A multi-agent system (MAS) for supporting the planning of transhipments of imported finished vehicles via a seaport is presented. The focus is on storage allocation, i.e. the allocation of parking areas for the temporary storage of vehicles, and on deployment scheduling, i.e. the allocation of drivers to the vehicles that have to be moved in the terminal area. These planning tasks, which in pra...

The presence of pharmaceutical compounds in treated wastewater and in surface waters is a growing environmental concern. This paper provides information about general awareness of the issue, disposal practices, willingness to pay for a disposal program, and willingness to participate in a disposal program. The results are based on a telephone survey of 1005 residents in southern California. Les...

Abstract Studies in recent decades demonstrate the significant effect of stress configuration (e.g., vertical and lateral confinement) on shear strength or, this study, cone penetration test (CPT) results. Addition a surcharge over ground changes condition, consequently, CPT tip resistance. In results different CPTs conducted before after backfilling with various thicknesses land development pr...

A system of prefabricated vertical drains (PVDs) with a surcharge load is an effective method for accelerating soil consolidation by promoting radial flow. This study presents a three-dimensional (3D) finite element model for soft soil improved by a single drain. In the finite element analysis, the actual rectangular PVD cross-section is considered, and the equivalent drain diameter is then bac...

An anchored sheet wall is commonly used in retaining deep excavations. Anchor force is one of the critical design parameters in practice. Based on the kinematical admissible failure mechanism, a limit analysis approach to determine the anchor force is presented. The explicit formula for the anchor force is given, which makes it easy to calculate using a simple calculation program such as MS Off...

Installing stone columns in the ground is an effective improvement technique to increase the load bearing capacity and reduce the consolidation settlement of the loose or weak cohesive soils. In addition to the increase in the bearing capacity and reduction in the settlement, stone columns can accelerate the dissipation rate of the excess pore water pressure generated by the surcharge, which ex...

A system of vertical drains with combined vacuum and surcharge preloading is an effective solution for promoting radial flow, accelerating consolidation. However, when a mixture of soil and water is deposited at a low initial density, a significant amount of deformation or surface settlement occurs. Therefore, it is necessary to introduce large-strain theory, which has been widely used to manag...