Engineering Commons^™

Sustainable Cities: Life-Cycle Cost Analysis Of Integrating Piezoelectric Harvesters Into Roadways, Heba Mohamed Gaber

Theses and Dissertations

Energy is essential in our modern era. Because of the increasing electricity consumption, sustainable and Renewable energy became a necessary global approach to fill the gap of the ongoing energy shortage in addition to the climate change crisis due to using conventional ways for energy production. Renewable energy is a global approach that has achieved great accomplishments during the last decades and is gradually increasing. Energy harvesting is considered one of the main resources for renewable energy. Energy harvesting from the roadways is an ingenious horizon for sustainable, clean, and renewable energy generation. Harvesting energy from the roadways by using …

Performance Improvements Of Hot Mix Asphalt Concrete Using Carbon-Based Fillers, Leonardo A. Ortega Ruiz

Theses and Dissertations

To further advance the state of the art on the performance improvements of hot mix asphalt concrete, this paper investigates the improvements to cracking damage of hot mix asphalt concrete by the addition of carbon-based fillers. There have been various studies dedicated to measuring the strength performance of asphalt mixtures modified with non-traditional fillers, but many of the current studies seem to have varying success with their results or have results that are not statistically significant. In this research, carbon black and F-516 graphite in various percentages were added into asphalt mixtures as a replacement of the traditionally used hydrated …

Mitigate The Flood Risk At The Parking Lots At The University Of Texas Rio Grande Valley - Edinburg Campus, Mishell Carolina Mazon

Theses and Dissertations

This study focuses on the analysis of the drainage system in the parking lots of the Edinburg campus of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. The current project will use the rational method and modified rational method described in the Texas Department of Transportation manual to analyze and determine a solution for the current built drainage system. The primary objective of this study is to offer a practical and comprehensive solution to address the issue of this area that has flooded during heavy rainfall storm events. The proposed solution takes into consideration the building codes of the city of …

Impacts Of Land Use On Stormwater Runoff In The Lower Rio Grande Valley And Improving Long Term Municipal Stormwater Management Systems, Maria Vanessa Pruneda

Theses and Dissertations

Exponentially noticeable growth in population and land development in the Lower Rio Grande Valley has directly influenced growth in urbanization. Urbanization is the leading cause for lower pervious cover, and the increase in storm water runoff. The increase of storm water runoff leads to excess flooding areas and higher peak flows. The overflow flows freely and is exposed to contaminants, affecting the consumption and use factors. The changes of land use have a direct relationship with impervious cover limitations and individual site retentions. This study will assess the relationship between stormwater quantity and land use in the Lower Rio Grande …

Initial Investigation Of Using The Waste Rubber Tires As A New Sustainable Material For Electric Conductive Rigid Pavement, Islam Radwan

Theses and Dissertations

The accumulation of snow on roadway surfaces has the potential to result in deadly accidents and financial damage. Traditional de-icing procedures, which include the use of chemicals or salt and the use of heavy machinery, may have a negative effect on the environment and the structural integrity of highway infrastructure systems, and they are not sustainable at all. In addition, these methods are considered labor-intensive and dangerous, especially in crowded areas. The use of heated pavement systems (HPS), which can be in the form of hydronic (HHPS) or electrically conductive concrete (ECON), has gained popularity in recent years as a …

Utrgv Edinburg Campus Two-Dimensional Flood Modeling For Development Of Flood Inundation Map, Roxana Tello

Theses and Dissertations

Severe flooding is a natural hazard worldwide, potentially subjecting people to life threatening situations and leaving infrastructure vulnerable to structural damage or complete destruction. The common threat of flooding poses constant challenges for state and local agencies in identifying flood risks and proposing the necessary mitigation improvements. Developing hydraulic models to predict the hydrological interactions and identify areas at risk is a beneficial tool for urban planning. The Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) is a rapid growing region in South Texas along the border of Mexico and west of the Gulf of Mexico. The LRGV has historically suffered through various …

Development Of Intensity Duration Frequency Curve Of The Lower Rio Grande Valley, Binaya Poudel

Theses and Dissertations

Section 1: This chapter incorporates extensive information about the concept of Intensity-Duration-Frequency (IDF) curves, their historical development and usage, specific focus on the Lower Rio Grande Valley, and the importance of using a comprehensive 32-year data set from 1990-2022 to develop these curves.

Section 2: This chapter provides detailed information about the rigorous comparison of the developed IDF curves with previous ones, where past IDF curves were developed using an empirical formula method. The research presented here employs the Gumbel distribution method, providing a fresh perspective and potentially more accurate predictions of future weather extremes.

Section 3: This chapter outlines …

Geospatial Analysis Based On Hurricane Storm Surge Scenarios On Coastal South Texas And North Mexico, Layda Belia Spor Leal

Theses and Dissertations

The coastal area of the Lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas, and Northern Tamaulipas, Mexico, has historically faced a variety of natural disasters involving flooding hazards, such as hurricanes and tropical storms. These scenarios not only represent imminent danger for the population in the area but can lead to long term effects on the infrastructure located in the impact zone. As such, it is imperative to conduct analysis on not only the specific areas that will be affected, but the severity of flooding that can result after a catastrophic event. Modelling work that simulates the storm surge in case of various …

Piezoresistivity Of Electrically Conductive Asphalt Concrete, Mateo Schmit Mendoza

Theses and Dissertations

Electrically conductive asphalt concrete is considered as a multifunctional construction material due to its structural and non-structural functions. This study aims to investigate piezoresistivity of conductive asphalt concrete. Piezoresistivity is an electrical property of some materials which electrical resistivity changes with induced strain and subsequently, it has the potential for self-sensing smart technology. Graphite Powder F-516 with various contents was added into the asphalt mixtures to impart the electrical conductivity. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was selected to measure the electrical properties of the specimens in dry and wet conditions, and low and high temperatures. The impedance measurement shows that the …

Characterization Of Lower Rio Grande Valley Watershed, Abdulkabir O. Aduragba

Theses and Dissertations

The Lower Laguna Madre (LLM) is considered impaired because of the high concentration of bacteria and low level of dissolved oxygen (DO). LLM receives freshwater from the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) watershed. In other to understand the impairment, LRGV watershed is being studied by relying on water quality data of the contributing drainages and State resource geographic data to identify watershed boundary and pollutant sources.

The study on the North and Central LRGV watershed shows some correlation between the concentration of E. coli/Bacteria, Ammonia, Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen, Total Phosphorus, Nitrate and Nitrite, Chlorophyll-a and the sources of pollutant in …

Electrical Characterization Of Cementitious Composites, Abbas Ali

Theses and Dissertations

Multifunctional concrete using electrical conductivity gains attention for various nonstructural applications. Particularly, conductive concrete enables monitoring internal damages in concrete, which has been impossible by conventional nondestructive methods. On the other hand, most of on-going investigations on multifunctional concrete uses conductive additives to impart electrical conductivity into concrete, but this limits the multifunctional application to predesigned structures. Finding multifunctionality embedded in conventional concrete can open various possibilities for smart concrete. Aiming to finding the feasibility of using conventional concrete for multifunctional application, this study investigates the electrical properties of plain cementitious composites including cement paste, mortar, and concrete, but not …

Effects Of Fibers In Dense Graded And Gap Graded Asphalt Concrete, Franher Daniel Cantu

Theses and Dissertations

As a part of efforts to understand the interactions between fibers and particles in compliant binder such as asphalt. This investigated the compressive behaviors of fiber reinforced asphalt concrete with different aggregate gradation, such as gap graded and dense graded. There have been multiple studies attempting to understand the impact of fibers on particle reinforced composites, however, only few of those focused on the fiber-particle interactions. A comprehensive literature review on the current state of the art of fiber reinforced asphalt concrete and fiber-particle interactions was conducted. Then a series of compression tests were conducted using various size steel fibers …

A Study Of The Constitutive Models Used In Analyzing Dynamic Strain Aging In Austenitic Stainless Steel 304, Mohammad Mohiuddin

Theses and Dissertations

When triggered, dynamic strain aging has a significant impact on the microstructural mechanical behavior of austenitic stainless steel 304 high performance alloy. The dynamic strain aging phenomenon has been shown to cause significant additional hardening in several experimental studies. To effectively predict the behavior of the material, it is required to employ a constitutive model that includes dynamic strain aging. The extra hardness brought on by dynamic strain aging is captured in this study by the proposal of a novel constitutive model (VAS model) for Austenitic Stainless Steel (ASS) 304 high performance alloy. As part of this study, the developed …

Numerical Simulation Of Vibration - Based Piezoelectric Energy Harvester For Shape Comparison, Adriana Rosas

Theses and Dissertations

This work investigates the shape optimization of piezoelectric energy harvesters subjected to mechanical vibration using ABAQUS/Standard software. Three piezoelectric energy harvesters with different dimensions but the same areas were created to identify if model dimensions have an impact on the output voltage. The models were tested at different speeds to create an output voltage. Once the output voltages were obtained, the results were compared with each other to find if shape optimization on piezoelectric energy harvesters has an impact on scavenging energy from mechanical vibrations.

Water Hardness Removal By Electrochemical Precipitation In A Continuous Flow Condition Using Conductive Concrete As Cathode, Tahsin Tareque

Theses and Dissertations

This study focuses on the electrochemical precipitation (EP) process to reduce excess water hardness from the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) tap water using electrically conductive concrete as cathode in a continuous flow condition. LRGV tap water is extremely hard with hardness more than 350 mg/L as CaCO3. Humans can pleasantly consume water with hardness less than 150 mg/l as CaCO3 according to World Health Organization (WHO). Hard water is also known to cause mechanical problems to boilers and heat exchangers. In this process, electricity is passed through electrodes submerged in electrolyte, which causes an alkaline environment around the cathode …

Tree Ring Reconstructions Of Streamflow For The Lower Rio Grande Valley Of Texas, Adedolapo Mutiyat Adeyanju

Theses and Dissertations

The Rio Grande River is a major water source for people living within the USA-Mexico border. The Rio Grande River has its headwaters in the San Juan Mountains in Colorado and the Sierra Madre Occidental in Mexico before flowing into Texas through El-Paso. The water supply issues facing the Lower Rio Grande Basin (LRGB) are extremely complex from international restrictions to severe climate change. The river shares its flow between the U.S.A and Mexico based on the provisions of the 1944 treaty between the U.S.A and Mexico. The LRGB flow is regulated by releases from Falcon and Amistad Reservoirs managed …

Towards Sustainable Cities: Life Cycle Cost Analysis Of The Construction Of A Novel Wastewater Management System, Bibhas B. Tanmoy

Theses and Dissertations

Wastage of water is one of the most common environmental issues in the modern era. However, if this level of usage can be controlled, or recirculated properly, the wastage can be lowered down to a very minimum. In the conventional residential plumbing system, blackwater and greywater gets mixed and goes through the same sewage pipe. This mixture turns the whole wastewater amount into blackwater, which requires complex treatment before discharge. Greywater on the other hand can be discharged to waterbodies requiring almost zero treatment. In this study, a new wastewater management method is proposed where the plumbing system is split …

Tap Water Disinfection In The Electrochemical Precipitation Process By Using Novel Conductive Concrete, Md Shoriful Islam

Theses and Dissertations

Electrochemical precipitation (EP) is tested to learn about its impact on disinfectants in tap water. The EP process involves applying electricity through electrodes submerged in water to precipitate dissolved metals like water hardness out without chemical additives. In the study, tap water was tested to learn about EP’s impact on disinfectants. Tap water contains not only hardness but also residual disinfectants. It is very essential for the safety of drinking water against the potential ingress of pathogens before the water reaches the end-users. USEPA mandates that the free chlorine level in drinking water should be 0.2mg/L to 4 mg/L. …

Machine Learning Based Surrogate Model For Hurricane Storm Surge Forecasting In The Laguna Madre, Cesar E. Davila Hernandez

Theses and Dissertations

Texas coastal communities are at constant risk of hurricane impacts every storm season. It is especially important to model and predict storm surge variations during hurricane and storm events. Traditionally, hurricane storm surge predictions have been the result of numerical hydrodynamics based simulations. This type of simulations often requires high amounts of computational resources and complex ocean modelling efforts. Recently, machine learning techniques are being explored and are gaining popularity in hydrologic and ocean engineering modelling fields based on their performance to model nonlinear relationships and low computational requirements for prediction. Advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence (A.I.) demand …

Behavior Of Narrow Mechanically Stabilized Earth Walls With Secondary Reinforcement, Abraham Alejandro Alvarez Reyna

Theses and Dissertations

Mechanically Stabilized Earth (MSE) walls have been used in past decades as an alternative, cost-effective, and performance solution to replace conventional retaining walls. AASHTO guidelines recommend a reinforcement length-to-height ratio of 0.7. However, this ratio is not applicable where there exist constraint conditions. FHWA guidelines recommend the minimum reinforcement length-to-height ratio of 0.3 for Narrow Mechanically Stabilized Earth (NMSE) walls in these cases. However, published guidelines have not sufficiently accounted for several parameters influencing NMSE performance and efficiency. Using finite element analysis (PLAXIS 2D), this study focuses on finding a relation between the length-to-height ratio and other parameters/components of the …

Water Quality Monitoring To Assess Pollutant Loadings In Brownsville Ship Channel Watershed, Ivan Rene Santos Chavez

Theses and Dissertations

The Brownsville Ship Channel (BSC) was listed as an impaired waterway from 2010 to 2018 due to screening levels of bacteria concentration. This study aims to address water quality at the three main tributary ditches draining into Brownsville Ship Channel to model present along with future pollutant loads within Brownsville Ship Channel Watershed. Load Duration Curves (LDCs) and Spatial Explicit Load Enrichment Calculation Tool (SELECT) models were developed to determine if current pollutant loads meet water quality standards stablished by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), and to estimate average daily potential E. Coli loading contribution from sub-watersheds within …

Forecasting Salinity In The Laguna Madre Using Deep Learning, Martin J. Flores Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Salinity is an important metric in the Laguna Madre for establishing the long term health of the local ecological population. By utilizing Deep Learning (DL) techniques, the predicted and forecasted salinity in the Laguna Madre is generated from data provided by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)-Aqua satellite.

Currently, only one other DL model has been used to forecast Sea Surface Salinity (SSS), being a Recurrent Neural Network (RNN). However, the RNN model requires the prediction of a full area of salinity to function.

As such, several model architectures were tested, with the best one, being a Multi-input MPNN, utilized …

Hydrologic Modeling Study To Determine Hydrologic Impact Of Resacas On The Lower Laguna Madre Watershed, Antonio L. Reyna

Theses and Dissertations

During a high intensity storm events, a series of catastrophic events occur. These catastrophic events include flooding and destruction of infrastructure. Engineers have determined a method to design for high intensity storms based off hydrologic analysis of previous storms. With this data engineers can determine the outflow of major rivers and streams that may impact infrastructure. By determining the watershed engineers can predict the flow of the water and as well as the location of the outfall. In the Rio Grande Valley, water quality is very important because after rain events stormwater from cities is carried out towards the Laguna …

A Gis-Based Model To Assess On-Site Sewage Facility (Ossf) Contamination Risk To Local Water Resources, Alvaro Garcia

Theses and Dissertations

In a collaborative effort between Texas Water Resources Institute (TWRI), Cameron County Public Health (CCPH), Texas A&M AgriLife Extension (TAMAE), and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), a GIS database that includes relevant OSSF information, such as location, system age, lot size, and other important parameters was created.

This OSSF database, along with publicly available GIS data, was used to create an integrative GIS-based risk assessment model where OSSF risk parameters were assigned a risk factor and combined into a spatial contamination risk for surrounding areas and their receiving waterbodies. Parameters were broken down into two categories: environmental …

To A More Sustainable Construction Method For Electrically Conductive Heated Pavement Systems, Mohammad Anis

Theses and Dissertations

Snow and ice damage to the pavement in the United States, particularly in colder regions, costs the US economy millions of dollars each year. Conventional methods for keeping snow off roads after heavy snowfall are judged prohibitively expensive. As a result, an alternative solution is required to reduce costs while also improving pavement resiliency. An electrically heated pavement system (EHPS) has been regarded as a viable alternative to older approaches in recent years. The majority of earlier research concentrated on improving the conductivity characteristics of paving materials. On the other hand, this study takes a different approach by focusing on …

The Skeletal Structure Of Hot Mix Asphalt And The Effects Of Fiber Additives, Samantha A. Avila

Theses and Dissertations

Hot mix asphalt (HMA) has proven to be successful in providing a proper paving surface for transportation services throughout the world. Asphalt pavement could be altered as the gradation of the mixture is adjusted. For instance, mixtures could vary from Dense Graded (DG) that contain a fairly even percentage of all aggregate size allowing for a more compact fit to Stone Matrix Asphalt (SMA) where the coarse aggregate compromise the main skeleton while fine aggregate fills the voids. This study investigates the effects of fibers and skeletal structures on mechanical properties of HMA. Two types of fiber additives are tested …

Life-Cycle Cost Analysis Of The Efficient Water Fixtures And Electric Appliances Used To Minimize Water And Energy Consumption In Homes In The U.S, Miranda N. Garcia

Theses and Dissertations

Consumer interest in incorporating sustainability and efficient appliances into daily life has been growing in the past several years. While reducing their environmental impact may be a draw to some, by making the switch to water- and energy-efficient appliances many homeowners are enticed by the promise of long-term savings on utility bills. Programs such as WaterSense and Energy Star not only offer certified efficient appliances and fixtures, but they may also certify water- and energy-efficient homes. Additionally, the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) offers the LEED program (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) which certifies homes in a similar …

Decision Support System To Select The Most Effective Strategies For Mitigating The Urban Heat Island Effect Using Sustainability And Resilience Performance Measures, Bahareh Bathaei

Theses and Dissertations

As climate change continues to alter the temperature of the cities, various urban heat island mitigation strategies (UHIMSs) are now needed to be employed to mitigate the effects of increasing temperatures. However, to ensure their resilience and sustainability, the effectiveness of such strategies should be evaluated using a set of criteria. According to a review of the literature, there is a need for a comprehensive model and performance assessment tool that considers the various characteristics and features that are significant in assessing whether the chosen strategies are viable candidates for minimizing the effects of urban heat island (UHI). As a …

Electrical Characterization Of Conductive Concrete Containing Graphite Powder, K. I. M. Iqbal

Theses and Dissertations

Electrically conductive concrete has various potential non-structural functions such as self-sensing, de-icing, and electromagnetic shielding. Since conductive concrete is a composite containing moisture and discrete conductive additives, its electrical properties are very complex. Understanding these properties is the fundamental requirement for developing its non-structural applications. In this research, graphite powder is used as a conductive additive with varying percentages (0% to 30%) by cement paste volume. Both AC impedance analysis and DC measurement are performed in both wet and dry conditions. The results show that the resistivity measured by DC are not consistent because of polarization before/during the measurement. On …

Investigating Adoption Behavior Of Owned And Shared Autonomous Vehicles: An Updated Technology Acceptance Model, Yellitza Soto

Theses and Dissertations

Transportation systems will be likely transformed by the emergence of autonomous vehicles (AVs), either owned privately or used in a shared system (SAVs), which promise for safe, convenient, and efficient mobility, to name a few benefits to the society. The manifestation of (S)AV benefits, however, is still dubious due to the observed public reluctance, or at best neutrality, towards (S)AVs, especially SAVs. The public's perception towards these innovations is still unclear, therefore, a gap remains in the analysis of individuals’ behavioral intention (BI) to use AVs and SAVs. To fill that gap, this study uses a behavioral psychology method. Specifically, …