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Low-crested and submerged breakwaters are frequently employed as coastal defence structures. Their efficiency is governed by wave energy dissipation, and the wave transmission coefficient can evaluate this parameter. The current study conducts experimental investigations on both low-crested and submerged breakwaters exposed to different wave conditions to compare their performance with that of emerged breakwaters. The current study provides a comprehensive review of existing formulae and highlights the impact of design variables. To evaluate the reliability of each existing formula, four “reference” configurations are used. Having these structures at the same overall volume, the results also provide a useful tool for engineers involved in the lowering operation of existing breakwaters. Nature and magnitude of governing parameters are investigated, and some points of criticism are outlined. The comparison results show that few of the existing equations give reliable estimates of the transmission coefficient for all the models tested in this study. Higher values of root mean square error are related to the emerged breakwater rather than the submerged ones. To obtain information about the transmitted wave energy, spectral analysis is applied as well. Different behaviours of the transmitted spectrum, n terms of shape and peak frequency, are highlighted. The results improve the overall knowledge on formulae that are in the literature, in order to make the user more aware.

The paper presents the results of an experimental study carried out to investigate the effect of geometric and hydraulic parameters on energy dissipation and location of the hydraulic jump, with a change in the height of roughness elements and the divergence of walls in different discharges. Experiments were conducted in a horizontal rectangular basin with gradual expansion 0.5 m wide and 10 m long. Four physical models were fixed in the flume. The measured characteristics of the hydraulic jump with different divergences ratio (B = b1/b2 = 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1) and the inflow Froude numbers (6 < Fr1 < 12) were compared with each other and with the corresponding values measured for the classical hydraulic jump. The results showed that the tailwater depth required to form a hydraulic jump and also the roller length of the hydraulic jump and the length of the hydraulic jump on a gradual expansion basin with the rough bed were appreciably smaller than that of the corresponding hydraulic jumps in a rectangular basin with smooth and rough bed. With the experimental data, empirical formulae were developed to express the hydraulic jump characteristics relating to roughness elements height and divergence ratio of wall. Also, the applicability of some empirical relationships for estimating the roller length was tested.