The oldest container terminal on the Rotterdam Maasvlakte is on the North Side of the Delta peninsula. This 2,700 m long quay wall dates from 1984 to 1991 and was designed for the “incredibly large” size of 6,600 TEU vessels. The current Ultra Large Container Ship (ULCS) of 24,000 TEU cannot be handled at the facility, so the facility is commercially outdated. Therefore, the Port of Rotterdam Authority (PoR) has studied how such an existing facility can be upgraded to a terminal capable of receiving 40,000 TEU vessels. These non-existing future vessels, labeled future 2, will have a length of 450 m, a beam of 75 m, and a design draft of 18.7 m. The upgrade needs a phased approach as the terminal stays operational during the works. All possible technical options have been studied in competition. PoR made preliminary designs for the two most likely scenarios, a caisson-based solution and a combined wall solution. The caisson design was selected as the prevailing solution, and the detailed design study is shortly discussed. There are some interesting challenges in using caissons in front of existing facilities. The caissons will however not be built due to changed plans. On the South Side, a similar quay wall still offered the possibility to be upgraded from 7,000 TEU to 24,000 TEU with the existing structure. But now these berths also reach the end of an economic lifetime if not adjusted. Extensive state-of-the-art FEM calculations and usage of various scientific field tests indicate that a deepening of 1.85 m is feasible, the usage of 25% heavier cranes (outreach 25 rows) and doubling of the bollard capacity from 1,500 to 3,000 kN per single bollard possible and that the remaining risks seem acceptable. So, ships of 26,000–27,000 TEU can be handled safely and tied independently in the future.
Upgrading or Replacing Container Quay Walls in the Port of Rotterdam
17th Triennial International Conference ; 2025 ; Providence, Rhode Island
Ports 2025 ; 1066-1077
29.05.2025
Aufsatz (Konferenz)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
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