TID-4500, UC-35 Nuclear Explosions Peaceful Applications

LAWRENCE UVERMORE LABORATORY

LIS

UCRL-51235

A METHOD FOR ESTIMATING HEIGHTS OF WATER WAVES GENERATED BY UNDERWATER CRATERING EXPLOSIONS
W. J . Garcia, J r . MS. d a t e : Ju*e 7, 1972

-NOTICEThis report was prepared as an account of work, sponsored by the United States Government, Neither the United States nor the United States Atomic Energy Commission, nor nny of their employees, nor any of their contractors, subcontractors, or their employee, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, com pleteness or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights.

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Contents
Abstract Introduction Analysis of Data Numerical Calculations and Laboratory Experiments Conclusions References

A M E T H O D FOR ESTIMATING H E I G H T S OF WATER WAVES G E N E R A T E D BY UNDERWATER CRATERING EXPLOSIONS Abstract

This paper d e s c r i b e s a method to p r e dict the wave heights of water waves generated by underwater cratering e x plosions. The method of predicting wave heights is based upon underwater explosion data, the r e s u l t s of n u m e r i c a l model simulations, and laboratory e x p e r i m e n t s . We found that the r a t i o of wave height to s o u r c e displacement is independent of the details of the d i s p l a c e m e n t - t i m e history of the source motion. A method for s i m u lating water wave generation by u n d e r water c r a t e r i n g explosions with a n u m e r i c a l model is also d i s c u s s e d .

Introduction
In o r d e r to predict wave heights and wave c r e s t elevations of waves generated by underwater c r a t e r i n g explosions in shallow water, the e m p i r i c a l data from explosion t e s t s a r e analyzed and the r e sults a r e checked with a combination of n u m e r i c a l calculations and laboratory e x p e r i m e n t s . If nuclear explosives a r e used to excavate h a r b o r s , one safety feature that must be considered is the flooding caused by the waves generated by the explosion. Impulsively generated waves from nuclear explosions have many of the s a m e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s as other i m pulsively generated waves such as tsunamis (produced by ocean floor move ments from earthquakes) or waves p r o duced by landslides into r e s e r v o i r s or bays. Van Dorn published data c o m p a r ing waves produced by nuclear explosions with a large t s u n a m i . The major differ ence between explosion generated waves and other impulsively generated waves is the size of the s o u r c e motion compared with the water depth. Source displacement for the c l a s s of underwater explosions under consideration is large, about ten t i m e s the water depth, while the source displacement for tsunamis is small, l e s s than one hundredth of the water depth. In spite of the diClarences in source motion, the waves have the s a n c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . Both s y s t e m s a r e d i s p e r s i v e and both t r a v e l at about the shallow water wave speed. Since the s i m i l a r i t i e s in the s y s t e m s a r e much g r e a t e r than their difference, the same type of analysis can be used for both. In addition, the e m pirical data from underwater c r a t e r i n g explosions a r e particularly useful in

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developing relations between the explosive yield and source motion. These data have

been published in a previous paper on 2 this subject.

Analysis of Data
The water wave data from all the under water c r a t e r i n g explosions in shallow water were examined in light of the r e s u l t s of the laboratory experiments and n u m e r ical calculations for impulsively generated waves. The principal result, as it applies to explosion generated waves for large source motions, is that the ratio of the elevation of the first wave c r e s t to the s o u r c e displacement is independent of s o u r c e speed. The source speed is ex p r e s s e d h e r e in t e r m s of a rondimensional Froude number for the s o u r c e . The Froude number, N , for the source is defined as the total source displacement, \, divided by the product of the time for tne total displacement, T, and tne square root of the product of acceleration of gravity, g, and water depth, d in the vicinity of the s o u r c e . The explosion generated waves tend to have a large r a t i o of source displacement to water depth. The average A/d r a t i o for the underwater c r a t e r i n g explosions that have been deto nated is about 9.3 with a low of 5.1 and a high of 15.1. F o r explosion generated waves, the s o u r c e displ?cement, A., is assumed to be equal to the maximum radius of the water column, R c . The source for explosion waves is actually the bubble of expanding ga.se?, but the maximum radius of the bubble and water column a r e very close, and the water column radius can be readily measured. The water column radius was c o r r e lated to the yield and depth of burial of
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the explosion, resulting in the equation R

c

= 156 [Y/(D+33)J,1/3

(1)

H e r e , R is the maximum r a d i u s of the water column in feet, Y is the yield of the explosive in tons of TNT equivalent, and D is the depth of burial of the explo sive below the water surface in feet. Also, in the previous paper, the wave height defined a s the v e r t i c a l distance between the first c r e s t and following trough was related to the water column r a d i u s and distance from the source by the equation H = 0.16 R /R
(2)

o o

><
o an o X

Fig. 1. Ratio of elevation of first c r e s t to water column radius, H / T ; vs r a t i o of distance from s o u r c e to water column radius, R / R . All available shallow underwuter and underwater c r a t e r i n g data.
c c c

where H is the wave height as defined above, R is the radial distance from the source, and R is the maximum radius c of the water column. The elevation of the first c r e s t above the still water level, H , can also be determined in t e r m s of the maximum water column radius and distance from the s o u r c e . Figure 1 is a plot of H /R vs R/R for all available data from ' c c r a t e r i n g explosions in shallow w a t e r . The elevation of the first c r e s t can be expressed by the equation
H

0.10 R^/R.

(3)

Either the elevation of the first c r e s t or

wave height cf'the first wave can be calculated quu'kly and easily from the above equations. It is difficult to put accuracy limits on any af these equations since there have oniy been a few underwater c r a t e r i n ^ experiments conducted. Equa tions I., 2, a/id 3 provide a good approxi mation considering the wide differences in wave heights due to local variations in water depth and other surface d i s t u r b a n c e s . If the wave m o v e s into the vicinity of s h o r e o r through water of changing depth, t h e r e will je diffraction and refraction of the wavs that will modify the wave height. This may be of g r e a t importance with r e g a r d to flooding o r other wave damage.

Numerical Calculations and Laboratory Experiments

into the fluid; slope wall s o u r c e s with An experimental p r o g r a m was c a r r i e d slopes of 1 vertical to 1 horizontal and out at the Hydraulic Engineering L a b o r a tory at the University of California, B e r k e 1 vertical to 2 horizontal; and underwater step s o u r c e where the step height was ley in o r d e r to g.in more information one-half the water depth. All experiments about impulsively generated water waves were performed in two dimensions, the and also to verify the Eulerirn incom numerical calculations were also p e r p r e s s i b l e hydrodynamic modeling tech formed in two dimensions to conform to nique ABMAC (Arbitrary Boundary 3 the laboratory e x p e r i m e n t s . A detailed M a r k e r and Cell) with n a t u r e . The n u m e r discussion of the laboratory experiments 4 ical calculations also supplemented the is given by Garcia. data provided by the laboratory experi The vertical wall configuration was ments. The purpose of the program, designed to give general data concerning both laboratory and n u m e r i c a l was not to impulsively generated waves. The r e specifically model explosion generated sults of the vertical wall calculations a r e Wjves, but to generally r e s e a r c h the r e shown in Fig. 2. The Froude number, lationship between source motion and N , equals the total displacement of the wave c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , consequently simple source, X, (wall in this case) divided by configurations were chosen for the s o u r c e s . the product of the time for the total d i s Experiments and calculations were p e r placement, T, and the square root of the formed for a v e r t i c a l %vall source where product of acceleration of gravity, g, and the wail moves as a plunger, horizontally
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data indicate that in the r e g i m e of explo sion generated waves where X/d averages about 10, the ratio Hc /A should be independent of the Froude number N . The fact that explosion generated waves provide such a good correlation between wave c r e s t elevation or wavs height and the water column r a d i u s is a further indica tion that the p a r t i c u l a r s of the displacement-time history for the source a r e unimportant. F o r the explosion gen erated waves, the water column r a d i u s , R , is the analog of the source displace ment, X. Close to the s o u r c e (where X/d = 10.0 in Fig. 2), it can be assumed that R = R^, and Eq. 3 can be rewritten as Fig. 2. Relation between N = X/Wgd and H C / A for v e r t i c a l wall for d = 0.50 ft at X = 5.0 ft.
F

H /R

= 0.10

(4)

The N r number- vs the r a t i o of the elevation of the first c r e s t above the still water level to total source displacement, H /A, for various values of the r a t i o of source displacement to water depth, X/d. T h e r e is actually a considerable amount of s c a t t e r in the data in Fig. 2 due to the random nature of breaking waves. Since t h e r e is a stochastic element in water waves, they cannot be repeated exactly. This problem is e s p e cially c r i t i c a l in the case of breaking waves and waves close to the s o u r c e . F r o m F i g . 2, t h e r e a r e two regions where the r a t i o H /A is not greatly dependent on the Froude number for the s o u r c e , Nvpj these regions a r e for low Froude number and for large X/d. The latterregion is of particular importance with r e g a r d to explosion generated waves since the source displacements associated with explosions a r e l a r g e . The trend of these
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water depth, d.

which is completely consistent with the laboratory experiments and n u m e r i c a l calculations for the v e r t i c a l wall c a s e . One important r e s u l t of this analysis is the suggestion of a model of initial condi tions for simulating an underwater c r a t e r ing explosion with a n u m e r i c a l model such as ABMAC. Since the details of the source motion a r e not important, the explosion can be simulated by a vertical wall moving horizontally into the fluid with a maximum displacement equal to the water column radius calculated from Eq. 1 and a time for the motion estimated from the mound velocity. The wall should be displaced back to its initial position quickly after it has reached its maximum displacement in o r d e r to allow the water to flow back into the a r e a that would be the c r a t e r . This type of numerical simulation could be done in cylindrical s y m m e t r y and include important features of underwater

topography in o r d e r to give a more r e liable estimate of wave c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s than the v e of E q s . 2 or 3. There a r e problems associated with the numerical simulations, however. The problem r u n ning time and computer memory capacity a r e two major limitations. Due to the high velocities and l a r g e p r e s s u r e changes associated with source motion simulating explosions, the t i m e step between problem solution cycles must be s m a l l and the solution of the p r e s s u r e equation r e q u i r e s a l a r g e number oi iterations, both of which i n c r e a s e problem running t i m e . Additionally since the source motion is l a r g e , a large a r e a must be modeled r e quiring a large computational mesh which i n c r e a s e s both the computer memory r e quirements and running t i m e .
B

The siope wall and underwater step experiments w e r e designed to approximate ,.-!>t.er wave generation by a moving beach slope and submarine ridge, respectively. T h e r e were insufficient data taken for these cas^s to draw any conclusions. However, the r e s u l t s a r e consistent with the r e s u l t s of the vertical wall experiments and calculations. The second purpose of the laboratoryexperiments was to verify that the n u m e r ii al modeling technique r e p r e s e n t s nature accurately. Motion pictures were taken

of all the laboratory e x p e r i m e n t s . The water surface profile measured from the movie frames for ten of the experiments was compared to the water surface p r o files calculated with the n u m e r i c a l model for identical conditions. The experiments chosen for comparison were those which r e p r e s e n t e d the g r e a t e s t variations in conditions for the vertical wall, slope walls, and underwater s t e p . In all c a s e s , both the laboratory and numerically c a l culated water surface profiles had exactly the s a m e form. The maximum e r r o r between the laboratory and n u m e r i c a l profiles was 0.02 ft. The wave heights for all the experiments varied from 0.05 ft to 0.30 ft. Much of this e r r o r is due to the fact that the movie film could not be read any c l o s e r than 0.01 ft. The conclusion of the comparison is that the n u m e r i c a l model is a very good s i m u l a tion of nature for this type of p r o b l e m . A complete discussion of all the e x p e r i ments and the comparisons between the laboratory experiments and n u m e r i c a l calculations is given by G a r c i a . The discussion was omitted h e r e in t r e i n t e r e s t s of brevity since it does n<jt contribute directly to the problem of estimating wave c r e s t elevations and wave heights of waves produced by underwater c r a t e r i n g explosions.

Conclusions
The combination of the few empirical data, numerical model calculations, and laboratory experiments has provided a useful method for estimating the c r e s t elevation and wave height of the first wave resulting from the detonation of an under-5-

water c r a t e r i n g explosion. The c r e s t elevation or wave height can be related directly to the yield and depth of burial of the explosive thus giving a quick answer for the wave elevation or wave height at any distance from the s o u r c e . Refined

estimates can further be made by n u m e r ical simulation of the c r a t e r i n g explosion using the maximum column r a d i u s from Eq. 1 for the source displacement of a vertical wall s o u r c e . F u r t h e r refinements can be made by applying diffraction and refraction theory ( W i e g e r ) to the wave as

it moves away from the s o u r c e into water of varying depth. This may not be a major consideration close t o the source, but as the wave moves f a r t h e r away it will be f o c u s e d or dispersed depending upon the bottom t o p o g r a p h y it encounters.

References
W. G. Van Dorn, J . Geophysical R e s . 6, 11, 3845-3862(1961) W. J. Garcia, Water Waves Produced by C r a t e r ing Explosions in Shallow Water, Lawrence L i v e r m o r e Laboratory, Rept. UCRL-50940 (1970). J. A. Viecelli, J . Computational P h y s . . 119-143 (1971). W. J. Garcia, A Study of Water Waves Generated by Tectonic Displacements, University of California, Berkeley, Hydraulic Engineering Laboratory, Rept. HEL 16-9 (1972). R. I.. Wiegel, Oceanographical Engineering, (Prentice-Hall, I n c . , Fnglewood Cliffs, N. J . , 1964).

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