Finite element analysis of ports pavement under container loading Sajad Hasheminasab Department of Civil Engineering, Damavand Branch, Islamic Azad University, Damavand, Iran, and Ehsan Kashi Department of Civil Engineering, Shahrood Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shahrood, Iran Abstract Purpose – In many coastal areas where there are problematic soils, pavement construction on the soil is difficult because of the low shear strength and high consolidated. Also, given that the container terminals constitute more than 70% of the port area and as pavement in these areas is subject to heavy loads due to the long-term container storage, wheels of transport and movement equipment, the pavement must tolerate a distributed loading of at least 4ton/m 2 in accordance with the type and weight of the containers imposed on the pavement. This study aims to investigate a variety of common pavement designs in coastal areas of southern Iran. The pavement type and characteristics of the subgrade layers are the same for each port; the thickness of different pavement layers is designed. Design/methodology/approach – Due to problematic soil in the pavement subgrade, heavy and long- term container loading and the associated equipment, port pavement enjoys great importance. Findings – The designed pavements are modeled by ABAQUS finite element software. The pavements are subject to a static load imposed by the corner casting container and resulted a distributed load 4 tons/ m 2 . The results from data analysis show that the concrete block pavements influenced by the containers static loads of 3%–20% have less vertical displacement on the subgrade than other pavements (rigid and flexible). Originality/value – This paper is modeling 3 port pavement in Iran. Based on field evaluation and simulation actual loading on pavement. Keywords Modeling, ABAQUS, Container terminal, Container, Port pavement Paper type Research paper 1. Introduction According to the operation, the proper performance and efficiency of quays or industrial floors are primarily evaluated by their pavements, so proper and optimal pavement selection is important. The recognition of the subgrade soil, look-out on and classification of pavements and the loads imposed on them are considered to be most important factors influencing the design of desirable pavement in the ports. The following main factors are to be considered to determine the type of pavement: construction and maintenance costs, high safety, design life, type of traffic, equipment speed, wheels load, tire type, contact pressure applied over the pavement, repetition loads and the loads passing through certain axes, the amount and type of static and point loads, impact loads, port design and how to exploit it, contaminants in contact with pavement surface such as hydraulic oils and defrosting salts, subgrade resistance and groundwater level, forecasting of short- and long-term subgrade settlement, climate, precipitation, temperature and frost, future development prediction and the possibility of using local materials in the project scope. Finite element analysis of ports Received 24 July 2020 Revised 9 August 2020 Accepted 9 August 2020 Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology © Emerald Publishing Limited 1726-0531 DOI 10.1108/JEDT-07-2020-0301 The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at: https://www.emerald.com/insight/1726-0531.htm