scholarly journals Assessing flooding impact to riverine bridges: an integrated analysis

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Pregnolato ◽  
Andrew O. Winter ◽  
Dakota Mascarenas ◽  
Andrew D. Sen ◽  
Paul Bates ◽  
...  

Abstract. Flood events are the most frequent cause of damage to infrastructure compared to any other natural hazard, and global changes (climate, socio-economic, technological) are likely to increase this damage. Transportation infrastructure systems are responsible for moving people, goods and services, and ensuring connection within and among urban areas. A failed link in this system can impact the community by threatening evacuation capability, recovery operations and the overall economy. Bridges are critical links in the wider urban system since they are associated with little redundancy and a high (re)construction cost. Riverine bridges are particularly prone to failure during flood events; in fact, the risks to bridges from high river flows and bank erosion have been recognized as crucial at global level. The interaction among flow, structure and network is complex, and yet to be fully understood. This study aims to establish rigorous practices of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for modelling hydrodynamic forces on inundated bridges, and understanding the consequences of such impact on the surrounding network. Objectives of this study are to model hydrodynamic forces as demand on the bridge structure, to advance a reliability analysis of the structure under the modelled loading and to assess the overall impact at systemic level. The flood-prone City of Carlisle (UK) is used as case study and a proof of concept. Implications of the hydrodynamic impact on the performance and functionality of the surrounding transport network are discussed. This research will help to fill the gap between current guidance for design and assessment of bridges within the overall transport system.

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-100
Author(s):  
Ali Bastin

The modified law of Iranian Administrative divisions has greatly altered the pattern of settlement in recent decades. The promotion of rural areas to urban areas has shifted from mere population standard to combined population-administrative standards. However, all censuses suggest that many rural areas reported as smaller than the minimum population standard have been promoted to urban areas. In the last two decades, this is a clearly prominent phenomenon in the urban system of Iran. This paper evaluates the effects and consequences of promoting small and sparsely populated rural areas to urban areas in the Bushehr province. The used methodology is analytic-descriptive using a questionnaire distributed among 380 members of the target population. Data analysis is conducted in physical, economic, social and urban servicing domains using one-sample T-test and the utility range. The results show that promotion of rural areas to urban areas has positive outcomes such as improved waste disposal system, improved quality of residential buildings, increased monitoring of the construction, increased income, prevented migration and improved health services. However, the results of utility range show that the negative consequences of this policy are more than its positive outcomes, which have been studied in detail.


2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (11) ◽  
pp. 2847-2865 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Albano ◽  
A. Sole ◽  
J. Adamowski ◽  
L. Mancusi

Abstract. Efficient decision-making regarding flood risk reduction has become a priority for authorities and stakeholders in many European countries. Risk analysis methods and techniques are a useful tool for evaluating costs and benefits of possible interventions. Within this context, a methodology to estimate flood consequences was developed in this paper that is based on GIS, and integrated with a model that estimates the degree of accessibility and operability of strategic emergency response structures in an urban area. The majority of the currently available approaches do not properly analyse road network connections and dependencies within systems, and as such a loss of roads could cause significant damages and problems to emergency services in cases of flooding. The proposed model is unique in that it provides a maximum-impact estimation of flood consequences on the basis of the operability of the strategic emergency structures in an urban area, their accessibility, and connection within the urban system of a city (i.e. connection between aid centres and buildings at risk), in the emergency phase. The results of a case study in the Puglia region in southern Italy are described to illustrate the practical applications of this newly proposed approach. The main advantage of the proposed approach is that it allows for defining a hierarchy between different infrastructure in the urban area through the identification of particular components whose operation and efficiency are critical for emergency management. This information can be used by decision-makers to prioritize risk reduction interventions in flood emergencies in urban areas, given limited financial resources.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marion Diaz ◽  
Zahra Thomas ◽  
Alain Prenveille ◽  
Nicolas Floch

<p>Adaptation to global changes and promotion of cities resilience requires the development of integrated approaches to take into account the urban critical area as a whole. The major challenge is to assess this integrated approach evolving the main actors taking part on critical zone management. One way to do so might be the development of a network of actors and scientists committed to the long-term evolution of practices and having a common strategy for territories use. The poster presents a case study aiming to implement an integrated water management strategy in urban development based on the organization of a network of territory actors and scientists. The methodology here presented was built to focus on three main questions: what specific problems does integrated water management reveal for the various stakeholders? What are their usual opportunities of exchange and information? And which organization allows them to solve their problems, while taking into account the pre-existing networks on water management?. To answer these questions, we conducted comprehensive interviews with water and development stakeholders and representatives of networking organization.</p><p>Our results highlights the need of collaborative development of urban projects between planners and water managers: each of them is confronted with a diversity of concerns related to several factors, such as</p><ul><li>their position as a stakeholder in the intentional management of water or in the effective management of water;</li> <li>the scope of responsibilities of local communities in the management of wastewater, stormwater, drinking water, biodiversity ;</li> <li>the specific regional characteristics (coastal territories, morphologies of urban area).</li> </ul><p>Moreover, the results show that the existing networks address partially some of the questions: the study highlights in particular the lack of dialogue and knowledge transfer between water management actors and urban development actors, resulting in the design of urban projects that are not adapted to the new standards of urban management (e.g. stormwater). In addition, research projects are emerging in relation to big cities issues, but are sometimes in competition with each other. Also, the dissemination of results remains reserved for cities already endowed with significant engineering capacities.</p><p>Improvements in the networking is required to promote integrated urban water management, we come up with three organizational scenarios including objective analysis of existing networks of the main actors. The implementation of an integrated approach to hydrological systems linked to energy efficiency in urban areas requires taking into account the critical zone as a whole.</p>


Author(s):  
Gianfranco Nicodemo ◽  
Dario Peduto ◽  
Settimio Ferlisi

Abstract. Buildings in subsiding areas may suffer from settlements causing damages of different severity levels with high impact in terms of yearly economic losses. In these contexts, a systematic damage assessment jointly with continuous monitoring of relevant parameters (e.g. settlements exhibited by points located on the roof) can be extremely useful to control the building behaviour and develop forecasting models. In this regard, the paper presents the results of an integrated analysis carried out on a subsidence-affected urban area in the Netherlands where the availability of multi-temporal building damage surveys and a long DInSAR monitoring dataset allowed both retrieving quantitative empirical relationships between the cause (magnitude of the selected intensity parameter, IP) and the effect (recorded damage severity level, DL) and generating empirical fragility and vulnerability curves. The results pointed out the importance of considering the exact dating of the onset of building damage and the corresponding magnitude of the considered IP in the generation of quantitative forecasting models.


Author(s):  
Tue Nguyen Dang

This research examines the factors affecting the financial literacy of Vietnamese adults. Using a sample of 266 observations of adults in 2 big cities in Vietnam (Hanoi and Vinh in Nghe An Province), the author evaluates the literacy level of adults in these urban areas. The financial literacy of the interviewed people is low. The multiple regression results show that lower financial literacy levels associate with higher age and married status and higher financial literacy levels associate with higher education, more family members, the person making financial decisions and the person attending a useful financial course. This research also explores the association between financial literacy and financial behaviors of individuals employing logistic models. It is found that higher financial literacy associates with less probability of overspending and higher probability of saving money and careful spending. Higher financial literacy is also found to associate with higher probability of opening a savings account and making various investments. 


Author(s):  
Ericka A. Albaugh

This chapter examines how civil war can influence the spread of language. Specifically, it takes Sierra Leone as a case study to demonstrate how Krio grew from being primarily a language of urban areas in the 1960s to one spoken by most of the population in the 2000s. While some of this was due to “normal” factors such as population movement and growing urbanization, the civil war from 1991 to 2002 certainly catalyzed the process of language spread in the 1990s. Using census documents and surveys, the chapter tests the hypothesis at the national, regional, and individual levels. The spread of a language has political consequences, as it allows for citizen participation in the political process. It is an example of political scientists’ approach to uncovering the mechanisms for and evidence of language movement in Africa.


2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 99-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alberto De Marco ◽  
Giulio Mangano ◽  
Fania Valeria Michelucci ◽  
Giovanni Zenezini

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to suggest the usage of the project finance (PF) scheme as a suitable mechanism to fund energy efficiency projects at the urban scale and present its advantages and adoption barriers. Design/methodology/approach – A case study is developed to renew the traffic lighting system of an Italian town via replacement of the old lamps with new light-emitting diode (LED) technology. Several partners are involved in the case project to construct a viable PF arrangement. Findings – The case study presents the viability of the proposed PF scheme that provides for acceptable financial returns and bankability. However, it also shows that the need for short concession periods may call for a public contribution to the initial funding to make the project more attractive to private investors. Practical implications – This case study is a useful guideline for governments and promoters to using the PF arrangement to fund energy efficiency investments in urban settings. It helps designing an appropriate PF scheme and understanding the advantages of PF to reduce risk and, consequently, increase the debt leverage and profitability of energy efficiency projects. Originality/value – This paper contributes to bridging the gap about the lack of works addressing the implementation of the PF mechanism in the energy efficiency sector in urban areas. The importance of this paper is also associated with the shortage of traditional public finance faced by many cities that forces to seek for alternate forms of financing.


2012 ◽  
Vol 512-515 ◽  
pp. 2135-2142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Peng Wu ◽  
Zhi Yong Wen ◽  
Yue Liang Shen ◽  
Qing Yan Fang ◽  
Cheng Zhang ◽  
...  

A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model of a 600 MW opposed swirling coal-fired utility boiler has been established. The chemical percolation devolatilization (CPD) model, instead of an empirical method, has been adapted to predict the nitrogen release during the devolatilization. The current CFD model has been validated by comparing the simulated results with the experimental data obtained from the boiler for case study. The validated CFD model is then applied to study the effects of ratio of over fire air (OFA) on the combustion and nitrogen oxides (NOx) emission characteristics. It is found that, with increasing the ratio of OFA, the carbon content in fly ash increases linearly, and the NOx emission reduces largely. The OFA ratio of 30% is optimal for both high burnout of pulverized coal and low NOx emission. The present study provides helpful information for understanding and optimizing the combustion of the studied boiler


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