Alfaldo B. Baria

This study presents a three-dimensional numerical investigation of wave transmission over submerged breakwaters, with a focus on elucidating the role of structural permeability in wave energy dissipation. High-resolution simulations were conducted using FLOW-3D and rigorously validated against laboratory measurements reported by van Gent et al. (2023). The results show that permeable submerged breakwaters consistently yield lower wave transmission coefficients than impermeable configurations due to enhanced internal turbulence and porous-flow energy dissipation mechanisms. Building on the validated numerical database, a refined empirical wave transmission model is developed. Compared to the widely used formulation of van Gent et al. (2023), the proposed model reduces the root mean square error from approximately 0.045 to 0.022 while maintaining a high coefficient of determination (R² = 0.96). The improvement is most pronounced for moderate to high relative freeboard conditions, where existing models tend to underestimate transmission. A comprehensive parametric analysis further quantifies the influence of crest width, relative freeboard, and porosity on transmission behavior. The key scientific contribution of this study lies in establishing a validated numerical–empirical framework that explicitly captures three-dimensional turbulence–porosity interactions, enabling faster and more accurate prediction of wave transmission and providing a scalable alternative to extensive physical modeling for the design of submerged and reef-type breakwaters.