
• structure is symmetric, α = αb
• no set-down
• no crown, hc = R
• total settlement = 0.1 m (adjust later)

109
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Armor Unit Design:
Assume Armor unit is rough quarry stone, 2 layers, no breaking >> Table
VI-5-22 applies

non-breaking waves, 0-5% damage, random placement: KD = 4

110
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Armor Unit Design:
sg = γa/γw = (2.5 t/m3)/(1 t/m3) = 2.5

111
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Armor Thickness:

112
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Armor Thickness:

113
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Under Layer Design:
The goal to reduce the size of the stone to at point where W/wcore ≤ 15-25,
where W is the stone in the layer covering the core.
Roughly, this gives a size of ~W/4000 for the core >> ½ lb stones, with 2 inch
diameter. If some other size is readily available, that might be the goal. Must
check to ensure the W/wcore ≤ 15-25 is met once the core over-layer is
known.

114
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Under Layer Design:

115
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
First Under layer:

~0.7m

116
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
First Under Layer:

117
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Second Under-Layer:

118
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Second Under-Layer :

119
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Core:
• Dynamic load requirement based on layer above:
• W/wcore ≤ 15 to 25 W=
• W = 4.5 kg
• wcore ≥ 4.5/25 – 4.5/15 = 0.18 – 0.3 kg

• Based on Armor Layer Thickness

W4000 =W/4000
• W4000 = 0.75 t/4000 = 0.00019 t × 1000 = 0.2 kg
• next larger available size is 0.23 kg

120
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Core design:

121
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Toe Design:

122
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Toe Design:

See next slide

Toe height, D = 0.76~0.8m

123
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Toe Design: (Tanimoto, K., Yagyu, T., and Goda, Y., 1982)

125
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Toe Design:

126
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Filter Bed Design:

127
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Structure Summary:

128
RUBBLE MOUND STRUCTURE DESIGN
Settlement & Bearing Capacity:
Similar to foundation eng…

129
THANK YOU