Linear Diffraction and Radiation of Surface Waves by a Hollow Suspended Cylindrical Shell

A first-order analytical solution for the diffraction and radiation of ocean surface waves around a suspended hollow cylindrical shell is presented. We revisit the problem first studied by Garrett (1970), using a new and more direct technique to obtain the solution for the wave potential. Numerical results are presented for the combined diffraction and radiation problems, showing the wave field inside and around the structure. The results give fundamental insight into both the ideal design and placement of an Oscillating Water Column (OWC) device in the ocean, so as to extract the maximum possible energy from an incident plane wave field.