Presentación y análisis de viabilidad de una nueva tipología de muelleel Pilote-Lámina

Abstract

Port infrastructures are of paramount importance for the intermodal trans- port chains that support international merchandise trade and for the economies of the countries and regions where they are located. The creation of new port land for the exchange of goods by sea requires the construction of docks for ships that involve high investments, existing various typologies that can be considered depending on the existing conditions on the site. In this thesis, a new typology of dock called the Pilote-Lámina system is presented. It is based on the collaborative work of piles and sheet-type ele- ments. At a structural level, the response of the system breaks down between both elements, so that the piles work fundamentally in bending and the sheets in tension, achieving optimization of their constituent materials, since it allows maximum use of their mechanical properties. The viability of this new typo- logy is analyzed from different points of view (functional, construction pro- cedure, economic cost, environmental effects, etc.) and compared with other existing typologies. Firstly, the first experience of practical application of this new technology is analyzed in detail: the construction of a full-scale prototype of a dock in the port of Vilanova de Arousa (Galicia). Subsequently, the hydrodynamic beha- vior of the system is studied by carrying out laboratory tests with reduced-scale physical models. Finally, an adaptation of the system to other more demanding scenarios, fundamentally greater depths, is proposed by introducing modifica- tions, both in its design and in its construction procedure. The adapted system is structurally analyzed in order to check its applicability for dock heights of up to 26 meters. The conclusions obtained in this doctoral thesis allow to advance in the understanding and development of the innovative Pilote-Lámina system as a new technology for the construction of port docks.