Abstract
This paper addresses the integrated problem of dynamic continuous berth allocation and time-variant quay crane scheduling in container terminals and introduces the factor of tidal impacts into the problem. We mainly consider the impact of tides on the transport capacity of an approach channel that connects quay and anchorage. An integer linear programming model is developed, and then three heuristic algorithms, Genetic Algorithm, Hybrid Particle Swarm Optimization, and Hybrid Simulated Annealing, are proposed to solve the model. Numerical experiments are conducted to verify the efficient performances of the proposed heuristics. Moreover, experimental results also demonstrate the nonignorable impact of tides on the vessel turnaround time and the utilization of berth and quay cranes.
Highlights
In the last decades, container shipping plays an important and irreplaceable role in the international trade due to its low shipping cost and high reliability
We investigate the integrated berth and quay cranes (QCs) scheduling problem with tidal impact in this work such that the turnaround time of any vessel relies on its schedule
The main contributions of this work are threefold. (i) We introduce the impact of tides into the integrated problem of dynamic continuous berth allocation and time-variant QC scheduling. (ii) An integer linear programming model is established and three heuristic algorithms are exploited to solve the model. (iii) Numerical experiments are conducted to reveal the nonneglected tidal impacts on the turnaround times of vessels and the utilization of berth and QCs
Summary
Container shipping plays an important and irreplaceable role in the international trade due to its low shipping cost and high reliability. With the quick increase of containership size, the processing schedule of vessels in many container seaports is much impacted by tides. Because their required deep drafts are usually more than the channel’s water depth, megacontainerships have to pass through the approach channel by the aid of tides. Many recent works [3,4,5,6,7] have addressed the impact of tides on the seaside operations in a container port These papers consider the tidal impact in berth allocation problem (BAP), in which the processing times of vessels are generally assumed to be constants.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have