Research Focus Areas

Initial broad research focus areas for GLMRI were mandated by Congress. These general focus areas have been refined with input from the Maritime Administration and various stakeholders. Each year at the GLMRI annual meetings, discussion is had with the Advisory Board as to future areas of research that can build upon completed studies and take into consideration current issues and opportunities for research within the Great Lakes maritime community.

• Click here for a complete list of GLMRI research focus areas.

Current Studies

2008-2009 Funded Projects

• Economic Impact of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway System (GLSLS)
  Dr. David Doorn, University of Minnesota Duluth
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  This project proposes to evaluate the impacts associated with the existence of current Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway facilities. The project will build an IMPLAN data model and estimate the economic impact of both the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway, based on ports and industries in the region. The study region will include major ports and the Great Lakes region. The IMPLAN model will be utilized to derive the benefits stemming from the port system to the extended communities as well as throughout each state and the U.S. in general. The impact will look at which industries are directly impacted by the port systems and transportation sectors that extend from them, as well as the secondary economic effects stemming from the direct employment, output and value added measures. The effects will be reported as direct, indirect, and induced economic effects. Secondary impacts will be reported as indirect and induced effects. This evaluation can potentially be extended to include the value projected for future activities. The impact report will be of interest to all Great Lakes region stakeholders as well as for questions of national transportation policy. Reported impacts can be used to inform affected industries, St. Lawrence Seaway corporations, maritime industries involved with the Great Lakes ports, and government agencies that develop and maintain the Seaway infrastructure.

• Year 3: Building Sustainable Solutions to the Issue of Ballast Water Treatment: Testing Relationships Between Propagule Pressure and Colonization Success of Invasive Species
  Dr. Donn Branstrator, University of Minnesota Duluth
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  During the past century the use of ballast water by commercial ships has created a highly efficient, global transfer mechanism for invasive species. In an effort to eliminate ballast water as a viable vector, the U.S. Congress passed legislation that requires vessels to manage their ballast water through Ballast Water Exchange (BWE) or Ballast Water Treatment (BWT). It is widely recognized that no BWT technology can be expected to perform with 100% effectiveness. Hence, accepted standards will allow a certain level of biological pollution to escape in the post-treated water. Few experimental data are available from which to quantify levels of invasion risk associated with specific numbers of viable organisms released in ballast discharge (propagule pressure). This presents a serious challenge in identifying permissible thresholds for ballast water treatment technologies that will be environmentally protective. Our project experimentally evaluates the quantitative relationship between the size and frequency of populations of zooplankton in a new environment (propagule pressure) and their colonization success in an effort to help guide the International Maritime Organization in setting BWT standards for discharge. Experiments will be conducted in a series of mesocosms (each 1 m3 volume) housed at the Ballast Water Testing Facility in Superior, Wisconsin.

• Cold Flow Testing of Biodiesel Blends with Additives
  Dr. Daniel Pope, University of Minnesota Duluth
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  There are several potential advantages associated with the use of biodiesel blends in shipboard diesel-powered systems: reduced overall emissions, reduced engine wear through increased lubricity, and reduced consumption of petroleum. However, the increase in cold flow properties associated with the use of biodiesel could lead to operational problems during cold weather operations in ship systems exposed to the external environment. The increase in cold flow properties is related to the gelling of fuel at higher temperatures. Cold flow additives are usually mixed with the fuel to prevent gelling and plugging of fuel filters. The cold flow properties of a fuel are quantified via Cloud Point (CP), Pour Point (PP), and Cold Filter Plugging Point (CFPP) tests. The proposed project would consist of performing CP, PP, and CFPP tests on varying levels of soybean-based biodiesel blends with and without cold flow additives. The specific “brands” of cold flow additives used in the tests will be determined via consultation with ship operators on the Great Lakes. The amount of additive required when using biodiesel blends as compared to no. 2 diesel will be quantified. Multiple tests will be performed to define the variability of the test results. Results such as these would provide guidance for the appropriate amount of additive to use with a given biodiesel blend.

• Energy, Economic, and Environmental Tradeoffs Associated with Freight Transportation in the Great Lakes Region: Development and Application of the Great Lakes Geospatial Intermodal Freight Transportation Model
  Dr. James Winebrake, Rochester Institute of Technology
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  This project will build off last year’s successful development of an innovative, dynamic, network optimization model aimed at improving decision-making associated with freight transport in the Great Lakes region. The results of the 2007-08 project led to the creation of the Great Lakes Geospatial Intermodal Freight Transport (GL-GIFT) model. This GIS-based model allows for analysis of: (1) the economic, energy, and environmental impacts associated with Great Lakes freight movement, including the ability to make tradeoffs among different freight modes operating in the Great Lakes; (2) decisions related to various highway and intermodal facility infrastructure development; and, (3) decisions and policies aimed at improving maritime transport efficiency in the Great Lakes. The model provides a tool that allows users to conduct route analyses based on various network attributes, including: cost, time-of-delivery, distance, energy use, and emissions.

  This new proposal builds off of the GL-GIFT success, and is divided into two concurrently timed tasks. In Task 1, we will conduct several case studies that explore environmental, energy, and cost tradeoffs associated with freight flows in the Great Lakes region. Our hypothesis is that from an environmental perspective, Great Lakes marine shipping will demonstrate certain advantages when compared to other landside modes. These case studies will also help us refine our data and integrate with other data collection efforts ongoing through GLMRI.

  In Task 2, we will conduct outreach and a special workshop to introduce GL-GIFT to users. In both phases, we anticipate working with other GLMRI projects, government agencies, and the private sector to identify and improve the data supporting GL-GIFT.

• Determining if Microbiologically Influenced Corrosion is Responsible for the Accelerated Loss of Port Transportation Infrastructure
  Dr. Randall Hicks, University of Minnesota Duluth
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  The hypothesis guiding this research is that microbiologically influence corrosion (MIC) is responsible for the accelerated corrosive loss of sheet steel docks and bulkheads in the Duluth-Superior harbor (DSH). While data from our field research leads us to suspect that MIC may be responsible for the accelerated corrosion seen in this harbor, they do not provide conclusive evidence. A controlled laboratory experiment to examine this possibility is now justified, considering that we have isolated a bacterium from these corroding structures which is potentially capable of causing the corrosion and that sulfate concentrations are now known to be higher in waters near structures with the most severe corrosion. A microcosm experiment will be conducted to determine if the activities of iron-oxidizing (FeOB) and/or sulfate-reducing (SRB) bacteria are responsible for the accelerated corrosion loss of port transportation infrastructure. Results from this experiment will help conclusively demonstrate if the metabolism of microbial biofilms attached to these steel structures is accelerating the corrosive loss of maritime transportation infrastructure in this harbor. This laboratory experiment is a departure from our field-based research and represents a new line of inquiry that will help determine the cause of this accelerated corrosion and guide mitigation efforts

• Development of a Performance Evaluation Methodology for the Port/Terminal Sector Participation in the Green Marine Voluntary Environmental Program of the Saint Lawrence and Great Lakes Maritime Industry
  Dr. Lynn Corson, Purdue University
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  This project - a partnership between Purdue University, Green Marine and the American Great Lakes Ports Association - will complement and supplement the work completed to date by Green Marine in the development of its voluntary Environmental Program of the Saint Lawrence and Great Lakes Maritime Industry.

  The current environmental issues being addressed by ports and terminals include aquatic invasive species, greenhouse gases/pollutant air emissions, cargo residues and conflicts of use (noise, dust, light and odor). Each issue is defined by a recommended action plan for both collective and corporate actions and each has performance indicators established to measure up to five levels of performance by participants in Green Marine that seek “to minimize the environmental impacts of their operations and to continuously improve their environmental performance.” (Executive Summary, Green Marine Environmental Program, “Guiding Principles”)

  Members of the Great Lakes Environmental Committee (GLEC), one of two geographically-based committees of the Green Marine program and chaired by Co-Investigator Baxter, are currently discussing the inclusion of two or more additional port/terminal-related issues, which are expected to be identified by September 2008. The GLEC plans to identify 6 to 8 additional issues over the next three years.

  Through collaboration with Green Marine participants, its staff and other stakeholders, the project team will establish the definition and application of the indicators and levels of performance for the additional issues.

  The inclusion of the reference to “continuous improvement” in the Guiding Principles and the commitment of Green Marine to “encourage and support the adoption of environmental management systems to ensure continuous improvement” (Executive Summary, “Training R&D and Environmental Management Systems”) mandate that this feature of the program be emphasized in the project research. The level 3 criteria, “Integration of best practices into an adopted management plan…” underscores the importance of an EMS for Green Marine participants. This project will also provide technical assistance to participants interested in developing and/or implementing an environmental management system.

• Expanding Regional Freight Information Resources for the Upper Midwest Phase IV, The Great Lakes Maritime Information Delivery System: A Resource for the Regional Analysis of Intermodal Freight Flows in the Great Lakes Region
  Dr. Peter Lindquist, University of Toledo
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  This project is the fourth phase of a long-term endeavor to develop and manage a comprehensive data repository and information clearinghouse for the maritime industry in the Great Lakes. The project team will continue work devoted to the acquisition, storage, and management of data involving vessel and commodity flows, port facilities, physical characteristics of the lakes, navigation facilities, and the economy of the Great Lakes Region. In addition, the next phase of the project will concentrate more fully on identifying gaps in the database and acquiring the necessary data to remove those gaps. Work will also continue on implementing the data delivery system more fully. The general objectives of the project include the following:

  • Continued acquisition and manipulation of highly detailed current economic data over a wide range of sectors at the county level in the U.S.
  • Acquire and incorporate the necessary technology for receiving, processing and storing AIS data for tracking vessel movements in the system.
  • Integrate Great Lakes waterborne commerce data with additional data acquired for a wider range of modes in the upper Midwest from other funded projects
  • Work with industry partners and other researchers to identify gaps in the database and identify data sources to remove those gaps
• Great Lakes Marine Container Service Feasibility Study: Connecting Green Bay to Global Container Service providers serving ports on the St. Lawrence Seaway
  Dr. Earl Ray Hutchinson, Jr., University of Wisconsin-Green Bay
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  This analysis will investigate the feasibility of connecting the Port of Green Bay and its catchment area of approximately 300 inland miles to ocean carriers providing global container service accessing the Great Lakes via the St. Lawrence Seaway. An analysis of potential freight flows, user transportation requirements and container networks operated by Great Lakes vessels will be analyzed. A first year findings report will identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for connecting the Port of Green Bay to global container service providers operating in the Atlantic service.

• Erie Pier Re-Use Facility Phase II: An Optimized Cost-Effective Strategy for Increased Transport and Handling of Dredged Materials
  Dr. Hongyi Chen, University of Minnesota Duluth
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  Growing constraints on options for placing dredged materials at the Erie Pier CDF urged action on a plan for re-cycling the material being placed at the pier. A recycle operation was studied. The findings for the project “Process Re-Use Cost and Market Analysis,” which studied removal of dredged materials from Erie Pier CDF, reconfigured as a re-use facility, under a break-even strategy, will be presented by the Erie Pier Phase I team in the fall of 2008. Phase I of the Erie Pier project is based on cost minimization rather than profit maximization. Landed costs and re-use facility cost analysis from Phase I suggest that significant removal of fines material from Erie Pier may require additional infrastructure to expedite. Therefore, Phase II of this project, described in this proposal, will propose a cost-effective strategy for increased transport and handling of commodities. Infrastructure improvements will be suggested. A systematic approach will be used in developing the optimized strategy, so that findings from this project will continue to be of use as a model for other ports for the Great Lakes.

Completed Studies

• Main Report: GLMRI Annual Report (Oct. 2007 – Oct. 2008)

2007-2008 Projects

• Environmental Effects of Marine Transportation: Develop an Environmental Management System Model
  Lynn Corson, Purdue University
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  The American Great Lakes Ports Association (AGLPA) partnered with the Clean Manufacturing Technology Institute (CMTI) at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana to examine the environmental management aspects of port operations, including the oversight of tenant operations that could negatively impact the environment. As a component of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Maritime Industry’s "Green Marine" initiative, AGLPA approached Purdue University (CMTI) in 2006 to assist them in developing a project to: 1) survey environmental practices at Great Lakes ports, 2) compile a catalogue of best management practices for port operations, and 3) develop a simplified Environmental Management System tool that would help small port entities improve environmental performance.

  The project evaluated twelve U.S. and Canadian ports with regard to a host of environmental issues. The goal was to identify areas of opportunity at Great Lakes ports for environmental improvement. Perhaps of greatest use, the project developed a manual of best practices that will assist small ports in finding ways to manage environmental issues within limited budget and staff resources. The research was conducted via two-day site visits to each of the twelve ports and interviews with port and tenant personnel, tours of port/tenant facilities and internet and other document research.

• Great Lakes Maritime Transportation K-12 Education Program for Teachers, Students & Communities
  Ms. Joan Chadde, Michigan Technological University
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  To address the need for an informed citizenry, this project addressed the GLMRI Focus Area of K-12 public education and outreach programs and provided several venues to address this area through Michigan Technological University’s Western U.P. Center for Science, Mathematics & Environmental Education. Throughout this project, we:

  • Conducted a 2-day lesson-writing workshop for pre/post-visit use by classroom teachers at Whitefish Point Lighthouse in Paradise, MI, in partnership with the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society
  • Conducted three teacher workshops in Hancock, Sault Ste. Marie, and Alpena, Michigan in partnership with two intermediate school districts and the Thunder Bay Marine Sanctuar
  • Conducted a 6-day summer teacher institute in Duluth, Minnesota
  • Assembled and disseminated 12 Great Lakes Maritime Transportation Education Treasure Chests to museums and education centers in PA, MI, WI, MN with financial support from Lake Carriers’ Association
  • Made four conference presentations at the Michigan Science Teachers Association, Michigan Council of Social Studies Teachers, National Science Teachers Association, and the Ship Operators Cooperative Program
  • Provided incentives for program participants to conduct conference presentations and submit articles related to Great Lakes shipping
  • Completed the text and graphic design for "F is for Freighter: An Introduction to Great Lakes Shipping," maintained the Great Lakes Maritime Transportation Education website
  • Completed the text and graphic design for "K-8 Great Lakes Maritime Transportation Lessons."
    
• Intermodal Freight Transport in the Great Lakes: Development and Application of a Great Lakes Geographic Intermodal Freight Transport Model
  Dr. James J. Winebrake, Rochester Institute of Technology
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  The Great Lakes region is an important corridor for freight transportation in the United States (US).  The region serves as a connection between the Midwest and the Eastern seaboard and includes such major industrial cities as Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, Buffalo, and Toronto, among others. Within this region, three modes of freight transportation dominate: rail, truck, and ship.  Each of these modes presents a different set of attributes to shippers, consumers, and society, including: economic costs, time-of-delivery, environmental impact, reliability, and energy use.

  For the most part, shipping decisions in the Great Lakes region (as in other parts of the country) are made by considering economic costs, reliability, and time-of-delivery.  Unless mandated by law, environmental impacts are usually ignored, as they represent social costs that are not captured in the market prices for transportation services.  Moreover, few tools exist that can help decision makers characterize and evaluate the environmental impacts of their shipping decisions.

  This project provides such a tool for the Great Lakes region by enhancing the Geospatial Intermodal Freight Transport (GIFT) model currently under development in a joint research collaborative between Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and the University of Delaware.  GIFT is a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) based model that integrates water, rail, and road transportation networks and intermodal transfer facilities to create an intermodal network that can be used to solve a variety of interesting problems.  In particular, GIFT calculates optimal routing of freight between origin and destination points based on user-defined objectives. GIFT not only solves for typical objectives such as costs and time-of-delivery, but also for energy and environmental objectives, including emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), sulfur oxides (SOx), particulate matter (PM10), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

• Further Development and Optimization of the Ballast Free Ship Design Concept
  Dr. Michael G. Parsons, University of Michigan
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  The initial investigation of the Ballast-Free Ship concept demonstrated the feasibility of the concept though a thorough examination of various design aspects.  The effectiveness of the concept, in terms of eliminating the transport of foreign ballast water from ships operating in the ballast condition, was also demonstrated by utilizing Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software to simulate the flow in the double bottom ballast trunks of the vessel.  Nevertheless, this initial investigation did not succeed in showing the full cost-effectiveness of the concept. The main reason was a significant fuel penalty that resulted from an increased power requirement found in the initial hydrodynamic testing of a non-optimized discharge configuration on an existing, higher-speed vessel with a non-optimum propeller. 

  The ongoing GLMRI sponsored research project has undertaken further hydrodynamic investigation of the Ballast-Free Ship concept; both experimental and numerical. The experimental investigation was performed by utilizing the Seaway-size bulk carrier model that was designed and built as part of the initial phase of this project.  Resistance and propulsion tests were performed with this model in the towing tank of the University of Michigan Marine Hydrodynamic Laboratory in January 2007.  The initial numerical investigations were performed utilizing the commercial CFD software FLUENT®. 

• Erie Pier Process Re-Use Cost and Market Analysis
  Dr. Rodger Brannan, University of Minnesota Duluth
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  Although many ports face Confined Disposal Facility (CDF) capacity pressure, the Duluth-Superior Port has an urgent need to implement an alternative plan to the status quo for dredged materials. This project was proposed to determine cost accounting and capital budgeting for a proposed Process Re-use Facility (PRF). Previous work, such as the US Army Corps of Engineers’ Dredged Material Management Plan (DMMP) for the Duluth- Superior Harbor, April 1999, and the Duluth-Superior Metropolitan Interstate Council’s Erie Pier Management Plan, June 2007 identified possible re-uses for dredged material. The possible customer list included mineland reclamation projects, construction sites, road construction, daily landfill cover, topsoil creation and enhancement, habitat restoration, and habitat creation.
• Building Sustainable Solutions to the Issue of Ballast Water Treatment: Testing Relationships Between Propagule Pressure and Colonization Success of Invasive Species
  Dr. Donn K. Branstrator, University of Minnesota Duluth
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  This multi-year project addresses the issue of ballast water treatment by examining the efficacy of the standards that will be applied concerning permissible levels of biological pollution.  The over-arching objective of the project is to quantify the relationships between propagule pressure and the colonization success of zooplankton in the Duluth-Superior Harbor and St. Louis Estuary through dose-gradient experiments that bracket International Maritime Organization standards.

• Development and Succession of Microbial Communities Associated with Corroding Steel Pilings in the Duluth-Superior Harbor
  Dr. Randall Hicks, University of Minnesota Duluth
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  The overall objective of this research is to determine if corrosion of sheet steel pilings observed in the Duluth-Superior harbor is accelerated by microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC). This report provides the progress-to-date on a multi-year effort.

• Shipboard Testing of B20
  Dr. Daniel N. Pope, University of Minnesota Duluth
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  Main engine emissions and fuel consumption were monitored on R/V Blue Heron from 14 May 2008 to 30 October 2008. Two different primary fuels were used during the test period; no. 2 diesel and B20 (a mixture of 20% biodiesel and 80% diesel).  The goals of the project were to determine the change in emissions and fuel consumption associated with switching from no. 2 diesel to B20 and to investigate any operational issues, including material compatibility, that are associated with the use of B20.

• The Great Lakes Maritime Information Delivery System: A Resource for the Regional Analysis of Intermodal Freight Flows in the Great Lakes Region
  Dr. Peter S. Lindquist, University of Toledo
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  This project marked the third phase of a long-term endeavor to develop and manage the Great Lakes Maritime Transportation Delivery System (GLMTDS).  The GLMTDS is designed to serve as a comprehensive data repository and information clearinghouse in support of intermodal maritime commerce in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway region. The system is further envisioned to serve as a resource for public policy decisions and for drawing the link between maritime freight movements, economic viability, and environmental quality throughout the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway.

  This data gateway is particularly focused on providing support data for analysis in several key focus areas including:

  • Economic impact of Great Lakes shipping

  • Safety issues associated with diverting freight traffic to GL MTS

  • Environmental impacts/benefits compared to other modes

  • Shipper savings associated with GL MTS

  • Congestion effects of other modes in comparison to GL MTS

  • Competition effects of Maritime Transportation and rate increases in other modes

  • Shift in intermodal connections and transshipment costs (e.g., "full cost" studies – pavement damage, fuel, savings, crashes, etc.)

  • The value of shipping to states, cities, regions, etc.

  • Regional employment

2006-2007 Projects

• Click to view the 2006-2007 Funded Projects

2005-2006 Projects

• Click to view the 2005-2006 Funded Projects

*Reports are in PDF format. Download the latest version of Adobe Reader.