Architecture Commons^™

A New Take On Testing: Evaluating Design Systems In Response To The Recent Natural Disaster In Nepal, Jazmine L. Brown

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

In this thesis project I analyze the destruction of the 2015 earthquake in Nepal, specifically in the structural and architectural collapse. I have focused my research on the areas with greatest documented destruction and vulnerability, specifically Kathmandu and the settlements in the Middle Hills. The introduction of a new lateral testing mechanism can provided much needed information on the seismic strengths of vernacular construction methods.

Survey Of Restoration Efforts Following The 2015 Nepal Earthquake, Celine K. Nakachi

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

The purpose of this paper is to provide knowledge on the devastating 2015 Nepal earthquake, it's architectural failures and alternative construction methods with the use of various documentation such as video footage screenshots, photographs, and information from previous reports. It will offer alternative methods that can be proposed to those currently residing in Nepal for safer construction methods, styles and overall offer a sense of hope for those affected by the earthquake. The end goal is to inform others on Nepal's conditions and their inability to build lavishly, therefore also taking into account some of the local and cheaper materials …

Designing A Residence In Sweden, Umeki Earl, Olivia Bufalini

School of Human Sciences Research Showcase

The project was to design a home for the Nordstroms, a family who lived in Sweden. The challenge was to design a home for the family of four with a maximum square footage of 1100 square feet using the codes and space allocations required for another country. Meeting the needs of the client required much research. RESEARCH included studying the regional climate, the municipal building codes, and city regulations. Thorough research of building construction framing methods, insulation types and installation methods, site planning, materials and finishes were also essential for completing the project.

The Role Of Healing Gardens, Kalina K. Vander Poel

Student Research Symposium

The objective of this research is to observe the use patterns of a healing garden located on the oncology floor of a pediatric hospital. Use patterns recorded through behavior mapping and tracking focus on collecting data related to the type of user, length of stay, and activity. Three user groups (patient, provider, and visitor) stay an average of eight (8) minutes at Randall Children’s Hospital ranging in activity from sit and relax to actively play. Some findings are concurrent with past research while other findings are not. This research serves as an initial set of data to inform the production …

Portland State University School Of Business Administration (Sba) Renovation + Personal Comfort Investigation, Abolfazl Mekanik, Corey Griffin, Louise Foster

Student Research Symposium

This poster discusses the results of a field study about indoor thermal comfort, based on investigations in Portland State University`s School of Business (SBA) classrooms. The field study was conducted by physical parameter monitoring and questionnaires. Both field monitoring and occupant surveys were performed at the same time during the regular class period.The measurement campaign consisted of measuring the environmental parameters such as temperature (Ta), relative humidity (RH), CO₂, and sound levels. The outdoor air temperature, humidity, and sound were registered every 2 hour period during class time. The intention for this project is to investigate thermal comfort …

Red Bird Water Kiosk Pavilion _ Clean Water Clean Life, Garrett Keyes Nelli

EURēCA: Exhibition of Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement

Architecture has the power to strengthen community bonds, support a healthy life style and enrich individual lives. The Red Bird Water Kiosk seeks to achieve all three of these on the site of the Red Bird Mission campus, located deep in the Appalachian Mountains of Clay County, Kentucky. This is an area where most live below the poverty line, and about 64 percent of water sources are contaminated. As a result, lack of clean water has forced many locals to turn to unhealthy living standards. Because of these conditions, the county ranks as one of the poorest in the nation, …

Indygo Downtown Transit Center - Transforming Indianapolis, Ben Smith, Steve Robinson, Joe Fischer

Purdue Road School

The new IndyGo Downtown Transit Center will transform transit in downtown Indianapolis and offers lessons in transit planning, traffic planning, intermodal connectivity, public engagement, and pedestrian access. This presentation will give an overview of the facility and then focus on attributes of the facility and of the design process that might offer useful lessons to other transit projects, including those of a smaller scale

Absorption Simulation ( Absim ) Software Development, Vipul Vishnu Bhat, Ming Qu

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Researchers working on air conditioning systems currently use a software called ABSIM ( Absorption Simulation ) to evaluate current absorption systems or simulate new system designs. ABSIM was developed at Oak Ridge National Labs in the 1980s and the latest platform it is compatible with is Windows XP. ABSIM is not compatible on newer platforms and is not very user friendly. A lot of the actions involved in using ABSIM aren’t very intuitive. The goal is to develop a more user friendly simulation program that is based off of ABSIM and see to it that the program can be deployed …

Compression Testing And Failure Modes Of Steel-Concrete Composite (Sc) Structures For Nuclear Containment, Patrick Michael Wanamaker, Amit H. Varma

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Although being able to provide much cleaner power than burning coal and other fossil fuels, nuclear power plants are still a tough sell to the general public due to their history of being spontaneously dangerous. The containment structures surrounding these nuclear plants, however, can play a huge role in reducing the risks associated with them. Relatively new designs for these containment assemblies, known as SC (steel-concrete composite) structures, aim to increase the strength and durability of the containment facilities while keeping costs down. By varying the spacing between shear studs, the ratio of concrete to steel, and the ratio of …

Environmental Monitoring In Preparation For The Installation Of A Green Roof, Andrew N. Martin, Ming Qu

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Green roofs are becoming an increasingly popular way to improve the environmental, economic, and aesthetic performance of both new and existing buildings. Along with the green roofs themselves, it is also common to install sensors to measure various environmental parameters that are affected by or important to the operation of the roof such as precipitation, temperature, and runoff. However, for most of these systems, the sensors are installed at the same time or even after the green roof. Therefore, no before-and-after comparisons can be made for those roofs. To account for this missing data, monitoring equipment was installed on a …

Vulnerability Of Progressive Collapse In Reinforced Concrete Flat-Plate Buildings, Jinrong Liu

College of Engineering: Graduate Celebration Programs

• Progressive collapse is the spread of initial local failure, causing partial or
  even total collapse of a building.
• Flat plate structure is widely used for office and residential buildings.
• There is a large inventory of older flat plate building without continuous slab bottom reinforcement through columns.
• Limited knowledge exists regarding the risk of disproportionate collapse in
  older flat-plates under sudden column removal during abnormal events.
• Reliable mechanical model is needed for structural evaluation.

Coal, Energy And The Environment, Bobby G. Wixson, Betsy T. Kagey

UMR-DNR Conference on Energy

No abstract provided.

Energy Conservation: Impact On Indoor Air, Purush K. Terkonda

UMR-DNR Conference on Energy

No abstract provided.