Numerical simulation of acoustic wave propagation with a focus on modeling sediment layers and large domains

Abstract: In this report, we study how finite differences can be used to simulate acoustic wave propagation originating from a point source in the ocean using the Helmholtz equation. How to model sediment layers and the vast size of the ocean is studied in particular. The finite differences are implemented with summation by parts operators with boundary conditions enforced with simultaneous approximation terms and projection. The numerical solver is combined with the WaveHoltz method to improve the performance. Sediment layers are handled with interface conditions and the domain is artificially expanded using absorbing layers. The absorbing layer is implemented with an alternative approach to the super-grid method where the domain expansion is accomplished by altering the wave speed rather than with coordinate transformations. To isolate these issues, other parameters such as variations in the ocean floor are neglected. With this simplification, cylindrical coordinates are used and the angular variation is assumed to be zero. This reduces the problem to a quasi-three-dimensional system. We study how the parameters of the alternative absorbing layer approach affect its quality. The numerical solver is verified on several test cases and appears to work according to theory. Finally, a semi-realistic simulation is carried out and the solution seems correct in this setting.