A multi-objective robust optimization approach for green location-routing planning of multi-modal transportation systems under uncertainty

Abstract Carbon emission has been widely studied in transportation research in general, yet research on carbon emission specifically in hazardous material transportation remains surprisingly limited. This study presents a multi-objective model for locating transfer points and routing in a multi-modal network of hazardous materials, accounting for multiple different uncertainties, while minimizing carbon emission alongside risk and cost of transportation. This study models uncertainties in accident probabilities, emission factors, and costs of establishing transfer points with polyhedral uncertainty sets, and utilizes robust counterpart optimization to tackle these uncertainties. The application of the proposed approach is examined in a case study of petroleum product transportation. The results of our analyses confirm the effectiveness and robustness of the developed model. Specifically, it is found that the proposed model can reduce carbon emissions by 873 grams, and individuals at risk by 0.28, for every additional dollar spent.