Publications

Rusu, E., Goncalves, M. and Guedes Soares, C. (2011), “High resolution wave model simulations in the Portuguese nearshore”, Maritime Engineering and Technology, Guedes Soares et al. (Eds),Taylor & Francis Group, London, pp. 165-179

The performance of state of the art coastal wave models in the Portuguese nearshore are evaluated in the present work. This includes first the phase average coastal models, STWAVE and SWAN, and on the other hand the phase resolving models REFDIF and FUNWAVE. Some previous works that were carried out to implement and validate the above models are first outlined. This is followed by a brief description of the theoretical background of the wave models considered. The first field of experiments considered is Pinheiro da Cruz beach south of Lisbon characterized by smooth bathymetric contours. At this level the emphasis was put on performing comparisons in spatial frames concerning the field distributions of the main wave parameters provided by STWAVE and SWAN. The second target area considered is close to the Portuguese city Figueira da Foz almost equally distanced between Lisbon and Porto. In this location the bathymetry is rather irregular. Comparisons in the time domain are carried out in this area for a three-month period between December 1993 and February 1994. The third target area is a coastal sector located in the central part of the Portuguese continental nearshore, south of the city Figueira da Foz. Simulations with the models FUNWAVE and REFDIF1 were performed in parallel. The present work gives relevant information concerning the performances of different high resolution wave models as well as on the accuracy of their results in different coastal environments and for various forcing conditions.

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