Literature review on the hydrodynamic performance of floating breakwaters with various mooring systems

Department of Ocean Engineering, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember, Surabaya, Indonesia

^* Corresponding author: sujantoko@its.ac.id

Abstract

Floating breakwaters are among the most widely used coastal protection structures due to their flexibility, relatively low cost, and lower environmental impact than conventional rigid breakwaters. The hydrodynamic performance of floating breakwaters is strongly influenced by the mooring system employed, as it plays a crucial role in maintaining stability, controlling motion response, and determining wave attenuation efficiency. This literature study aims to examine and compare the hydrodynamic performance of floating breakwaters with three types of mooring systems: taut, slack, and hybrid. The discussion focuses on three main aspects: wave attenuation efficiency, evaluated through transmission, reflection, and absorption coefficients; motion response (RAO); and mooring forces, which affect the safety and reliability of the structure. The review findings indicate that taut mooring provides high stability and smaller motion response but generates larger mooring forces. In contrast, slack mooring offers greater flexibility at lower mooring forces but results in larger structural displacements. A hybrid mooring, which combines the characteristics of both, offers a promising compromise between stability and force reduction. Nevertheless, most previous studies have examined these aspects separately, leaving comprehensive research that integrates hydrodynamic behaviour and mooring response still limited. Therefore, further studies are required to evaluate and optimize the performance of floating breakwaters with various mooring configurations under different marine conditions.