On shallow water non-convex dispersive hydrodynamics: the extended KdV model

In this work, we investigate non-classical wavetrain formations, and particularly dispersive shock waves (DSWs), or undular bores, in systems exhibiting non-convex dispersion. Our prototypical model, which arises in shallow water wave theory, is the extended Korteweg-de Vries (eKdV) equation. The higher-order dispersive and nonlinear terms of the latter, lead to resonance between dispersive radiation and solitary waves, and notably, the individual waves comprising DSWs, due to non-convex dispersion. This resonance manifests as a resonant wavetrain propagating ahead of the dispersive shock wave. We present a succinct overview of the fundamental principles and characteristics of DSWs and explore analytical methods for their analysis. Wherever applicable, we demonstrate these concepts and techniques using both the classical KdV equation and its higher-order eKdV counterpart. We extend the application of the dispersive shock fitting method and the equal amplitude approximation to investigate radiating DSWs governed by the eKdV equation. We also introduce Whitham shock solutions for the regime of traveling DSWs of the eKdV model. Theoretical predictions are subsequently validated against direct numerical solutions, revealing a high degree of agreement.