Experimental Comparisons of the Wave Attenuation Characteristics Among Different Flexible-Membrane Breakwaters
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe paper is interesting and the experiments are well described and performed. I am supportive of publication. I am not an experimentalist and my comments come largely from my experience developing theoretical models.
1) How do the results scale to realistic lengths and time scales.
2) What kind of modelling would be required to numerically simulate this problem. It was very unclear what properties the membranes had? What was the motivation for this choice of membrane geometry?
3) How reproducible were the results - there does not seem to be any analysis of experimental error.
4) What are the general trends from the numerical results, what are the next steps in this research. What is the key results from this study?
5) The picutures were of poor quality and difficult to make sense of. They should be uploaded in full resolution so we can blow them up and examine in detail.
6) I do not like the use of numbered list in conclusions - authors can choose to folow this or not as I understand it is perosnal preference.
Author Response
Please see the attachment.
Author Response File: 
Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThis manuscript offers an experimental contribution to the discipline of coastal and offshore engineering, with a particular focus on the design of floating breakwaters. The paper is well-structured and clearly written. The experimental setup is comprehensively described, demonstrating precise control over parameters such as wave height, wave period, and mooring stiffness.
However, the authors should explicitly acknowledge the limitations of their study, especially considering that real-world conditions typically involve irregular, multidirectional waves and three-dimensional effects, which are not addressed in the present work. Moreover, the paper presents experimental results without applying any statistical analysis. Critical information such as measurement errors, standard deviations, and repeatability assessments are absent, thereby limiting the ability to evaluate the reliability and robustness of the reported hydrodynamic coefficients.
Another noteworthy limitation is the insufficient comparative analysis of the mooring lines across the three different models. Given that the floating breakwater mooring system essentially operates similarly to mooring systems used in floating offshore structures (e.g., wind turbines), it is imperative that the authors include a comparative discussion supported by relevant literature. In particular, referencing seminal works such as Jonkman (2009), Tomasicchio et al. (2017), and Zhai et al. (2025) would strengthen the contextual foundation and validation of the mooring model behavior.
Jonkman J.M. (2009). Dynamics of offshore floating wind turbines-model development and verification
(2009). Wind Energy, 12 (5), pp. 459 - 492, DOI: 10.1002/we.347
Tomasicchio, G. R., Avossa, A. M., Riefolo, L.; Ricciardelli, F., Musci, E., D'Alessandro, F., Vicinanza, D. (2017). Dynamic modelling of a spar buoy wind turbine. Proceedings of the International Conference on Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering - OMAE, 10, DOI: 10.1115/OMAE2017-62246
Zhai, H., Yan, C., Shi, W., Zhang, L., Zeng, X., Han, X., & Michailides, C. (2025). Experimental Study on the Hydrodynamic Analysis of a Floating Offshore Wind Turbine Under Focused Wave Conditions. Energies, 18(15), 4140. https://doi.org/10.3390/en18154140
In summary, the manuscript requires substantial revision before it can be considered suitable for publication.
Author Response
Please see the attachment.
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
