Widening the Panama Canal and U.S. ports: historical and economic impact analyses

ABSTRACT

The economic history of the U.S. illustrates how the role of many cities has been changed by being seaports or located on navigable rivers or lakes. Based on the widening of the Panama Canal in 2016, the West Coast ports that include the west coast seaports of California, Oregon, and Washington were expected to become less important, while the freight shares of the East Coast and Gulf ports would increase. By how much it has been not easy to measure or predict so far, but this study attempted to define some of the key parameters in the measurement. As well as several relevant background topics, both the demand- and supply-side versions of the National Interstate Economic Model, have been applied for the measurement of economic impacts. U.S. port authorities and policy makers at the local and national levels who respond and develop plans for coping with the new realities of the Panama Canal are able to understand the extent to which changes in shippers’ and land-mode transporters’ behaviors would undermine the logistics and the costs of their activities. Therefore, this study is important for a diverse spectrum of port development strategies in the U.S. to respond to the Canal expansion.     

Costs of air pollutants from shipping: a meta-regression analysis

ABSTRACT

This study estimated the external cost of air pollution from shipping by means of a meta-regression analysis, which has not been made before. Three pollutants, which were included in most of the primary studies, were considered: nitrogen oxides (NO_x), sulphur dioxides (SO₂) and particulate matters with a diameter of max 2.5 micrometres (PM_2.5). All primary studies included damages of health and a majority added impacts on agriculture and estimated the cost of air pollutants by transferring cost estimates from studies on costs of air emissions from transports in Europe. Different regression models and estimators were used and robust results were found of statistically significant emission elasticities of below one, i.e. total external costs increase by less than 1% when emissions increase by 1%. There was a small variation between the pollutants, with the highest elasticity for PM_2.5 and lowest for NO_x. Calculations of the marginal external cost of the pollutants showed the same pattern, with this cost being approximately six times higher for PM_2.5 than for the other pollutants. Common to all pollutants was that the marginal external cost decreases when emission increases. Another robust result was a significant increase in the cost of studies published in journals compared with other publication outlets. These findings point out some caution when transferring constant external unit cost of air pollutant from shipping, which is much applied in the literature, and the cost functions estimated in this study could thus provide a complementary transfer mechanism.     

Ti含量及冷却速度对Al-Mn-Ti合金组织的影响

采用高频感应炉对Al-Mn-Ti合金进行制备和研究,探究Ti含量及冷却速度对Al-Mn-Ti合金组织的影响.研究结果表明:未加Ti时,Al-Mn-Ti的合金组织由Al基体和T相准晶组成;加入Ti元素后,合金组织中出现花瓣状准晶Al_(72)Mn_(10)Ti_(18),随Ti含量的增加,花瓣状准晶增多,形状无明显变化;当Ti含量增加到7%时,组织中的Al基体消失,由T相准晶和花瓣状准晶Al_(72)Mn_(10)Ti_(18)组成.随冷却速度增加,过冷度增大,花瓣状准晶Al_(72)Mn_(10)Ti_(18)进一步生长形成树枝状的二次枝晶.     

船舶动力设备退化基线计算及预测方法

船舶动力设备在自身性能退化过程中的相当长一段时间内仍能完成规定功能,对具有重要特征参数或性能指标的船舶动力设备而言,若使用定基线进行健康状态评估会导致评估值连续较低甚至误报警问题。为了解决这一问题,以目标设备按性能退化时间序列采集的特征参数为研究对象,首先建立退化基线计算方法,利用滑动概率神经网络和性能可靠度与基线值间的转换函数获得目标设备的动态退化基线;然后建立ARMA预测模型获得预测参数,并与退化基线计算方法结合对退化基线发生动态变化的时间节点进行预测;最后利用海水泵对建立的方法可行性进行验证。结果表明,本文建立的退化基线计算方法能够获得动态基线,退化基线预测方法能够对动态基线的变化时间节点进行准确预测。     

Effects of perceived safety,involvement and perceived service quality on loyalty intention among ride-sourcing passengers

Transportation - Ride-sourcing services are increasingly popular since they were first introduced in the last decade. Particularly in developing countries where public transport systems have...     

高速铁路动态定价与票额分配协同优化研究

目前我国高速铁路票价制定还比较缺乏灵活的市场化机制,严重影响铁路运输企业收益和服务水平的提高。基于高速铁路旅客出行规律和收益管理策略,研究高速铁路动态定价与票额分配协同优化方法。在分析旅客出行价格需求弹性的基础上,构建基于Logit模型的客流弹性函数,考虑临近发车客票不涨价和运输能力等约束,建立以期望客票总收入最大化为目标的优化模型,设计一种基于超分方程的分步算法,求解不同时段下不同列车的最优票价与票额分配方案。以京沪高速铁路为例进行计算和分析,与固定费率票价相比,动态票价策略能保证服务水平,系统总客流需求下降0.73%,企业客票总收益提高4.95%。     

基于STAR-CCM+的螺旋桨水动力性能分析

文章运用公式将P4119螺旋桨二维坐标型值转换成三维坐标型值,导入Gambit2. 4软件建立几何模型。基于STAR-CCM+软件对该桨进行网格划分,设置边界条件和数值,仿真模拟不同进速系数下的转矩系数、推力系数、敞水效率和桨叶表面压力分布。经与试验值比较,误差均在10%以内,验证了计算结果的准确性,能够满足工程需要。     

Time-series analysis of remote-sensed chlorophyll and environmental factors in the Santa Monica–San Pedro Basin off Southern California

The time-series of remote-sensed surface chlorophyll concentration measured by SeaWiFS radiometer from September 1997 to December 2001 and the relevant hydrological and meteorological factors (remote-sensed sea surface temperature, atmospheric precipitation, air temperature and wind stress) in Santa Monica Bay and adjacent waters off southern California were analyzed using wavelet and cross-correlation statistical methods. All parameters exhibited evident seasonal patterns of variation. Wavelet analysis revealed salient long-term variations most evident in air temperature during El Niño 1997–1998 and in wind stress during La Niña 1998–1999. Short-period (<100 days) variations of remote-sensed chlorophyll biomass were mostly typical to spring seasons. Chlorophyll biomass was significantly correlated with air temperature and wind stress: an increase of chlorophyll biomass followed with 5–6-day time lag an increase of wind stress accompanied by a simultaneous decrease of air temperature. The mechanism of these variations was an intensification of phytoplankton growth resulting from the mixing of water column by wind stress and entrainment of nutrients into the euphotic layer.