The continuous maximum capacity path interdiction problem

Abstract

This paper studies the continuous maximum capacity path interdiction problem, where two players, user and interdictor, compete in a capacitated network. The user wants to send the maximum possible amount of flow through a path, whose capacity is given by the minimum capacity among its arcs. The budget-constrained interdictor decreases arc capacities by any continuous amount to reduce the quality of the user’s chosen path. We present an efficient algorithm based on a discrete version of the Newton’s method, which helps us solve the problem in polynomial time. We also prove that the problem can be transformed into a zero-sum game, which has always a pure Nash equilibrium point. We demonstrate the performance of our algorithm over a set of randomly generated networks.