Neutrosophic Sets and Systems, Vol. 10, 2015

This volume is a collection of thirteen papers, written by different authors and co-authors (listed in the order of the papers): J. J. Peng and J. Q. Wang, E. Marei, S. Kar, K. Basu, S. Mukherjee, I. M. Hezam, M. Abdel-Baset and F. Smarandache, K. Mondal, S. Pramanik, A. Ionescu, M. R. Parveen and P. Sekar, B. Teodorescu, D. Kour and K. Basu, P. P. Dey and B. C. Giri, A. A. A. Agboola. In first paper, the authors studied Multi-valued Neutrosophic Sets and its Application in Multi-criteria Decision-Making Problems. More on neutrosophic soft rough sets and its modification is discussed in the second paper. Solution of Multi-Criteria Assignment Problem using Neutrosophic Set Theory are studied in third paper. In fourth paper, Taylor Series Approximation to Solve Neutrosophic Multiobjective Programming Problem. Similarly in fifth paper, Decision Making Based on Some similarity Measures under Interval Rough Neutrosophic Environment is discussed. In paper six, Neutralité neutrosophique et expressivité dans le style journalistique is studied by the author. Neutrosophic Semilattices and Their Properties given in seventh paper. Liminality and Neutrosophy is proposed in the next paper. Application of Extended Fuzzy Program-ming Technique to a real life Transportation Problem in Neutrosophic environment in the next paper. Further, TOPSIS for Single Valued Neutrosophic Soft Expert Set Based Multi-attribute Decision Making Problems is discussed by the authors in the tenth paper. In eleventh paper, Neutrosophic Quadruple Numbers, Refined Neutrosophic Quadruple Numbers, Absorbance Law, and the Multiplication of Neutrosophic Quadruple Numbers have been studied by the author. In the next paper, On Refined Neutrosophic Algebraic Structures. At the end, Neutrosophic Actions, Prevalence Order, Refinement of Neutrosophic Entities, and Neutrosophic Literal Logical Operators are introduced by the author

The Structure of Norms and Legal Uncertainty: A Framework for the Functional Analysis of Law as Transformed in Multi-Member Decision Mechanisms

Doctrinal studies of law describe relationships between conditioning legal facts and con-sequences, distinguishing between substantive and procedural norms. The latter constitute decision mechanisms that maintain the legal system’s norms. These mechanisms generate binding decisions—ordered pairs of facts and consequences—that may obtain the status of res judicata and become part of the norm system in the extensive sense. Functional analyses of law undertake to study agent equilibrium behavior under given norms, perceived as incentive structures. Characteristically, norms that are maintained through adjudication (or arbitration) are not complete or unambiguous: In the ex ante sense, consequences are not uniquely implied by relevant conditioning facts. This indeterminacy has profound implications: first, in multi-member decision mechanisms norm structures are systematically transformed; second, these transformed norms or incentive structures guide agent (equilibrium) behavior. These observations challenge the approach that currently prevails in legal theory, namely of considering substantive norms as abstract entities independent of procedural mechanisms. They also suggest opportunities for widening the scope of functional or repercussion analyses of law. This dissertation develops an analytical framework that seeks to enable the study of norm transformation in multi-member judicial decision mechanisms. The framework’s relevance is demonstrated through numerous examples showing how equilibrium out-comes vary with mechanisms shaping the incentive structures. The framework is developed using formal representation of norms and by ex ante identification of judges (arbitrators) and norms. These representations combine functional relations with basic notions from probability theory that are simple enough to be operative in equilibrium analyses, and, at the same time, rich enough to embody detailed aspects of procedural law. The framework facilitates: (i) distinction between “meta-norms” (the doctrine of sources and judicial method) and “ordinary norms” (doctrine in the customary sense); (ii) depiction of (possible) indeterminacy at both levels; (iii) modeling of multi-member decision-making; and (iv) simultaneous consideration of epistemic uncertainty. The identification of norms and judges envisions judging as commitment, in contrast to a preference-based, rational choice account. The approach combines insights from logical aggregation, case-space, and evolutionary theories. Under meta-level uncertainty, judges may base decisions on different substantive norms. Under ordinary-level uncertainty, they may reach different conclusions under the same substantive norm. In correspondence with standard conceptions of legal decision-making, judges applying law vote directly on outcomes or on substantive norm elements, not abstractly over substantive norms. The commitment notion assumes judges vote independently (non-strategically) as uncertainty is resolved. Both majority and super-majority aggregation rules are studied (the latter require default state specifications). Implications of sequential decision-making (bifurcation) and separation of (collective) decisions on law and facts are also analyzed. The framework is applied to a detailed analysis of the model of precaution, which has a prevalent and unifying role in many areas of law. Equilibrium precautionary investment is derived under uncertain negligence standards, and under mixed norms (uncertainty between strict liability and negligence). Continuous comparative statics reflects the parametric representation of uncertainty on both the meta and ordinary level. Discrete comparative statics reflects decision mechanism size. A condensed analysis of final-offer arbitration demonstrates that the framework is applicable to strategic environments. The norm representation enables one to distinguish between primary norms ex-pressing obligations and power-conferring secondary norms, which express discretion or options. This distinction is reflected in suggested law-in-force notions, with discretion motivating a forward-looking, means-end approach (in fact, partly due to logical problems arising under aggregation). Examples used to illustrate the benefits from detailed attention to norms structures include entitlement-protection in exchange economies and legal commitment mechanisms in strategic environments. Under indeterminacy, norm structures and induced equilibria vary systematically with decision mechanisms. This sensitivity, exacerbated by epistemic uncertainty, accentuates the question of evaluative criteria as discussed in legal and political philosophy. In reference to observed authority structures, the majority outcome in large panels is suggested as a benchmark, making possible a study of the link between (finite, real-world) mechanism choice and Type I and II error generation. Some analytical results may be of independent interest. Judicial panels trans-form marginal dimensions of incentive structures. This is important when conditioning legal fact sets are choice or strategy spaces for optimizing agents (level transformations correspond to Condorcet-type theorems). Second-order stochastic dominance is used to describe panel size effects on a domain of substantive norms. First-order stochastic dominance is used to compare unitary and bifurcated trials. Due to analytical challenges, some results are based on asymptotic theory. The equilibrium analyses are supported by simulations

Selection of Sustainable Short-Span Bridge Design in Brazil

[EN] Owing to the elevated cost of bridges, especially when compared to the cost of roads, their rational design and material selection are fundamental properties to consider when aiming to reduce the environmental impacts and lengthen the lifespan of the bridge. Especially in developing countries, the construction of new bridges (mainly short spanned) is still a necessity, and it is important that these new structures are designed according to all the sustainability parameters, instead of being based only on the construction cost. Thus, the present work aims to study short-span bridges by integrating environmental assessments into the decision-making process. To achieve this goal, three short-span bridge designs, proposed by public organizations in Brazil, are evaluated: Precast concrete bridge, mixed concrete/steel bridge, and timber bridge. In order to allow comparison, the same location and span are considered. The structures are evaluated considering the following quantitative aspects: Cost of construction, assembly and material transportation, lifespan, and environmental impact (measured by the global warming potential, GWP). In addition, some more subjective factors are considered, such as the architecture (layout and appearance) and the user¿s sensation of security. The selection is made by the adoption of two multi-criteria decision-making methods (analytic hierarchy process or AHP and Vikor). The results obtained with both methods indicate the mixed concrete/steel bridge as the most adequate alternative. Some additional analysis is performed in order to evaluate the influence of the qualitative aspects, as well as to study the importance of the variations in the costs on the results.The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) to the first author, the financial support of the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, along with FEDER funding (Project: BIA2017-85098-R) to the second author, and the support of the Brazilian Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) to the third author.Kripka, M.; Yepes, V.; Milani, CJ. (2019). Selection of Sustainable Short-Span Bridge Design in Brazil. Sustainability. 11(5):1307-01-1307-12. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11051307S1307-011307-12115Fonte, T. F. da, & Calil Júnior, C. (2007). Pontes protendidas de madeira: alternativa técnico-econômica para vias rurais. Engenharia Agrícola, 27(2), 552-559. doi:10.1590/s0100-69162007000300026Economical Short Span Concrete Bridges https://www.concreteconstruction.net/how-to/construction/economical-short-span-concrete-bridges_oVladimir, M., & Mihai, V. (2016). Economical Solutions for Short-span Bridges Using Reinforced Glue Laminated Timber and Steel. Procedia Engineering, 156, 227-232. doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2016.08.291García-Segura, T., Penadés-Plà, V., & Yepes, V. (2018). Sustainable bridge design by metamodel-assisted multi-objective optimization and decision-making under uncertainty. Journal of Cleaner Production, 202, 904-915. doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.08.177Yepes, V., Martí, J. V., & García-Segura, T. (2015). Cost and CO2 emission optimization of precast–prestressed concrete U-beam road bridges by a hybrid glowworm swarm algorithm. Automation in Construction, 49, 123-134. doi:10.1016/j.autcon.2014.10.013García-Segura, T., & Yepes, V. (2016). Multiobjective optimization of post-tensioned concrete box-girder road bridges considering cost, CO2 emissions, and safety. Engineering Structures, 125, 325-336. doi:10.1016/j.engstruct.2016.07.012Ardeshir, A., Mohseni, N., Behzadian, K., & Errington, M. (2014). Selection of a Bridge Construction Site Using Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process in Geographic Information System. Arabian Journal for Science and Engineering, 39(6), 4405-4420. doi:10.1007/s13369-014-1070-2García-Segura, T., Yepes, V., Martí, J. V., & Alcalá, J. (2014). Optimization of concrete I-beams using a new hybrid glowworm swarm algorithm. Latin American Journal of Solids and Structures, 11(7), 1190-1205. doi:10.1590/s1679-78252014000700007Gervásio, H., & Simões da Silva, L. (2012). A probabilistic decision-making approach for the sustainable assessment of infrastructures. Expert Systems with Applications, 39(8), 7121-7131. doi:10.1016/j.eswa.2012.01.032Penadés-Plà, V., García-Segura, T., Martí, J., & Yepes, V. (2018). An Optimization-LCA of a Prestressed Concrete Precast Bridge. Sustainability, 10(3), 685. doi:10.3390/su10030685Allah Bukhsh, Z., Stipanovic, I., Klanker, G., O’ Connor, A., & Doree, A. G. (2018). Network level bridges maintenance planning using Multi-Attribute Utility Theory. Structure and Infrastructure Engineering, 15(7), 872-885. doi:10.1080/15732479.2017.1414858Penadés-Plà, V., García-Segura, T., Martí, J., & Yepes, V. (2016). A Review of Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Methods Applied to the Sustainable Bridge Design. Sustainability, 8(12), 1295. doi:10.3390/su8121295Zavadskas, E., Antucheviciene, J., Vilutiene, T., & Adeli, H. (2017). Sustainable Decision-Making in Civil Engineering, Construction and Building Technology. Sustainability, 10(2), 14. doi:10.3390/su10010014Du, G., & Karoumi, R. (2012). Life cycle assessment framework for railway bridges: literature survey and critical issues. Structure and Infrastructure Engineering, 10(3), 277-294. doi:10.1080/15732479.2012.749289Gervásio, H., & da Silva, L. S. (2008). Comparative life-cycle analysis of steel-concrete composite bridges. Structure and Infrastructure Engineering, 4(4), 251-269. doi:10.1080/15732470600627325Hammervold, J., Reenaas, M., & Brattebø, H. (2013). Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Bridges. Journal of Bridge Engineering, 18(2), 153-161. doi:10.1061/(asce)be.1943-5592.0000328Itoh, Y., & Kitagawa, T. (2003). Using CO2 emission quantities in bridge lifecycle analysis. Engineering Structures, 25(5), 565-577. doi:10.1016/s0141-0296(02)00167-0Saaty, T. L. (2008). Decision making with the analytic hierarchy process. International Journal of Services Sciences, 1(1), 83. doi:10.1504/ijssci.2008.017590Zamarrón-Mieza, I., Yepes, V., & Moreno-Jiménez, J. M. (2017). A systematic review of application of multi-criteria decision analysis for aging-dam management. Journal of Cleaner Production, 147, 217-230. doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.01.092Manual de projeto e construção de pontes de madeira http://www.usp.br/agen/wp-content/uploads/Manual-de-Pontes-de-Madeira.pdfSantoro, J. F., & Kripka, M. (2017). Studies on Environmental Impact Assessment of Reinforced Concrete in Different Life Cycle Phases. International Journal of Structural Glass and Advanced Materials Research, 1(2), 32-40. doi:10.3844/sgamrsp.2017.32.40Zuo, J., Pullen, S., Rameezdeen, R., Bennetts, H., Wang, Y., Mao, G., … Duan, H. (2017). Green building evaluation from a life-cycle perspective in Australia: A critical review. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 70, 358-368. doi:10.1016/j.rser.2016.11.251Mahnert, K.-C., & Hundhausen, U. (2017). A review on the protection of timber bridges. Wood Material Science & Engineering, 13(3), 152-158. doi:10.1080/17480272.2017.1403955Concrete CO2 Fact Sheet www.nrmca.org/greenconcrete/concrete%20co2%20fact%20sheet%20june%202008.pd

Optimation Budgeting DistributionModel for Maintaining Irrigation Scheme

Utilization of palm oil by-product such as palm fronds, leaves, empty fruit bunches (EFB), fiber fruit juice (FFJ), palm to maintenance of irrigation structures are the activities carried out routinely in irrigation areas in order to obtain optimum performance. Required costs of maintenance is provided by government based on the commanding area of irrigation area without taking into account the characteristics of each irrigation area. On the other hand the fund which is provided by the government for the purpose of maintenance of irrigation assets amounting to 40 % of the required, so that necessary special tips is needed to take optimum result of the limited funds to choose which priority irrigation structures. While this selection irrigation structures are maintained/repaired just based on policy of decision makers only. The purpose of this research was to develop an optimization model for distribution of irrigation maintenance cost allocation for the irrigation areas and make selection to priority irrigation structures for maintenance in order to get optimum results. Location of the research is the Pondok Irrigation Area (IA) which located in East Java province. This irrigation area is part of the region Central River Region Solo. Pondok IA. consist of 4 irrigation areas, namely: Dero IA., Sambiroto IA., Padas IA. And Plesungan IA. The study was conducted in two stages : Stage 1 with the aim of allocating the cost of maintenance for each irrigation area in Pondok IA., which are Dero IA., Sambiroto IA., Padas IA. And Plesungan IA. Stage 2 with the aim of making choice for the priority irrigation structures are maintained/repaired on Dero IA., Sambiroto IA., Padas IA. And Plesungan IA. The method used is multi criteria analysis by Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) with using a soft ware expert choice 2000. To complete Stage 1used multiple criteria analysis of three levels, with the top level is Pondok IA., then the second level is below, named criterias which consists of four criterias, namely: Level of Urgency, Productivity, Commanding Area and Cost with in ratio of 4: 3: 2: 1. The lowest level is named alternatives which consisted of four irrigation areas, namely Dero IA., Sambiroto IA., Padas IA., and Plesungan IA. The data used in this research is PAI Solo data in 2011. Stage 2 of this study is selection priority structures in each irrigation area for maintenance / repair. In this analisis is used multi-criteria analysis also, where as the top level is the name of each irrigation area. As criteria there are three criterias, namely: Productivity, Service area, Cost of structure with the weight of each: 3: 2: 1. As the lower level is alternative, which here are the name of the proposed structures. The proposed structures and their specifications are taken from PAI Bengawan Solo data in 2011. The structures which analysed are the structures which in very urgent and urgent condition only. The result is a list of priority irrigation structures which would be maintained from each irrigation area. Results of the research Stage 1 : From costs available for Pondok IA. IDR 749,880,000.-. Dero IA., receive IDR 216,715,320.-; Sambiroto IA., receive IDR 207,716,760.-; Padas IA., receive IDR 173,222,280.-; and Plesungan IA., receive IDR 151,475,760.-. Results of the Stage 2 study is priority structures which would be maintained on each irrigation areas, namely: Dero IA., the name of the structures are: SSDOKa11, BDOKi1, BDOKa6, BDOKa15, SSDOKa14, SSDOKa15, SSDOKa17, SSDOKi1, SSDOKi

A comparative study of multiple-criteria decision-making methods under stochastic inputs

This paper presents an application and extension of multiple-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methods to account for stochastic input variables. More in particular, a comparative study is carried out among well-known and widely-applied methods in MCDM, when applied to the reference problem of the selection of wind turbine support structures for a given deployment location. Along with data from industrial experts, six deterministic MCDM methods are studied, so as to determine the best alternative among the available options, assessed against selected criteria with a view toward assigning confidence levels to each option. Following an overview of the literature around MCDM problems, the best practice implementation of each method is presented aiming to assist stakeholders and decision-makers to support decisions in real-world applications, where many and often conflicting criteria are present within uncertain environments. The outcomes of this research highlight that more sophisticated methods, such as technique for the order of preference by similarity to the ideal solution (TOPSIS) and Preference Ranking Organization method for enrichment evaluation (PROMETHEE), better predict the optimum design alternative

Decision-making through sustainability

From immemorial time, dams have contributed significantly for the progress of civilizations. For this reason, nowadays, there is a vast engineering heritage. Over the years, these infrastructures can present some ordinary maintenance issues associated with their normal operation or with ageing processes. Normally, these problems do not represent an important risk for the structure, but they have to be attended. To do it, owners of dams have to finance many ordinary interventions. As it is impossible to carry out all of them at the same time, managers have to make a decision and select the most “important” ones. However, it is not easy because interventions usually have very different natures (for example: repair a bottom outlet, change gates, seal a crack...) and they cannot use a classical risk analysis for these type of interventions. The authors, who are aware this problem, present, in this paper, a multi-criteria decision-making system to prioritize these interventions with the aim of providing engineers a useful tool, with which they can prioritize the interventions from the most important to the least. To do it, the authors have used MIVES. This tool defines the Prioritization Index for the Management of Hydraulic Structures (PIMHS), which assesses, in two phases, the contribution to sustainability of each intervention. The first phase measures the damage of the dam, and the second measures the social, environmental and economic impacts. At the end of the paper, a case of study is presented where some interventions are evaluated with PIMHS.Postprint (published version

Decision-making through Sustainability

From immemorial time, dams have contributed significantly for the progress of civilizations. For this reason, nowadays, there is a vast engineering heritage. Over the years, these infrastructures can present some ordinary maintenance issues associated with their normal operation or with ageing processes. Normally, these problems do not represent an important risk for the structure, but they have to be attended. To do it, owners of dams have to finance many ordinary interventions. As it is impossible to carry out all of them at the same time, managers have to make a decision and select the most “important” ones. However, it is not easy because interventions usually have very different natures (for example: repair a bottom outlet, change gates, seal a crack...) and because they cannot use a classical risk analysis for these type of interventions. Authors, who are aware this problem, present, in this paper, a multi-criteria decision-making system to prioritize these interventions with the aim of providing engineers a useful tool, with which they can order the interventions from the most important to the last. To do it, authors have used MIVES. This tool defines the Prioritization Index for the Management of Hydraulic Structures (PIMHS), which assesses, in two indivisible phases, the contribution to sustainability of each intervention. The first phase measures the damage of the dam, and the second one measures the social, environmental and economic impacts. At the end of the paper, it is presented a case of study where some interventions are evaluated with PIMHS

Integrating multicriteria decision analysis and scenario planning : review and extension

Scenario planning and multiple criteria decision analysis (MCDA) are two key management science tools used in strategic planning. In this paper, we explore the integration of these two approaches in a coherent manner, recognizing that each adds value to the implementation of the other. Various approaches that have been adopted for such integration are reviewed, with a primary focus on the process of constructing preferences both within and between scenarios. Biases that may be introduced by inappropriate assumptions during such processes are identified, and used to motivate a framework for integrating MCDA and scenario thinking, based on applying MCDA concepts across a range of "metacriteria" (combinations of scenarios and primary criteria). Within this framework, preferences according to each primary criterion can be expressed in the context of different scenarios. The paper concludes with a hypothetical but non-trivial example of agricultural policy planning in a developing country

Selection of earthquake ground motions for multiple objectives using genetic algorithms

Existing earthquake ground motion (GM) selection methods for the seismic assessment of structural systems focus on spectral compatibility in terms of either only central values or both central values and variability. In this way, important selection criteria related to the seismology of the region, local soil conditions, strong GM intensity and duration as well as the magnitude of scale factors are considered only indirectly by setting them as constraints in the pre-processing phase in the form of permissible ranges. In this study, a novel framework for the optimum selection of earthquake GMs is presented, where the aforementioned criteria are treated explicitly as selection objectives. The framework is based on the principles of multi-objective optimization that is addressed with the aid of the Weighted Sum Method, which supports decision making both in the pre-processing and post-processing phase of the GM selection procedure. The solution of the derived equivalent single-objective optimization problem is performed by the application of a mixed-integer Genetic Algorithm and the effects of its parameters on the efficiency of the selection procedure are investigated. Application of the proposed framework shows that it is able to track GM sets that not only provide excellent spectral matching but they are also able to simultaneously consider more explicitly a set of additional criteria