Similitude in Coastal Engineering

The basic principles of the engineering approach to similitude is given with emphasis on coastal engineering applications. In contrast to the parallel that exists between the Froude similitude and the Reynolds similitude as it is often formerly presented, the parallel between the similitude of short model and similitude of long model is stressed as the most practical engineering approach to scale model technology. Scale effects are determined quantitatively as the results of viscous damping and capillary effects. Density effects are examined, and the problem of similitude of wave forces—or more generally of time-dependent phenomenons—are quantitatively determined. Some digressions on movable bed scale models are also presented.