Dynamic and discrete berth allocation problem in container port considering tidal effect

In this paper a dynamic and discrete berth allocation problem with objective of minimizing total departure delay in Shahid-Rajaee container port is studied. The matter in Shahid-Rajaee container port is low depth of its access channel. When low-depth tide occurs, vessels with deep-draft are not able to pass the channel. Thus they have to wait until high-depth tide occurs and the draft of access channel reach to a passable depth for the vessels. The proposed model is a mix integer linear programming model that is able to consider the effect of tidal phenomenon with each accuracy degree. For evaluating validation of the proposed model first the proposed model is compared to existing operations of Shahid-Rajaee container port. The results show that applying the proposed berth allocation model can improve operations and significantly decrease vessel delayed departures. Next sensitivity analysis for depth of the access channel is proposed. The results have shown dredging of the access channel could have significant influence in reducing departure delays and improving the operation quality of Shahid-Rajaee container port.