Neritan Shkodrani | Polytechnic University of Tirana (original) (raw)

Papers by Neritan Shkodrani

Journal of Ecological Engineering, 2022

Soil erosion is one of the most important phenomena affecting land composition and settlement. Am... more Soil erosion is one of the most important phenomena affecting land composition and settlement. Among all natural causes of soil erosion such as rainfall intensity, temperature and wind, the human activity; massive deforestation and intensive agriculture, including the latest climate changes are considered as very important factors, especially nowadays. Thus, calculating the soil erosion coefficient appears very important in order to prevent the phenomena. Many methods are used to calculate such coefficient but in the presented research, the Erosion Potential Method was chosen. In this study, eight watersheds in southeastern Albania were evaluated. Results show that erosion is present in all considered watersheds. In one case (Panariti watershed) the erosion coefficient was very high; excessive, while in others it varies from heavy to very slight erosion. In conclusion, it can be stated that the Erosion Potential Method can be applied in the Albanian contest, same as in other neighbor countries. The results from Panariti, Roshani and Gianci should be further investigated due to the high quantity of soil eroded.

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the liquefaction-induced ground deformations of sand-like so... more The aim of this paper is to evaluate the liquefaction-induced ground deformations of sand-like soils based on Cone Penetration Tests (CPT) at Semani site, Fieri prefecture in Albania. These tests are performed during the process of investigation of this area, in which a Liquid Natural Gas Ter-minal-Power Plant was supposed to be built. This paper presents the assessment of the liquefac-tion and of the liquefaction-induced ground deformations such as lateral spreading displacement and post-liquefaction reconsolidation settlement. The liquefaction-induced lateral spreading and post-liquefaction reconsolidation settlement are estimated based on CPT data according to the method in MNO-12 “soil liquefaction during earthquake”, presented by Idriss and Boulanger (2008). This evaluation is very important and should be taken into consideration for the design of engineering structures that will be constructed in this area. All the calculation’s results are shown in graphs. At the end, there a...

Albania is considered a seismic region in Europe. Bridges are one of the main and the most vulner... more Albania is considered a seismic region in Europe. Bridges are one of the main and the most vulnerable components of the transportation system. Therefore they should be functional before and after earthquake action. Using the fragility curve is one of the popular tool in assessing the seismic behaviour of the bridges. The fragility curves are conditional statements, which give the probability of bridge exceeding a particular damage level for a given intensity level. In this study one of the most common bridges type in Albania is assessed. This paper presents a case study of developing fragility curves for simply supported bridges for Vora viaduct. The paper illustrates the use of fragility in verifying the performance objectives of bridge’s seismic design. The sources of date needed for this analysis are: bridge design project, ground motion date, geological maps. The analytical modelling and time history analysis were done and the limit states are defined for displacement ductility ...

Bridges are one of the main and most vulnerable components on transport infrastructure network, d... more Bridges are one of the main and most vulnerable components on transport infrastructure network, due to aggressive environment, degradation during the years of service, steel corrosion etc. A considerable number of existing Albanian bridges have been designed and constructed before 1989 year, according to former design code. Now days the design seismic code and their requirement are change. Therefore we need to assess seismic performance of bridges under different seismic loadings in different levels of reliability regard in requirements of new standards to seismic actions. Developing fragility curve on assessing bridges performance is effectively methodology in evaluation of vulnerabilities of existing reinforced bridges. This study concerns on providing a new method of seismic bridge assessment for bridge typology in Albania by means of fragility curves, considering columns as most vulnerable component. Ductility analysis for circular section piers is estimated by moment curvature ...

One of the most important aspects of coastal management and planning programs that needs to be in... more One of the most important aspects of coastal management and planning programs that needs to be investigated is shoreline dynamics. Long-term coastal analysis uses historical data to identify the sectors along the coast where the shoreline position has changed. At the southern part of Durrësi Bay, the sandy beach has suffered strong erosions for the last 20 years. In particular, in different segments situated at Karpen Qerret lowland, during the last year the annual erosion rates reach values up to 30-37 m. The analysis of the coastal dynamics and spatiotemporal changes in the coastal morphology for the period between 1944 and 2010 is an important tool to identify the principal factor of these changes and consequently to recommend the appropriate engineering interventions necessary to protect and recover the interested area. The present study takes advantage of geographical information system (GIS) tools to contribute to the knowledge of the shoreline dynamics of the southern part of...

This paper deals with the evaluation of liquefaction potential of the soils at the marsh of Porto... more This paper deals with the evaluation of liquefaction potential of the soils at the marsh of Porto Romano, located in the western central part of Albania, where will be constructed the Energetic Park of Porto Romano. These analyses are performed based on the data taken from different in situ testing techniques. Piezocone tests (CPTU) were carried out during the two different site investigations (before and after the ground improvement) for the characterization of soil layers and determination of soil properties. In addition, during the first phase of site investigation a full seismic study was performed to estimate the shear wave velocity, Vs, and the peak ground acceleration. During the second site investigation two seismic dilatometer Marchetti tests (SDMT) were also carried out very close to the CPTU locations. The paper shows the results of the liquefiability assessment by CPTU and SDMT tests carried out during the two site investigations.

In this study, an assessment on the aftershock occurrence probability based on the combination of... more In this study, an assessment on the aftershock occurrence probability based on the combination of Gutenberg-Richter and modified Omori formulae is made in order to forecast how many large aftershocks should follow small main shocks and in order to evaluate aftershock probability that a randomly chosen event is greater than or equal to a certain magnitude of aftershock. For this purpose, we made an application of aftershock probability evaluation methods to nine aftershock sequences in which occurred Albania between 2004 and 2009 with magnitude level between 4.5 and 5.0.

People’s comfort depends also on the wind condition, which is strongly guided by urban spatial de... more People’s comfort depends also on the wind condition, which is strongly guided by urban spatial design. This paper focuses on climatic conditions and pedestrian behavior in an urban area. These studies emphasize the connection of people’s attitudes with physical and climatic ambiance. The challenge of urban designers is to consider the surrounding structures and the topography to design a comfortable outdoor public space. Two criteria are used to assess the wind in a public space domain. The CFD was used as an instrument to analyze pedestrian wind comfort in the outlined environment. This study has come to important findings related to the air movement in and around the studied domain: High-velocity wind can be a nuisance for most creative activities in the outdoor public space. This paper provided a velocity map for future recreational activities inside the current building pattern. The effects of these architectural patterns were discussed.

Research on Engineering Structures and Materials, 2021

To cite this article Shkodrani N, Bilgin H, Hysenlliu M. Influence of interventions on the seismi... more To cite this article Shkodrani N, Bilgin H, Hysenlliu M. Influence of interventions on the seismic performance of URM buildings designed according to pre-modern codes.

International Conference on Architecture, Structure and Civil Engineering (ICASCE-15) Sept. 7-8, 2015 Antalya (Turkey), Sep 7, 2015

Several authors have studies liquefaction in different approaches like deterministic and probabil... more Several authors have studies liquefaction in different approaches like deterministic and probabilistic approach based in situ and laboratory test. In this article we are going to evaluate the Real Probability of Liquefaction (P R [L]) in Golem area related with the Factor of Safety (FS) computed with the deterministic piezocone penetration test (CPTU)-based model by Juang et al (2008). The real probability of liquefaction is calculated for a given seismic hazard level expressed in terms of acceleration, with the probability of exceeding the same acceleration during the lifespan of engineering structures (usually 50 years). The effects of liquefaction are going to calculate with Liquefaction Potential Index IPL. The computed liquefaction probabilities indicate that during the life span of a structure, the phenomenon may be encountered and it should be taken into consideration during the design stage of the engineering projects.

The Spine Journal, 2017

We study the parameter estimation for parabolic, linear, second-order, stochastic partial differe... more We study the parameter estimation for parabolic, linear, second-order, stochastic partial differential equations (SPDEs) observing a mild solution on a discrete grid in time and space. A high-frequency regime is considered where the mesh of the grid in the time variable goes to zero. Focusing on volatility estimation, we provide an explicit and easy to implement method of moments estimator based on squared increments. The estimator is consistent and admits a central limit theorem. This is established moreover for the joint estimation of the integrated volatility and parameters in the differential operator in a semi-parametric framework. Starting from a representation of the solution of the SPDE with Dirichlet boundary conditions as an infinite factor model and exploiting mixing-type properties of time series, the theory considerably differs from the statistics for semi-martingales literature. The performance of the method is illustrated in a simulation study.

In earthquake disaster prevention, one serious problem confronting the world's earthquakepron... more In earthquake disaster prevention, one serious problem confronting the world's earthquakeprone countries is seismic performance of buildings. A building is expected to remain safe and provide its intended function throughout its life span, with only small performance interruptions or damage due to earthquakes. It is necessary to identify buildings that are in risk and carry out their reconstruction or seismic retrofit in order to provide more strength and ductility. However the seismic retrofits come to a premium. Therefore, seismic retrofit of buildings entails an important riskmanagement decision problem as an optimal balance between the cost for the reinforcement and the future risks that must be achieved. This paper presents a decision methodology in seismic risk management considering only one fundamental risk, the cost imposed on the decision maker. The risk is expressed as the expected life-cycle cost, which is the expected amount of payments during the life of the buildi...

International Conference on Architecture, Structure and Civil Engineering (ICASCE-15) Sept. 7-8, 2015 Antalya (Turkey), 2015

Engineering Failure Analysis

Academic Perspective Procedia

Landfill is a common solution for the final disposal of municipal solid waste (MSW) in Albania. L... more Landfill is a common solution for the final disposal of municipal solid waste (MSW) in Albania. Landfill siting is an extremely difficult task to accomplish because the site selection process depends on different factors and regulations. To ensure that an appropriate site is chosen, a systematic process should be developed and followed. Unsuccessful landfill siting is typically the result of strong public opposition. In this study, 11 candidate sites for an appropriate landfill area in Kukës Region are determined by using the integration multi-criteria evaluation (MCE). From the application of the exclusion criteria provided in the study methodology, it was able to find the best three alternatives. The statistical processing for the determination of the best place was accomplished through Multi-criteria Analysis and Environmental Management. The application of this method has led to the identification of the most suitable site for the construction of sanitary landfill in the Kukës R...

Italian Journal of Geosciences, 2013

This paper aims to deal with the comparison of the estimated settlements derived by in situ tests... more This paper aims to deal with the comparison of the estimated settlements derived by in situ tests with the observed settlements in site, in order to evaluate the accuracy of settlement prediction by in situ tests, in comparison not only with site observation by topographic means, but also with the values of settlements derived by numerical analysis by means of PLAXIS 2D and 3D. The site where are carried out the tests and periodically are observed the settlements since the beginning of construction process, is located in the Oil Product Terminal, at the industrial park of Porto Romano, Durres, Albania. The main purpose of this project was the ground improvement by using preloading method in order to prevent liquefaction process and settlements. The data used to conduct this study are taken by the site investigation done after inserting into the soil vertical drains made of columns of free—draining gravel (gravel pile drains) until 14 m depth and center-to-center spacing of 2 m, and wick drains (premanufactured) until 25 m depth and center-to-center spacing of 1.8 m. The observed settlements are periodically measured by topographic equipments. This paper will present the conclusions derived by settlement analyzes from in situ tests and site observations.

The aim of this paper is to assess the CPT-based liquefaction probabilities of Quaternary soft no... more The aim of this paper is to assess the CPT-based liquefaction probabilities of Quaternary soft non-cohesive soils at Semani site, Fieri prefecture in Albania. The soil behaviour type index, Ic, as defined by ROBERTSON & WRIDE (1998) is used to identify the liquefiable layers from the CPTU data of the area. The real probability of liquefaction is calculated combining the conditional probability of liquefaction, for a given seismic hazard level expressed in terms of acceleration, with the probability of exceeding the same acceleration during the lifespan of engineering structures (usually 50 years). The computed liquefaction probabilities (up to 45%) indicate that during the life span of a structure, the phenomenon may be encountered and it should be taken into consideration during the design stage of the engineering projects.