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0 WATER TRANSPORTATION – INTRODUCTION

1. The Nature of Water Transportation

By its nature, water transportation is most suitable for bulky and heavy commodities that have to
be moved long distances and for which time of transport is not a critical factor.

Some of the most common classes of cargo transported by oceangoing ships are General cargo,
Bulk cargo, Heavy machinery, Motor vehicles, Wood and wood products, Livestock, and
Perishable foods.

General cargo is the most important class and it refers to a wide variety of packaged goods
including such materials as cutlery, hardware, and implements; electrical goods; fabrics; shoes,
leather, and other leather goods; pottery and glass.
Bulk cargo includes chemicals, dyes, grains, and crude and refined petroleum.
Heavy machinery is transported by ship to practically every nation in the world. For the most
part, the machinery is exported from the United States, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Denmark,
China and Canada.

One of the most important developments in water transportation to occur in recent years has been
the shipment of certain types of freight in large sealed boxes called containers.

2. The Coastal Environment

The design of durable port and harbour facilities is one of the most challenging problems that
face the engineer.
The environment of the seacoast is harsh and corrosive, and water transportation facilities must
be designed to withstand the various destructive biological, physico-chemical, and mechanical
actions that are inherent to the coastal environment.

Enormous forces of winds, waves, and currents are imposed on port and harbour structures.
• Wood structures must withstand the forces of decay and the attack of termites and other
biological life.

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 • Concrete structures must be designed and constructed to highest engineering standards to
prevent rusting of the reinforcement and spalling of the concrete.
• Without protection, steel structures corrode and do not last long in the coastal
environment.
DEFINITIONS
A HARBOR or harbour or haven, is a place where ships, boats, and barges can seek shelter
from stormy weather, or else are stored for future use. Harbors can be natural or artificial.

Pictures of Harbour
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A PORT is a location on a coast or shore within harbors where ships can dock and transfer
people or cargo to or from land.

Pictures of Port

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3. Wind
• Wind is the approximate horizontal movement of air masses across the earth’s surface.
• Winds result from changes in the temperature of the atmosphere and corresponding
changes in air density.
• Wind exerts a pressure against objects in its path, and this pressure depends on the wind
velocity. The equation for the calculation of wind pressure on a structure is:
p = KV2
where p is expressed in pounds per square foot, wind velocity, V, is expressed in miles
per hour, and K is a factor that depends principally on the shape of the structure.
➢ The values of K most frequently used range from 0.0025 to about 0.0040.

Considerable judgment is required in computing wind forces on coastal structures and port
facilities.

It should be noted that loading equipment (crane, etc.) generally would not be used when winds
exceed about 15 mph, and ships usually will not remain alongside a wharf during a severe storm.

Effects of Winds in Coastal Design

Winds in coastal design contribute to the formation of waves. Earthquakes, tides, and man-made
disturbances such as explosions and moving vessels may cause the generation of waves;
however, the waves of principal interest in coastal design are those formed by winds.

4. Currents
Current refers to the horizontal movement of water, which is generally associated with the
vertical rise and fall of the tide (i.e., tidal currents) or with water level differences such as river
or hydraulic currents.

Effects of Currents on Coastal Life

Currents impose: (i) velocity (drag) forces on fixed structures and moored vessels, (ii) they affect
navigation, (iii) transport ice and debris, cause scouring or deposition of bottom material, and
(iv) affect corrosion rates.

The engineer’s principal interest in currents lies in his or her efforts to stabilize erodible
shoreline and to maintain navigable inlets.
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5. Tide
The designer of port/harbour facilities requires some knowledge of the nature and effects of tide.
The tide is the alternate rising and falling of the surface of the oceans, gulfs, bays, and coastal
rivers caused by the gravitational forces exerted by the moon and sun and the rotation of the
earth.

The range of tide is a very important factor in the planning and design of marine facilities. Tide
ranges around the world vary from one foot (300mm) or less at offshore islands to 40 feet (12m)
or more inside certain constricted bays or basins.

In addition to the effects of the moon and sun, the magnitude and nature of a tide at a given
location and time will be influenced by:
a) geographical location; b) physical character of the coastlines; c) atmospheric
pressure; and d) currents.

Effects of Tide in Coastal Areas

At certain inland and landlocked seas, such as the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, the
tides are practically negligible. At other places, such as the Bay of Fundy, local topographical
peculiarities contribute to tides as high as 100 ft (30m).

High tide, Alma, New Low tide at the same fishing

Brunswick in the Bay of port in Bay of Fundy Tidal Waves
Fundy

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DEFINITIONS
• A bay is a large body of water connected to an ocean or sea formed by an inlet of land
due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds.
• Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond.
• A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight.
• A cove is a circular or oval coastal inlet with a narrow entrance; some coves may be
referred to as bays.

Gulf may refer to a large bay that is an arm of an ocean or sea

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6. Deterioration and Treatment of Wood Structures
• Port and harbour structures must withstand some of the most destructive environmental
conditions found in the world.
• This is especially true of piles and other elements of substructures, which are subject to
attack by marine life, as well as the corrosive effects of salt and sea.
• Generally, these destructive effects are most pronounced in a seawater environment.

Timber is the traditional material of waterfront construction. Timber is:

(i) durable, (ii) is convenient to work with, and (iii) possesses good impact resistance and (iv) the
ability to distribute loads effectively.

In waterfront structures, three forms of attack damage timber:

(a) decay, (b) insects (termites and wharf borers), and (c) marine borers.

➢ Decay and insects attack structures above water level while marine borers attack
structures below water level.

Pictures of Deterioration of Timber Piles due to decay and insect attacks

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Assumptions of marine borer attacked location
Wharf Borer

Marine borer damage to a buried pile

(Insert: A marine borer)

METHODS OF PROTECTION FOR TIMBER STRUCTURES

Many methods of protection for timber have been tried since the beginning of history and only
few have been proved to have permanent value. Some of the methods are listed below:
a. Maintaining unbroken bark on the timber structure so that the borers cannot penetrate.
b. Charring and Tarring
c. Coating the wooden pile with (gloss) paint to prevent the marine wood borers from
entering.
d. Pile armours method - covering the timber pile with materials such as steel, iron, zinc,
copper and fabric sheathings. Also included are concrete and cast-iron casings. This
mechanically prevents the borer from coming in contact with the timber.
e. Impregnation with toxics – This form of protection is the most generally used.

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 o It usually results in the lowest annual cost for the structure if treatment and
preservative are the best.
o A great advantage of this type of protection is that it also protects from decay,
termites, and wharf borers, as well as marine borers.
o The best and most reliable preservative so far known is coal tar creosote, used
in sufficient quantity and carefully applied.

Definitions
Charring: The wood is held for a few minutes in a fire until the surface is evenly and
completely converted into charcoal. This will be effectual only in well-seasoned woods.
Creosote. - The ends of timbers are placed in the creosote until they have drawn up into their
pores a sufficient quantity. As long as the creosote gives a perceptible odor to the wood; fungi
and insects, including even the white ants, leave the timber alone.

Timber logs being charred Charred Timber

7. Deterioration and Protection of Concrete Structures

Reinforced concrete piles in waterfront structures face unfavourable exposure conditions when
they extend from the harbour bottom into water and air. Such piles are subject to:
a) Abrasion by floating objects or scouring sand.
b) Chemical action of polluted waters on concrete.
c) Frost action on porous concrete.
d) Destructive action caused by rusting of the reinforcement and spalling of the
concrete. This is the most serious weakness of reinforced concrete piles when used in
waterfront structures. It is particularly serious when the structures are located in tidal

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 waters where alternate wetting and drying of the concrete due to the rise and fall of
the tide.

Spalling of precast reinforced concrete piles may be minimized by:

a. Deep embedment of the reinforcement
b. Use of dense, rich concrete.
c. Applying jackets of wood or metal from below to above the tidal range or
continued oil coating (in locations where oil floats on the surface of the water,
as near oil docks).
d. Careful handling of piles to minimize stresses and to avoid cracking during
placement.

Concrete Piles encased with polyethylene Steel piles encased in concrete

pipe

8. Deterioration and Protection of Steel Structures

▪ Steel piles in fresh water in most cases do not require protection.

▪ Where there is pollution from industrial wastes, the piles may be protected above the mud
line by the application of a suitable coal-tar coating before driving.

▪ For steel piles in sea water, a greater length of life can be expected from steel piling if the
piling is in protected waters than if subjected to wave action in the open ocean.

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 ▪ Deterioration may be accelerated rapidly by the abrasive action of water-borne sand
agitated by waves and currents. This condition is usually present only in shallow waters
where wave and tidal action is most active.

▪ Corrosion is usually more active in the part where the oxygen content of the water is
greatest.

▪ Corrosion may also be extremely active in the region of alternate wetting and drying of
the piles.

▪ Deterioration is also relatively greater in locations having a high temperature and a humid
atmosphere. Protective coatings or encasement with concrete will lengthen the life of
steel piles under this condition.

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