关键词: 水路运输, 航线配船, 混合整数非线性规划, 集装箱班轮运输, 合作协议, 异构船队

Abstract: To investigate the problem of heterogeneous fleet deployment on shipping routes under collaborative agreements between port terminal operators and liner shipping companies, this paper analyzes the relationships among multiple time windows, multiple origin-destination times, and multiple loading/unloading rates within the collaborative agreement, as well as their interactions with vessel speed, ship configuration, and arrival/departure times. A mixed-integer nonlinear programming model is developed to minimize the total transportation cost over the planning horizon. A partial linearization solution method is designed, and the model is solved using a nonlinear solver. A numerical example based on the SEA3 route operated by COSCO Shipping Group is conducted to validate the applicability and effectiveness of the proposed model. The results show that, compared with scenarios featuring fixed port time windows, fixed loading/unloading rates, and homogeneous fleets, the collaborative agreement combined with a heterogeneous fleet reduces the total cost of the liner company by 5.98% , 15.31% , and 4.27% , respectively. Sensitivity analysis indicates that when fuel prices are high, the liner company does not continuously increase the deployment of large vessels but instead turns to small and medium-sized vessels as substitutes. When demand fluctuations are significant, the liner company proactively increases the number of deployed vessels to reduce the loading pressure per vessel and avoid excessively high speeds or prolonged port operation times caused by high-load operations. The findings provide references for liner companies decision-makings on heterogeneous fleet deployment and operational cost control under collaborative agreements.

Key words: waterway transportation, fleet deployment, mixed integer nonlinear programming (MINLP), container liner shipping; cooperative agreements, heterogeneous fleet