Engineering Commons^™

Gis-Based Tool For Assessing Hydraulic Performance Of Drainage Infrastructure System In El Paso, Gema L. Camacho

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Maintaining a city's storm-water drainage infrastructure system can be an overwhelming effort, especially when data is inaccurate, incomplete, or located in disparate sources. This was the case for the City of El Paso. This research was part of a project funded by the City of El Paso to enhance their GIS storm drainage infrastructure system. For the first task of the project, the GIS software was used to store stormwater drainage data into one convenient GIS file. A GIS framework was created during the first phase of the project. This GIS database contained drainage data (such as location, material, dimensions, …

Buckling Of Dome Structure With Opening, Under Wind Load, Anup Ramesh Marathe

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Double layered parabolic dome structure, with opening in roof is analyzed for buckling under wind load. Domes with three different opening sizes are used and external wind load is applied from different directions without changing the position of the opening. Dead load and internal wind pressure is also applied. The dead load and internal wind pressure is kept constant. The internal wind pressure is applied as per the ASCE building requirement that is once in positive direction which is towards the surface and once in negative direction which is away from the surface. The data for this project was sent …

Silica Removal From Brine By Using Ion Exchange, Carlos R. Acevedo

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Local governments have been forced to look for additional water sources to satisfy the ever increasing demand for fresh water. Very often, the new water sources such as the underground water in continental territories have high salt content. Currently, reverse osmosis technology (RO) is one of the most common processes for water desalination. However, this process is limited by high silica and salt concentrations in water. At high concentrations silica clogs the membranes used in the RO process, reducing their life and increasing operational costs. In this study, quaternary ammonium resins and sulfonic acid resins were used to remove silica …

Assessing Repeatability Of Four-Point Bending Method For Estimating Fatigue Cracking Of Hot Mix Asphalt, Sara -. Montazeri

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The objective of this thesis was to assess the repeatability of four-point bending method for estimating fatigue cracking of hot mix asphalt. This experimental research examined the influence of mix proportions, specifically asphalt and air void contents, on fatigue behavior of asphalt beam specimens in the laboratory tested with four-point bending method of loading. Following the relevant specifications, the strain-controlled mode of loading was selected. Fatigue failure is expected to occur at the cycle which the flexural stiffness of asphalt specimen reduced to 50% of initial amount. Up to a 1,000,000 cycles of loading were applied to each specimen.

Different …

Estimating Variation In Stiffness And Volume Change Of Clays From Geochemical And Index Properties, Cynthia Roxanna Zuniga

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Clayey soils from six different locations in Texas were analyzed and evaluated with respect to their expansion and shrinkage and change in stiffness associated with moisture content variation. These soils consist of five high plasticity-index (PI) clays (PI greater than 25) and one low-PI clay (PI = 17). The behavior of the clays changes dramatically with moisture content fluctuation, thus causing stiffness and volume changes throughout the year. Total or differential volume movements caused by swell or shrinkage strains of expansive soils and reduction in modulus can exert enough pressure to damage the pavements and cause maintenance problems.

The intent …

Integrated Finite Element Analysis Program To Evaluate Pavement Performance And Predict Non-Destructive Testing Response, Cesar Tirado

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The response of a pavement system under wheel loading has been a subject of research for many decades. Several models have been developed to predict pavement performance based on layer deformation and fatigue cracking. Among them stand out computer programs based on linear elasto-static layered systems and viscoelastic-plastic models; however, newer or more advanced constitutive models cannot be rigorously incorporated into them. In contrast, finite element techniques allow incorporation of nonlinear and viscoelastic-plastic behavior of the pavement materials but licensing of software and the need to train personnel greatly limits its use by highway agencies. A mechanistic-empirical (M-E) approach for …

Treatment Of Ro Concentrate Using Vsep Technology, Guillermo Guadalupe Delgado

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The city of El Paso has the largest inland brackish desalination plant in the world. The Kay Bailey Hutchison (KBH) Desalting plant produces 15 million of permeate water every day. Due to the excellent quality of the water, the permeate water is blended with brackish water producing a final volume of 27.5 million gallons of water every day. With an average recovery rate of 80%, the KBH plant produces an average of 3 million gallons of concentrated brackish water that is disposed of via injection wells 23 miles from the plant.

Conventional reverse osmosis (RO) systems are not capable of …

Verification Of Nyslab A Software For The Analysis Of Jointed Pavements, Maryam Limouee

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

A significant amount of research and development has been conducted for decades to provide a tool for the design and analysis of jointed slabs on different types of foundations. ILLI-SLAB, JSLAB, EverFE and ISLAB are the most used finite element modeling (FEM) codes that have gone through several iterations of improvement. JSLAB has been maintained by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and is distributed free of charge and there is significant interest in further improving the capabilities of that software package.

Researchers at the University of Texas at El Paso have been charged to implement several modifications in the latest …

Transition Metal Catalysts For Hydrodesulfurization Reactions Applied To Petroleum Industry, Brenda Torres

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Catalysis plays a fundamental role in petroleum refining and basic petrochemical industries creating new routes in the development of industrial processes. Moreover, catalysis has become indispensable to the solution of environmental pollution problems and therefore on public health. World wide concerns for preservation of the environment has motivated the development of "Green" catalyst based technologies, to achieve a better utilization of petroleum resources and demands for cleaner transportation fuels. These environmental concerns have led to increasingly drastic regulations on sulfur, nitrogen and aromatics content in fuels. Sulfur content in the motor and diesel fuels is continuously reduced by regulations to …

Asset Management Application Towards An Improved Right Of Way Acquisition, Dora Oralia Francis

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to discover a most suitable approach when the right of way acquisition process begins. As soon as it is known that the right of way acquisitions begin, speculations are made to parcels in order to increase the values of these parcel. Different types of speculations can be made, at a different phase of the right of way (ROW) acquisition process. The parcel cost can vary due to speculations according to the phase of the right of way acquisition process. To help assist the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) on the right of way acquisition …

Methodology To Develop A Minimum Cost Acceptance Sampling Plan For Highway Construction, Gandhar Wazalwar

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Quality Assurance has always been a part of manufacturing processes. Since World War II, Acceptance Sampling has been introduced and implemented for quality control and improvement. Since statistical methods are applied for quality assurance, especially in acceptance sampling, various methods are becoming popular among the highway agencies over the period of time. As a result, several specifications have been designed to date based upon different statistical theories, each with its own advantages and shortcomings. Acceptance is a form of quality assurance which is employed as an audit tool for decision making to accept or reject the product based on its …

Finite Element Modeling Of Nondestructive Test Methods Used For Detection Of Delamination In Hot Mix Asphalt Pavements, Dante Mejia Munoz

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

For the simulation of detection of delamination this study focus on three NDT methods: Impact Echo, Impulse Response and Ultrasonic Surface Waves. The was evaluated and then a parametric study was elaborated.

Sustainable Development Extension Plan (Sudex): Community Mobilization Through Proactive Participation And Synergistic Alliance To Alliviate Poverty And Achieve Sustainable Self Sufficiency, Stephen Forbes

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This Dissertation describes a sustainable development extension plan (Sudex Plan) to help communities in developing countries achieve Goal 1 of the United Nation's Millennium Development Goals (MDG). Goal 1 focuses on reducing poverty and hunger by 50% by the year 2015, but all the MDG are interrelated and one can not be achieved without considering the others, and to attain any is an empty accomplishment without ways to ensure that they can be sustained and continuously improved with the means to pass on the information, knowledge and lessons learned from community to community, generation to generation. The Sudex Plan is …

Characterization Of A Mems Accelerometer For A Highway Health Monitoring Ultra-Low Power Sensor, Karla Cecilia Enriquez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

With the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, government officials recognized the need to implement automated methods that reduce the cost of assessment projects and provide a long-term solution to monitor the structural health of bridges and highways. Although important research exists in the area of non-destructive evaluation, current road health monitoring efforts continue to be costly and time consuming. This Thesis focuses on the characterization of a MEMS accelerometer intended to be the basis of a novel ultra-low power sensing system to remotely asses the condition of highways. The architecture of a sensor prototype built to validate an algorithm …