Randomly placed, nonuniform, three-dimensional roughness with irregular geometry and arrangement is analyzed. New correlations are presented for such roughness for determination of magnitudes of equivalent sand grain roughness size ks from a modified version of the Sigal and Danberg parameter Λs. Also described are the numerical procedures employed to determine Λs from three-dimensional profilometry data. The sand grain roughness values determined with this approach are then compared with and verified byks magnitudes determined using: (i) analytic geometry for uniformly shaped roughness elements arranged in a regular pattern on a test surface, and (ii) measurements made with nonuniform, three-dimensional, irregular roughness with irregular geometry and arrangement. The experiments to obtain these measurements are conducted using this latter type of roughness placed on the walls of a two-dimensional channel. Skin friction coefficients are measured in this channel with three different types of rough surfaces on the top and bottom walls, and agree very well with values determined using the numerical procedures and existing correlations. The techniques described are valuable because they enable the determination of equivalent sand grain roughness magnitudes, for similar three-dimensional roughness, entirely from surface geometry after it is characterized by three-dimensional optical profilometry data.

A wave energy converter must be designed to survive and function efficiently, often in highly energetic ocean environments. This represents a challenging engineering problem, comprising systematic failure mode analysis, environmental characterization, modeling, experimental testing, fatigue and extreme response analysis. While, when compared with other ocean systems such as ships and offshore platforms, there is relatively little experience in wave energy converter design, a great deal of recent work has been done within these various areas. This paper summarizes the general stages and workflow for wave energy converter design, relying on supporting articles to provide insight. By surveying published work on wave energy converter survival and design response analyses, this paper seeks to provide the reader with an understanding of the different components of this process and the range of methodologies that can be brought to bear. In this way, the reader is provided with a large set of tools to perform design response analyses on wave energy converters.