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Container on Barge (COB) facilitates intermodal transportation by transporting shipping containers on barge tows. COB has seen rapid expansion globally over the past 20 years, providing a cost-efficient, environmentally friendly, and congestion-reducing mode of container transportation. European countries have led COB transportation in both study and application over the past two decades. However, increasing interest is observed in both the USA and Asia. In this literature review and comparative analysis, 135 COB-focused peer-reviewed articles are reviewed and analyzed to systematically describe the development and current status of COB transportation research. The relevant literature is analyzed to reveal publication rates and titles, geographical regions of interest, research questions, applied methodologies, advantages of COB transportation, and key success factors. The aim of our effort is to provide information on various aspects of COB development among different regions in the world and to summarize the existing literature to support and guide future COB development.

In 2022, 2023 and 2024, flash droughts in the U.S. Midwest caused the lower Mississippi River to drop to record low levels during corn and soybean harvest season. Grain barges that move the crops downriver to New Orleans for export were forced to reduce their loads to avoid grounding. The load reductions and by extension the low river levels have been attributed as the causes for significant spikes in barge spot prices during the droughts, which for the transit from St. Louis, MO to New Orleans, LA climbed from an average pre‐drought maximum of $27/ton to as high as >$105/ton in 2022. A dynamic regression model was developed to test whether the barge rate highs might also be the result of high fuel costs over the same period. Results produced by the model not only support this hypothesis but indicate that the increases in fuel costs were the dominant reason barge rates spiked. The influence of the flash droughts on the other hand was estimated to account for ≤16% of the peak rates. These results are supported by the fact that the rates did not surge during past events when barge loads had to be reduced and shipping was delayed, including during flash droughts in 2012 and 2013.

BackgroundThe Port of Durban in South Africa has faced significant road congestion for many years. To address this, the fresh-produce industry proposed a cross-harbour container-handling barge system. The citrus industry requested this study to evaluate the potential carbon footprint impact of such a system on citrus exports transported in reefer containers around the port.ObjectivesThis study aimed to assess whether a barge system could reduce the carbon footprint of citrus exports and alleviate road congestion to improve the export supply chain’s efficiency.MethodUsing an exploratory case study with primary and secondary data, the research applied a deductive approach to theory development. Carbon emissions were calculated for three scenarios: the current system, the proposed barge system and a combined system.ResultsThe carbon emissions for the three scenarios are as follows: current system: 25.20 kg CO2e per reefer; proposed system: 17.43 kg CO2e per reefer; and combined system: 20.61 kg CO2e per reefer. However, the proposed system does not have sufficient capacity to handle all the reefer containers in a given citrus season.ConclusionThe combined system is the logical choice. The combined system shows a CO2e emissions saving of approximately 18% per reefer compared to the current system.ContributionThis study explores the carbon reduction and congestion alleviation benefits of a cross-harbour barge system at the Port of Durban. Unlike existing literature on inland waterway barge systems, it provides a port-specific analysis and is among the first to quantify CO2e emissions for citrus exports using a barge system.

The increasing demand for oil and gas requires the continuous development and revitalization of offshore platforms. One of the common methods for the installation of these platforms involves the utilization of crane barges for lifting operations. However, one of the main concerns is the longitudinal strength of these barges under various loading conditions, particularly during heavy lifting operations which can induce changes in trim. This research intends to perform a comprehensive analysis of the longitudinal strength of a crane barge during heavy lifting operations under different trim conditions. This study will employ advanced modelling and simulation techniques using software to accurately simulate the variations in loads and their subsequent impact on the structural integrity of the barge. The results will show the changes in load distribution, which will be systematically compared across different trim conditions. This analysis included calculations of shear forces and bending moments to compare the conditions of the even keel up to 1-meter trim by stern. Furthermore, this study will compare the ultimate shear force and bending moment obtained with its allowable as defined by the applicable standards and regulations to verify the structural integrity of the crane barge under the specified conditions.

The Defense Department is deploying an emergency mission to establish a temporary pier on the coast of Gaza for delivering up to 2 million humanitarian aid meals daily. The mission, led by U.S. Central Command and the 7th Transportation Brigade, will utilize the Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore capability (JLOTS) to begin delivery operations in May. JLOTS consists of a floating pier, a causeway attached to the shore, and logistic support vessels and barges for transporting the aid. DOD is working with regional partners to determine security for JLOTS. The 60-day timeline for JLOTS to become operational includes transporting components from Virginia to the Middle East.

The occurrence and bioaccessibility of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in soils and sediments are investigated by many studies, especially in territories exploited by mining and ore-processing activities, nearby agriculture-driven rural cities. Accordingly, the present study aimed at evaluating the geochemical properties, potential bioavailability, and risks for environment and human health of the most concerning PTEs of study area (Gafsa mining basin, Tunisia) such as Cd, Cr, and Zn in selected soil, sediment, and mining waste samples. The extraction of these solid matrixes by modified EU-BCR sequential extraction revealed that the most easily extractable fractions of each PTE were very low (first 2 steps, < 10%), Cd was mainly associated with the oxidizable phase (likely organic matter), and Cr and Zn were mostly found in residual mineral fraction (likely occluded in non-siliceous mineral phase). The total cumulative concentration of each metal was found to be higher in soil/sediment profiles and ore-processing wastes than in phosphate rocks, indicating a metal enrichment due to mining activities. The aqua regia extraction of representative sediment samples revealed that Cd, Cr, and Zn concentrations were higher than non-polluted sediment standards. In contrast, other elements as Cu, Mn, and Pb essentially arose from natural bedrocks. The Unified BARGE method was applied to assess the risk of ingestion by human beings and wild/domestic animals of contaminated sediment particulate prone to wind erosion and air dispersion in the arid conditions of study area. An higher oral bioaccessibility was found for Cd than Zn and Cr, most concerning in acid gastric phase than in sub-neutral intestinal environment.

Autonomous shipping is expected to be gradually adopted in the coming years. While many scientific studies in the field have focused on technological development, recent research has started to explore the effects of this innovation on the cargo transportation industry. This study investigates the economic dynamics that can drive logistics entrepreneurs to adopt teleoperated barges, a specific type of smart shipping. By conducting a case study of cargo transportation between two companies using roundtrips with trucks and barges, the study evaluates a modal shift to intermodal transport and looks into the conditions that are affected if barge teleoperation is implemented. A major conclusion of the study is that the transport distance, the equipment size, and the mix of captain-only tasks versus all the sets of crew tasks affect the expected economic gains that are obtained as a result of implementing smart shipping. In this case, a conventional modal shift to waterborne transport is already economically attractive. When opting to operate a smaller barge, teleoperation becomes preferable when a shore-control captain can only focus on exclusive sailing tasks and when more than one ship is monitored simultaneously.

Ship repair has gained prominence as a service offered at the shipyards following a crisis in the shipbuilding industry, which has seen a fall in demand for new constructions, causing many companies in the sector to stall, especially shipyards. For a repair yard to be economically viable, in times of crisis, cost reduction is essential to make a sustainable business, so this comparative study aims to check the technical and economic feasibility of this change in the type of dry-docking. The present work deals with a comparative study between the use of the longitudinal slipway and the airbags for dry-docking and repair of river barges. The study sought to identify data from the vessels used for this project, to verify the average displacement of these vessels to analyze the airbags' carrying capacity, as well as the size of the winch to perform the dry-docking service. Since most repair yards use leased areas, the flexibility achieved with the use of airbags, as well as the reduced need for investments in the area, are benefits provided by using them. This work presented satisfactory results for the use of river barge docking airbags as a competitive alternative in repair services.

The prevention of non-indigenous aquatic invasive species spreading into new areas is a goal of many resource managers. New techniques have been developed to survey for species that are difficult to capture with conventional gears that involve the detection of their DNA in water samples (eDNA). This technique is currently used to track the invasion of bigheaded carps (silver carp and bighead carp; Hypophthalmichthys molitrix and H. nobilis) in the Chicago Area Waterway System and Upper Mississippi River. In both systems DNA has been detected from silver carp without the capture of a live fish, which has led to some uncertainty about the source of the DNA. The potential contribution to eDNA by vectors and fomites has not been explored. Because barges move from areas with a high abundance of bigheaded carps to areas monitored for the potential presence of silver carp, we used juvenile silver carp to simulate the barge transport of dead bigheaded carp carcasses, slime residue, and predator feces to determine the potential of these sources to supply DNA to uninhabited waters where it could be detected and misinterpreted as indicative of the presence of live bigheaded carp. Our results indicate that all three vectors are feasible sources of detectable eDNA for at least one month after their deposition. This suggests that current monitoring programs must consider alternative vectors of DNA in the environment and consider alternative strategies to minimize the detection of DNA not directly released from live bigheaded carps.