Optimization of terminal airspace operation with environmental considerations

The rapid growth in air traffic has resulted in increased emission and noise levels in terminal areas, which brings negative environmental impact to surrounding areas. This study aims to optimize terminal area operations by taking into account environmental constraints pertaining to emission and noise. A multi-objective terminal area resource allocation problem is formulated by employing the arrival fix allocation (AFA) problem, while minimizing aircraft holding time, emission, and noise. The NSGA-II algorithm is employed to find the optimal assignment of terminal fixes with given demand input and environmental considerations, by incorporating the continuous descent approach (CDA). A case study of the Shanghai terminal area yields the following results: (1) Compared with existing arrival fix locations and the first-come-first-serve (FCFS) strategy, the AFA reduces emissions by 19.6%, and the areas impacted by noise by 16.4%. AFA and CDA combined reduce the emissions by 28% and noise by 38.1%; (2) Flight delays caused by the imbalance of demand and supply can be reduced by 72% (AFA) and 81% (AFA and CDA) respectively, compared with the FCFS strategy. The study demonstrates the feasibility of the proposed optimization framework to reduce the environmental impact in terminal areas while improving the operational efficiency, as well as its potential to underpin sustainable air traffic management.     

Hierarchal assessment of noise pollution in urban areas – A case study

Noise pollution in urban areas has many harmful effects on the citizens. There are varieties of noise generation sources of which the traffic noise could be a major source. The point which is perhaps less noticed is that sound level is not the only parameter to indicate the extent and intensity of noise pollution. Situation of urban land uses, distribution of population centers and types of passages can deeply affect the concern on this environmental issue but not with a similar ratio. This article presents an overlaying technique to define noise prone areas using all different factors involved. A case study was carried out in the District 14 of Tehran Metropolitan City where there are busy streets and highways. For this purpose, the share of each criterion in noise pollution intensity was determined using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). Afterwards, the map layers were overlaid based upon the relative importance of the criteria to get the final map on which the noise prone areas are specified. The developed method could be used as a tool for indirect estimation of noise pollution by which instead of direct measurement of the equivalent sound level, it would be possible to predict noise susceptible areas considering the most important influential factors.     

深圳地铁永磁同步牵引系统研究分析

牵引传动系统是轨道交通车辆装备实现机电能量转换的“心脏”单元,其性能在某种程度上决定轨道交通车辆的动力品质、能耗和控制特性,是轨道交通车辆节能升级的关键系统。而永磁同步牵引系统以其高效率、高可靠性和低能耗的优势特点,受到轨道交通行业的密切关注。文章阐述深圳地铁10号线永磁同步牵引系统批量装车概况,重点分析永磁同步牵引系统组成及优势,指出推广应用永磁同步牵引系统的经济和社会效益显著。     

Optimal bus fleet management strategy for emissions reduction

Transportation is a major cause for environmental degradation via exhaust emissions. For many transit-oriented metropolitan areas, bus trips often constitute a sizeable mode share. Managing the bus fleet, in particular updating buses to comply with the newer emissions standards, therefore, can have a substantial impact on transportation-induced air quality. This paper presents the approach of remaining life additional benefit–cost (RLABC) analysis for maximising the total net benefit by either early-retiring or retrofitting the current bus fleet within their lifespans. By referring to the net benefits for different bus types estimated by RLABC analysis, the most beneficial management scheme for the current bus fleet can be identified. Optimal bus fleet management (BFM) models based on the RLABC analysis for the operator and the government are developed. Then a government subsidy plan is produced to achieve win–win solutions, which will offer efficient and flexible management schemes. To illustrate the approach, the largest bus company in Hong Kong, which carries more than 23% of the total trips in Hong Kong, is taken as a case study example. Instead of adopting a fixed retirement plan, such as replacing buses at the age of 17 as is currently practised, the proposed method develops an optimal BFM scheme that progressively phases out buses or retrofits them. This study produces promising results to demonstrate the large benefit of this approach for optimal bus fleet management.     

A combined assessment of air and noise pollution on the High Line,New York City

The High Line is an elevated public park in New York City, transformed from an unused freight rail line. Pedestrians walking through Manhattan’s West Side can walk either on the High Line or on a footpath below. Using Manhattan as a laboratory, this paper offers a combined assessment of noise and particulate matter pollution for its pedestrians. Noise and PM_2.5 levels were recorded simultaneously for two cases (i) pedestrians walking on a footpath alongside road traffic and (ii) pedestrians walking on the elevated High Line. Testing took places over three days in autumn 2014. Results were analysed to investigate if pedestrians using the High Line would have a lower pollution exposure to those using the footpath below. Results showed statistically significant differences between the upper and lower levels in exposure to both pollution types. In order to quantify the overall impact, results are expressed through a combined air–noise pollution index. This index indicates that the average reduction in PM_2.5 and noise pollution along the High Line compared to the footpath below is approximately 37%.     

Tyre/road noise damping characteristics using nomographs and fundamental vibroacoustical relationships

Several studies have successfully developed laboratory and field measurement techniques to estimate tyre/road noise damping characteristics. However, laboratory–field noise correlations of pavement types in the form of nomographs is essential to cognize the pavements’ acoustical properties from a practical perspective. A toolkit that readily provides field tyre/road noise intensity of different pavement materials is needed. Thus, the main objective of this study was to develop nomographs with relationships for tyre/road noise versus pavement materials’ viscoelastic–vibroacoustical properties. Isothermal and isochronal nomographs of phase angle–tyre/road noise as toolkits were developed based upon well-established phase angle and noise intensities typical of mixtures, making the nomograph correlations very authentic, realistic, and novel along with benefit to predict tyre/road noise at any desired temperature and traffic speed (or frequency) combination. This study is envisaged to benefit in the discernment of road materials’ damping capabilities from vibroacoustical and field noise–viscoelastic relation aspects.     

Subjective-utility travel time budget modeling in the stochastic traffic network assignment

ABSTRACT

In this article, we propose a new model called subjective-utility travel time budget (SU-TTB) model to capture travelers' risk-averse route choices. In the travel time budget (TTB) and mean-excess travel time (METT) model, a predefined confidence level is needed to capture the risk-aversion in route choice. Due to the day-to-day route travel time variations, the exact confidence level is hard to be predicted. With the SU-TTB model, we assume travelers' confidence level belongs to an interval that they may comply with in the route choice. The two main components of SU-TTB are the utility function and the TTB model. We can show that the SU-TTB can be reduced to the TTB and METT model with proper utility function for the confidence levels. We can also prove its equivalence with our recently proposed nonlinear-expectation route travel time (NERTT) model in some cases and give some new interpretation on the NERTT with this equivalence. Finally, we formulate the SU-TTB model as a variational inequality (VI) problem to model the risk-averse user equilibrium (RAUE), termed as generalized RAUE (GRAUE). The GRAUE is solved via a heuristic gradient projection algorithm, and the model and solution algorithm are demonstrated with the Braess's traffic network and the Nguyen and Dupuis's traffic network.     

面向控制的SCR催化转化器温度模型

为了建立面向控制的SCR催化器温度模型,根据能量守恒和质量守恒方程并考虑热平衡中所涉及的换热过程不同,建立了4种SCR催化器温度的数学模型,并利用Matlab/Simulink构建图形化的计算模型。采用柴油机欧洲稳态循环(ESC)和欧洲瞬态循环(ETC)条件下的台架实测数据对模型进行检验,基于最大离散程度、拟合度和计算时间3个指标对模型进行评价和比较。结果表明,考虑催化器与废气和周围环境对流换热的温度模型具有良好的预测精度和实时性,更适合用于SCR控制策略。     

汽车运动噪声研究现状及展望

随着汽车运动速度的提高及汽车日益轻量化,汽车的车内外运动噪声越来越严重,影响行车的安全性、舒适性、动力性和经济性,也干扰其它车辆的行驶和附近居民的正常生活,其研究具有重要意义。分析引起运动噪声的主要噪声源,概述其形成机理,介绍其研究现状及方法,并对其发展进行展望。     

低温独立液舱曲面外板加工减薄量评估

基于耐低温合金材料的非线性特性,以某液化气船的低温独立液舱曲面外板加工成形过程为研究对象,研究其塑形变形过程及机理。利用ABAQUS作为计算分析工具,建立了板材原料及上、下加工模具的分析模型,给定冲压成形的时间和初始速度,并设定时间步长,考察每个时间步长的计算结果,分析了其加工过程中的弹塑性变形过程,评估了低温合金材料在加工过程中的板厚变化情况,并与实际加工测量值进行对比,验证了模型和计算分析过程的准确性。为各类低温独立液舱的设计和材料尺寸选用提供了技术支持和指导。