Operational research in energy and environment

[No abstract available

Environmental Externalities Score: a new emission factor to model green vehicle routing problem

In this paper, we introduce a new emissions factor referred to as the Environmental Externalities score (EES) as a measure of transportation network factors (e.g., gradient, rolling resistance, air resistance etc.) having an impact on fuel consumption of a vehicle. We express the EES by vehicle class (i.e. light-duty and heavy-duty) as a function of each one of these factors. We base our results on extensive bibliographic research and we provide comparisons between different routing scenarios. This novel emission factor is developed to define the objective function of the green vehicle routing problem. © 2015, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

Special volume on operational research on the interrelated application areas of energy, transportation and the environment

[No abstract available

Correction to: Generic approaches for the rescheduling of public transport services (Energy Systems, (2020), 10.1007/s12667-020-00393-w)

In the original version of this article, unfortunately series of errors have been introduced during the publication process that compromise the readability of the article to considerate degree. The errors refer to presentation issues and not issues that challenge the scientific evidence provided within the article. © 2020, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature

Accelerating techniques on nested decomposition

In this paper, we consider the nested decomposition method in the context of multistage stochastic problems with scenario trees where we contribute with improvements in accelerating convergence to optimum. We first propose a hybrid protocol for transmitting cuts across nodes aiming at a trade-off between the inherent benefits and drawbacks of the single (aggregated) versus multi-cut (desegregated) versions. The idea we aim to explore is to reduce the size of the problem solved at each iteration by applying the aggregated version of the cuts on the furthest nodes of the tree. We then turn our attention towards the selection of first-stage solutions by employing sampling and simulation aiming to carefully choose those first-stage solution that are potentially capable to drastically decrease the gap between the upper and lower bound at each iteration. The problems on which the latter technique is applied present a special structure, according to which the first-stage variables are linked to all further stages. We test both accelerating techniques on a generic problem which displays a blend of two-stage and multistage structure and we report significant savings in terms of CPU time and number of iterations to convergence. © 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

Critical overview of emission calculation models in order to evaluate their potential use in estimation of Greenhouse Gas emissions from in port truck operations

Transport is the fastest growing emission sector with road transport subsector to consist the largest contributor to global warming. Heavy Duty Vehicles used for freight transportation in particular, are responsible about 6% of total EU emissions. Main objective of this study is to perform the first critical review of the most well known, used and cited emission calculation models and evaluate their potential use in estimation of Greenhouse Gas emissions from port truck operations. These operations, which mainly include container transport by heavy duty vehicle, are characterized by frequent stop and go motions due to traffic congestion, low speeds and heavy idling. In total, 10 models were presented, reviewed, analyzed and compared for the first time. This review showed that two of the models that appear more frequently are MOVES and COPERT, and both of them are considered appropriate for use in case on in-port operations. However, analysis also showed that these models do not include parameters that are considered crucial in cases of truck operations in port terminals, such as the effect of frequent stop and go motions due to traffic congestion resulting from waiting queues in port gates and drop-off/pick up points. Thus in order for either model to be used successfully in port truck operations, modifications are needed. © 2018 Elsevier Lt

Modeling and solution approaches for crude oil scheduling in a refinery

One of the most critical activities in a refinery is the scheduling of loading and unloading of crude oil. Better analysis of this activity gives rise to better use of a system’s resources, decrease losses, increase security as well as control of the entire supply chain. It is important that the crude oil is loaded and unloaded contiguously in storage tanks, primarily for security reasons (e.g. possibility of system failures) but also to reduce the setup costs incurred when flow between a dock/ports and a tank and/or between a tank and a crude distillation unit is reinitialized. The aim of this book chapter is to present a review on modeling and solution approaches in refinery industry. Mathematical programming modeling approaches are presented as well as exact, heuristic and hybrid solution approaches, widely applicable to most refineries where several modes of blending and several recipe preparation alternatives are used. © 2018, Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature

Generic approaches for the rescheduling of public transport services

The current paper discusses the problem of the synchronization of public transit services through the rescheduling of their initial execution times. The objective of the analysis is the minimization of waiting time that occurs for passengers when they embark on journeys through a co-modal or a unimodal public transport network. Fundamental concepts of public transport and co-modality are discussed, and particular focus is given to the development of approaches that are practical and can be applied to the whole network and not just to some parts of it. Three instances of the problem of rescheduling are presented and further analyzed, and corresponding mixed integer-linear programming models are developed for their solution. The mathematical models aim to be flexible and applicable to a broad set of available datasets that have been homogenized according to the general transit feed specification. Parameters are used in the approaches in order to define the degree to which we want to change the existing way that services operate. Case studies are presented for Greek, Czech, and Slovak public transport networks, in which reductions from 1 to 20% in the overall waiting time of passengers are obtained. © 2020, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature

Correction to: Special issue title: Optimization and mathematical modeling in energy systems (Energy Systems, (2021), 12, 4, (835-839), 10.1007/s12667-021-00443-x)

In the original publication of the article, four articles already published to other issues were incorrectly included. These articles are: 1. Nikolaidis, Pavlos & Chatzis, Sotirios & Poullikkas, Andreas. (2020). Optimal planning of electricity storage to minimize operating reserve requirements in an isolated island grid. Energy Systems. 11. https:// doi. org/ 10. 1007/ s12667- 019- 00355-x. 2. Touš, Michal & Máša, Vítězslav & Vondra, Marek. (2021). Energy and water savings in military base camps. Energy Systems. https:// doi. org/ 10. 1007/ s12667- 019- 00354-y. 3. Atsalakis, George & Frantzis, Dimitrios & Zopounidis, Constantin. (2015). Energy’s exports forecasting by a neuro-fuzzy controller. Energy Systems. 6. https:// doi. org/ 10. 1007/ s12667- 015- 0140-1. 4. Nazari, Amirali & Keypour, Reza. (2020). Participation of responsive electrical consumers in load smoothing and reserve providing to optimize the schedule of a typical microgrid. Energy Systems. 11. https:// doi. org/ 10. 1007/ s12667- 019- 00349-9. The special issue does not contain the above papers. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 202

An Accelerated Benders Decomposition Algorithm for Solving a Double-Type Double-Standard Maximal Covering Location Problem

In this paper, a double-type double-standard model (DtDsM) for maximal covering location problem is proposed which has several applications in determining the location of public emergency facilities. DtDsM includes two types of facilities: normal and backup facilities. Although backup facilities have a greater coverage distance, they offer not a full service but only a primary service. In DtDsM, each demand point must lie within the coverage distance of a backup facility if it does not lie in the coverage distance of a normal facility ensuring it to receive minimal primary services within a predetermined time. Furthermore, an accelerated Benders decomposition algorithm is proposed to solve the model. The speed and accuracy of the algorithm are compared with the commercial solver CPLEX. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG part of Springer Nature