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Semantics of Spectral Density for Ocean Waves

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INSTITUTE OF ENERGY SYSTEMS REPORT
Version 1b
Unlimited Release
Printed May 2013

Semantics of Spectral Density for

Ocean Waves
Mathew B.R. Topper

Prepared by
The School of Engineering
The University of Edinburgh
Faraday Building, The King’s Buildings, Mayfield Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3JL

The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336,
VAT Registration Number GB 592 9507 00, and is acknowledged by the UK authorities as a ‘Recognised Body’
which has been granted degree awarding powers.

Approved for public release; further dissemination unlimited.

2
 Version 1b
Unlimited Release
Printed May 2013

Semantics of Spectral Density for Ocean Waves

Mathew B.R. Topper

The School of Engineering,
The University of Edinburgh,
Faraday Building,
The King’s Buildings,
Mayfield Road,
Edinburgh, EH9 3JL

mathew.topper@ed.ac.uk

Abstract

This report seeks to clarify the potentially misleading semantics used to describe the spec-
tral density of ocean wave measurements. The spectral density can be named using either
signal processing convention or using the application of the spectral density for ocean waves.
It is proposed that the term “wave spectral density”, although more ambiguous than energy or
power spectral density, will cause less confusion in ocean wave energy communications.

3
 Nomenclature

Symbol Units Description

g m s−2 Acceleration due to gravity.

f Hz Frequency.
fmax Hz Highest recorded frequency.
t s Time.
y ∗ Time dependant signal.
CG m s−1 Wave group celerity.
Es m2 s Signal energy.
Ew J m−1 Wave energy.
Ew J m−2 Specific wave energy.
H m Wave height.
L m Wavelength.
Pw W m−1 Wave power.
Ryy ∗2 Autocorrelation function.
Sw ( f ) m2 s Wave spectral density.
Sw ( f , θ ) m2 s rad−1 Directional wave spectral density.
SE ( f ) ∗2 s2 Signal energy spectral density (sESD).
SP ( f ) ∗2 s Signal power spectral density (sPSD).
T s Signal record duration.
Y ∗s Frequency transformed signal.
θ rad Wave direction.
ρ kg m−3 Density.
τ s Sampling time lag.

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 Definitions, Applications & Recommendations

Wave Energy and Power

Under the assumptions of small amplitude wave theory, ‘wave energy’ is given by Sorensen [1993]
as
ρgH 2 L
Ew = (1)
8

where ρ is the water density, g is the acceleration due to gravity, H is the wave height, and L
is the wavelength. The units of Ew are kg m2 s−2 or J m−1 and, thus, are defined per unit width
of the wave. This is common practise when describing fundamental quantities for ocean waves;
indeed, the units of ‘wave power’, Pw , are kg m s−3 or W m−1 . Care must be taken when applying
these conventions for comparisons of fundamental quantities from applications outside of wave
energy. For instance, the assumption of uniformity along the width of the wave front may not fully
represent reality.

Spectral analysis of ocean wave climates seeks to quantify collections of superimposed waves
in terms of wave period, or frequency. The wave energy, as defined above, can not be used as a
spectral quantity, as it is variable across the wavelength of the wave. A more useful quantity is the
‘specific energy’ which provides the average wave energy over a wavelength. Following Sorensen
[1993], this is defined as
Ew ρgH 2
Ew = = . (2)
(1)L 8

The units of Ew are kg m s−2 or J m−2 i.e. energy per unit area. This area represents the extent
of the wave field when viewed from above, i.e., its geographical area. Again, care must be taken
when using Ew to compare with other energy sources, as assuming Ew to be constant across a large
geographic area may not be correct.

Signal Processing

The spectral (frequency) domain is an excellent way of classifying complicated combinations of

ocean waves, using the specific wave energy as a metric. The challenge, then, is to take real ocean
data and provide outputs in the spectral domain. Essentially, real time wave height data is collected
from surface tracking buoys and this signal must be converted from the time domain into the
frequency domain. It is therefore inevitable that the semantics of the signal processing community
should have become associated with wave spectra. To illustrate why semantics in signal processing
may lead to confusion for ocean wave scientists, consider the definitions of energy and power for
a signal.

5
 The total ‘signal energy’, Es , is defined by Emery and Thompson [1998] as
Z∞
Es = |y(t)|2 dt < ∞. (3)
−∞

Here, y(t) refers to some quantity that is measured over time, t. If y(t) were, for example, chosen
to be a wave height then the units of signal energy would be m2 s. Note that equation (3) demands
that the signal energy be a bounded quantity, and for this to be true y(t) must be the product of a
deterministic process, i.e non-random and with a distinct start and finish.

Assuming that y(t) is an integrable function, then the Fourier transform of y(t), Y ( f ), will exist
for frequency, f . The transformation into the frequency domain is given by
Z∞
Y(f) = y(t) exp−i2π f t dt. (4)
−∞

Following this definition, the ‘signal energy spectral density’ (sESD) is defined as the square of
the modulus of Y ( f ) or
SE ( f ) = |Y ( f )|2 , (5)
which results in a similar expression to equation (3), but now in the frequency domain. SE ( f ) will
provide the signal energy density at any frequency, f . Once again, if the measured quantity, y(t),
were wave height then the units of SE ( f ) would be m2 s2 .

Two problems occur with using sESD when signal processing ocean wave heights. Firstly,
equation (3) demands that the signal be deterministic and that the energy is bounded. For wave
energy neither is true: ocean waves are (in the majority) a stochastic process and thus have un-
bounded energy. Secondly, such a definition implies that, for data recorded over time T , the signal
power, Es /T , will be zero in the limit as T → ∞, which is not useful for electrical applications.

To overcome the problems with the sESD and allow for the processing of signals from stochas-
tic processes, the complete record is time-averaged using the signal processing ‘autocorrelation
function’. The autocorrelation function defined by Emery and Thompson [1998] is

T /2
1
Z
Ryy (τ) = lim [y(t)y(t + τ)] dt (6)
T →∞ T
−T /2

where τ is the sampling time lag. Equation (6) provides the squared units seen in equation (5), but
is also divided by time, T giving power rather than energy.

Subsequently, Ryy (τ) is transformed into the frequency domain to get the ‘signal power spectral
density’ (sPSD), given by
Z∞
SP ( f ) = Ryy (τ) exp−i2π f τ dτ. (7)
−∞

6
Again, if y(t) refers to wave height then the units of Ryy (τ) would be m2 while SP ( f ) would have
units m2 s.

In reality, neither of the above methods are used for calculating ocean wave spectra, with
discrete period sampling used instead. The detail of this concept is omitted here (see Emery and
Thompson [1998], page 413 for details), but the process generates an sESD, which is converted to
an sPSD by dividing through by the sample period, thus providing the expected units of m2 s.

Applications of Spectral Wave Density

The form of the specific wave energy, Ew , as defined by equation (2), provides a useful metric to
describe the energy of a wave field using a frequency spectrum for classification. Ew can also be
calculated from a spectral density, using a non-directional spectrum, Sw ( f ) for wave frequency f ,
as follows: Z fmax Z fmax
Ew = Ew ( f )d f ≡ ρg Sw ( f ) d f (8)
0 0
where fmax is the highest recorded wave frequency. The term Sw ( f ), with units m2 s or m2 Hz−1 ,
shall be referred to as the ‘wave spectral density’, a similar definition appearing in Goda [2000].
Note that Sw ( f ) shares the units of the sPSD, as defined by equation (7), yet Sorensen [1993] refers
to Sw ( f ) as the ‘wave energy density’. Judgement on this anomaly is reserved until the conclusion.

The specific wave energy can also be retrieved from a ‘directional wave spectra’, S( f , θ ) for
wave direction θ , using the following formulae:
Z fmax Z π
Ew = ρg Sw ( f , θ ) d f dθ . (9)
0 −π
In this case S( f , θ ) has units m2 s rad−1 .

In addition, wave power, Pw , can be calculated from the wave spectral density, with knowledge
of the group celerity for each frequency, CG ( f ). Thus, for a non-directional spectra,
Z fmax Z π
Pw = ρg CG ( f )Sw ( f ) d f (10)
0 −π
and when using a directional spectra
Z fmax Z π
Pw = ρg CG ( f , θ )Sw ( f , θ ) d f dθ . (11)
0 −π
CG has units of m s−1 , which when multiplied with those of Sw , ρ and g will give W m−1 , the units
of Pw .

Conclusions

The signal processing and wave energy definitions of spectral density have been introduced, and
representative SI units of those quantities derived. Most notably, the units of signal ‘power spectral

7
density’, m2 s, are identical to the units named by Sorensen as ‘wave energy density’. These
semantics have, inevitably, led to some confusion regarding the spectral density of ocean waves.

Using signal processing definitions, the well known spectral density used in ocean wave char-
acterisation is a power spectral density. Yet, the terms energy and power are loosly defined for
a signal and must be multiplied by other terms to get quantities which have the correct SI units.
Sorensen’s use of ‘wave energy density’ is most appropriate to the end use, which is to calcu-
late the specific energy of the wave field whilst wave power can also be calculated from Sw using
equation (10), for example.

It is therefore difficult to conclude as to whether the use of ‘power spectral density’ or ‘energy
spectral density’ for describing Sw is correct. Instead, the author believes that both terms are valid,
but the usage of either will lead to confusion. Instead, it is recommended that the term defined
earlier of ‘wave spectral density’ should be used, being careful to check that this quantity has units
m2 s.

8
 References
W.J. Emery and Richard E. Thompson. Data Analysis Methods in Physical Oceanography. Else-
vier Science & Technology, 1998. ISBN 9780080314341.

Y. Goda. Random Seas and Design of Maritime Structures (2nd Edition). Advanced Se-
ries on Ocean Engineering, Volume 15. World Scientific Publishing Company, 2000. ISBN
9789810232566.

R. M. Sorensen. Basic Wave Mechanics: For Coastal and Ocean Engineers. John Wiley & Sons,
1993.

9
DISTRIBUTION:

1 UoE Venki Venugopal, v.venugopal@ed.ac.uk

1 Lews Arne Vogler, Arne.Vogler@lews.uhi.ac.uk
1 Lews David Christie, David.Christie@uhi.ac.uk
1 Lews Charles Greenwood, Charles.Greenwood@uhi.ac.uk
1 Lews James Morrison, James.Morrison@uhi.ac.uk

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