Session B.17: Physical Modelling Testing

Leopoldo Franco, University Rome III

Congratulations to all authors of this excellent well combined session. Indeed scale and model effects, as well as 3D aspect, require due attention as outlined within CLASH project and in EurOtop, taking care about very low overtopping which are inevitably predicted with large scatter.

I appreciate the ‘overspill channel/ditch’ solution adopted to reduce overtopping (Cunnington et al, 2013): as you may know it was ‘patented’ by the Phoenician and then Roman engineers over 2000 years ago and it was again proposed and model tested in 3D some 15 years ago (Franco et al, Gela Breakwater, Coastal Structures 1999). Recently with Giovanni Cuomo (Cuomo G., Minnetti M. & Franco L. “A formula for the prediction of overtopping discharge at rubble mound breakwaters with over-spilling basin” (in Italian) GIIC 2005) we proposed a correction factor to account for such complex geometry for an overtopping prediction with the Neural Network: it would be nice if all the new model tests data will be made available for further analyses and update of our design tools (e.g. new EurOtop Manual).