Wave prediction in reservoirs: comparison of available methods

Owen, M. (1988) Wave prediction in reservoirs: comparison of available methods. Project Report. HR Wallingford.

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Abstract

Host wave prediction methods have been based on measurements carried out in oceanic and coastal waters, with fetch lengths and fetch widths very different from those found in most UK reservoirs. Several attempts have been made by various researchers to devise methods of wave prediction in reservoirs, but few comparisons with measured data are available. This report describes studies carried out to compare the results of six different wave prediction methods with measured wave heights in two Scottish reservoirs. Wind and wave conditions had been measured in Megget Reservoir for a previous study, but similar measurements in Loch Glascarnoch were commissioned especially for this project. All measurements were carried out by HR's Field Studies Section. None of the six wave prediction methods which were examined gave particularly good agreement with the measured wave heights for all windspeeds and wind directions in both reservoirs. Of the methods examined, the Donelan/JONSWAP method was probably the best: it gave fairly good agreement for a wide range of wind directions, and any errors in predicted wave heights were almost always conservative. The studies described in this report were funded by the Department of the Environment under research contract PECD 7/7/187, and formed a part of the research on reservoir safety recommended by the Department's Reservoir Safety Committee. The study was directed by Mr M W Owen, Research Manager of the Coastal Engineering Group, Maritime Engineering Department.

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