Investigations into Relationship Between Significant Wave Height and Mean Wave Period in Nearshore Straits Under Typhoon Conditions

Abstract With the construction of coastal infrastructure in the complex environment of nearshore straits, accurate estimation of wave conditions during the passage of tropical cyclones is essential for reliable structural design. In this study, internal and external dependence relationships between height- and period-related parameters for typhoon-induced mean wave conditions in nearshore straits are established. Field measurements and Simulating WAves Nearshore (SWAN) + ADvanced CIRCulation (ADCIRC) simulations of waves in two straits on the east coast of China under historical typhoon conditions were used. In reference to field data, the developed external relationships provide closer estimates of the lower, expected, and upper bounds of waves than do the standard-recommended and literature-proposed models. The comparison of newly proposed internal relationships with standard-recommended empirical models indicates that the use of relationships currently recommended in practice can yield up to 2% taller heights and 14–38% shorter periods in nearshore straits prone to typhoon metocean conditions. The results of this study can be used to enhance analyses of the typhoon-generated wave environment and the design of coastal infrastructure in nearshore strait areas.