Sloshing of Liquid in a Cylindrical Tank with Multiple Baffles and Considering Soil-Structure Interaction

In this study, the liquid sloshing in a cylindrical tank considering soil–structure interaction and undergoing horizontal excitation is investigated analytically. Multiple rigid annular baffles are positioned on the rigid wall to mitigate the liquid sloshing. Firstly, combined with the subdomain partition method for sloshing, the complex liquid domain is partitioned into simple subdomains with the single condition for boundary. Based on continuity conditions of velocity and pressure as well as the linear sloshing equation for free surface, the exact solution for convective velocity potential is derived with high accuracy. By yielding the similar hydrodynamic shear and moment as those of the original system, a mechanical model is developed to describe continuous sloshing, and parameters of the model are given in detail. Then, by means of the least squares approach, the Chebyshev polynomials are utilized to fit impedances for the circular surface foundation. A lumped parameter model is employed to represent influences of soil on the superstructure. Finally, by using the substructure method, a coupling model of the soil–tank system is developed to simplify the dynamic analysis. Comparison investigations are carried out to verify the effectiveness of the model. Detailed sloshing characteristics and dynamic responses of sloshing are analyzed with regard to different baffle sizes and positions as well as soil parameters, respectively. The novelty of the present study is that an equivalent analytical model for the soil–foundation–tank–liquid system with multiple baffles is firstly obtained and it allows the dynamic behaviors of the coupling system to be investigated with high computation efficiency and acceptable accuracy.