Engineering Commons^™

Columbus, Nebraska: Southern Housing Development Design Proposal, Ryan Weyers, Caiden Dynek, Alex Papa, Brexton Robertson, Kaden Perala

Honors Theses

The following paper proposes the design and creation of a new housing development in the city of Columbus, Nebraska in a lot to the south of the city and directly north of the Columbus wastewater treatment plant. The goal of this proposal is to provide readers with confidence that our company is the most qualified to complete the project and will create the safest, most comfortable, most efficient, and most cost-effective final design. This proposal seeks to offer a solution to the lack of affordable housing for the growing workforce in Columbus. In order to arrive at this solution, each …

Assessing The Performance Of High-Rap Mixtures Incorporating Crude Vegetable Oils And An Antioxidant From Mechanical, Environmental, And Economic Perspectives, Nitish R. Bastola

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Utilization of mixtures with high amounts of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) in the pavement industry is limited because of the adverse effects of aged materials in recycled asphalt materials. To date, numerous approaches have been used to reduce the adversity of RAP in mixtures. One such approach is the use of recycling agents (RAs) from various sources, such as petroleum and bio-oil. However, the current need is to maximize the use of RAP by adopting a sustainable source of RAs. Therefore, this study uses two RAs based on vegetable oils (crude soybean oil and crude corn oil) with high-RAP mixtures …

Law School News: National Housing Advocate Named To Lead Rwu's New Real Estate Initiatives 02/08/2022, Roger Williams University School Of Law

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.

Cool Thermal Energy Storage: Water And Ice To Alternative Phase Change Materials, Sandra K. S. Boetcher

Publications

Cool thermal energy storage has a long history dating back to ancient times with modern developments beginning in the mid-nineteenth century where blocks of ice were cut from frozen lakes for cooling applications. Today, the prevalent mode of thermal energy storage is the utilization of ice tanks in commercial buildings for peak shaving and load shifting. In this chapter, a summary of different types of water/ice thermal energy storage systems is provided; an overview of alternative phase change materials for use in cool thermal energy storage is given; and alternative phase change material thermal energy systems, their implementation, challenges, and …

Manufacturing: The Qualitative Study Of A Transition To A Green Facility, Brandon David Staves

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This qualitative study focused on answering three core questions: How have facilities reduce pollutions in regards to the quality of air, water, land, light and noise? Which Types of pollution reduction projects are more or less successful to implement? What types of pollution are facilities focusing on and why? The results of the 15 companies surveyed show a variety of projects that facilities have used to reduce pollution, it also shows that cost is a major factor in the unsuccessful projects, and that facilities are actively focused on reducing Air, Land, and Water pollution. While the data shows a variety …

Boy Scouts Of America Concept Site Master Plan And Improvements, Anna Cole, Jacob Chekal, William Seeger, Shanon Al-Brady, Nicholas Cowles

Honors Theses

Our team, G1 Engineering, has partnered with the Boy Scouts of America to provide an update to their master plan for the Outdoor Education Center site located at 600 S. 120^th Street, Lincoln, NE. Our work included providing transportation solutions; drainage evaluations; investigation of geotechnical conditions; environmental evaluation and determination of permitting requirements; preparation of concept design plans for bridges, drainage, utilities, and overall site plan; and evaluation of structural elements included in the project.

Two streams cross the property presenting site access issues. Our team provided pedestrian, UTV, and emergency vehicle access bridges to address these issues. With …

Civil Engineering Design Of Cornhusker Council's Outdoor Education Center, Kelly Weiler

Honors Theses

A team of geotechnical, structural, hydraulic, environmental, and transportation experts collaborated to provide engineering solutions to the Cornhusker Council in an effort to solve the current problems facing their Outdoor Education Center. This results of this project provided the structural design of three bridges on the property, transportation plans for two parking lots and roadway design, geotechnical recommendations for soil testing and erosion prevention, and an environmental and hydraulic analysis of the property. A major challenge in the design of this project is the consideration of the dangers and regulations that accompany the floodway and floodplain regions on site. Various …

Environmental Water Transactions In The Colorado River Basin: A Closer Look, Leon Szeptycki, David Pilz, Rachel O'Connor, Beatrice Gordon

All In-stream Flows Material

Over the last 30 years, the voluntary transfer of water and water rights for environmental uses has become a recognized strategy for restoring streamflow in the Western United States.¹ Historically, taking water out of a stream was a legally required element of an appropriative water right. Water rights holders who left all or a portion of their right instream to enhance fish populations, riparian habitat or recreation, risked forfeiture or diminishment of their water right. Beginning in the 1980’s, state laws began to recognize both the appropriation of new water rights for instream use and to allow the transfer …

Colorado River Basin Environmental Water Transfers Scorecard, Leon Szeptycki, David Pilz

All In-stream Flows Material

The Colorado River and its tributaries support more than 35 million people and irrigate more than four million acres of farmland. At the same time, the river supports 30 fish species found nowhere else on earth and inspires millions of visitors and residents alike with its sheer beauty. However, growing water scarcity caused by increased water use, hydrologic variability and climate change loom over all the Colorado River provides.

Accurate Range Estimation For An Electric Vehicle Including Changing Environmental Conditions And Traction System Efficiency, Kaveh Sarrafan, Danny Sutanto, Kashem M. Muttaqi, Graham Town

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part B

Range anxiety is an obstacle to the acceptance of electric vehicles (EVs), caused by drivers' uncertainty regarding their vehicle's state of charge (SoC) and the energy required to reach their destination. Most estimation methods for these variables use simplified models with many assumptions that can result in significant error, particularly if dynamic and environmental conditions are not considered. For example, the combined efficiency of the inverter drive and electric motor varies throughout the route and is not constant as assumed in most range estimation methods. This study proposes an improved method for SoC and range estimation by taking into account …

A New Open Source Platform For Lowering The Barrier For Environmental Web App Development, Nathan R. Swain, Scott D. Christensen, Alan D. Snow, Herman Dolder, Gonzola Espinoza-Dávalos, Erfan Goharian, Norman L. Jones, E. James Nelson, Daniel P. Ames, Steven J. Burian

Faculty Publications

The interactive nature of web applications or “web apps” makes them a well-suited medium for conveying complex scientific concepts to lay audiences and creating decision support tools that harness cutting edge modeling techniques and promote the work of environmental scientists and engineers. Despite this potential, the technical expertise required to develop web apps represents a formidable barrier—even for scientists and engineers who are skilled programmers. This paper describes four hurdles that contribute to this barrier and introduces an approach to overcoming these hurdles. We present an open source implementation of this approach, a development and hosting environment for environmental web …

A Study On The Dissolution Of Autunite Minerals By Facultative Bacteria In Bicarbonate Media, Sandra C. Herrera Landaez

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Uranium (U) is a key contaminant at the Hanford site. The formation of uranyl-phosphate bearing minerals such as autunite as a result of tripoliphosphate injections has been used as a U immobilization strategy. Bacteria are known as key factors governing the fate and transport of soil contaminants. This research evaluated the interaction of facultative bacteria Shewanella Oneidensis MR-1 with autunite mineral in bicarbonate-amended media solutions. The concentration of several elements such as U, calcium (Ca) and phosphorous (P) released as a result of autunite mineral biodissolution were determined as a function of time; changes in cell density and protein assay …

Driver Alerting System Using Range Estimation Of Electric Vehicles In Real Time Under Dynamically Varying Environmental Conditions, Vincent R. Tannahill, Kashem M. Muttaqi, Danny Sutanto

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

As the technology supporting electric vehicles (EVs) is rapidly progressing and the cost of EV components is reducing, EVs are becoming more feasible for use in Australia and in many countries around the world. However, the public perception of EVs and their perceived limitations result in a slow uptake of the technology, partially because of the uncertainty regarding the ability of an EV to meet the driving needs of the general population. Range anxiety is a particular concern with drivers having fear of being stranded by a depleted EV battery. This study explores means of reducing range anxiety by taking …

Incorporating Environmental Evaluation And Thermal Properties Of Concrete Mix Designs, Mehdi Robati, Timothy J. Mccarthy, Georgios Kokogiannakis

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

One of the main challenges in sustainable design of buildings is to improve the energy efficiency of the building during its lifetime along with reducing the environmental impact of the design. Recent advances in concrete technology offer lower embodied emission through the application of supplementary cementitious materials and recycled aggregates. There are also improvements to thermal properties with the application of admixtures. However, the relationships between the environmental impact (Cradle to Gate) and thermal performance of concrete mix designs have not been researched adequately. The Green House Gas (GHG) emissions associated with each individual concrete component and its production need …

Little Bear And Blacksmith Fork Rivers Environmental Flows, Bio-West, Inc.

All In-stream Flows Material

This report describes existing information and first steps related to developing environmental flow recommendations for the Little Bear and Blacksmith Fork Rivers in Cache County, Utah. This project was undertaken by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) in partnership with Trout Unlimited (TU), Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR), Cache County, and Utah State University (USU). Both rivers have been identified as conservation priorities, primarily for Bonneville cutthroat trout (BCT) and their riparian and aquatic systems.

Little Bear And Blacksmith Fork Rivers Environmental Flows: Background Report, Bio-West, Inc.

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

This report describes existing information and first steps related to developing environmental flow recommendations for the Little Bear and Blacksmith Fork Rivers in Cache County, Utah. This project was undertaken by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) in partnership with Trout Unlimited (TU), Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR), Cache County, and Utah State University (USU). Both rivers have been identified as conservation priorities, primarily for Bonneville cutthroat trout (BCT) and their riparian and aquatic systems.

Environmental Water Rights Transfers: A Review Of State Laws, Leon F. Szeptycki, Julia Forgie, Elizabeth Hook, Kori Lorick, Philip Womble

All In-stream Flows Material

This report was prepared in cooperation with, and was funded by, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), with the goal of providing an assessment of the legal regimes for reviewing and approving environmental water transfers in twelve western states. The ability to transfer, change, or dedicate an existing water right under the prior appropriation system to instream uses is a relatively new legal tool. Legislatures in western states first passed statutes authorizing and governing these transfers in the late 1980s. As part of its overall western water program, NFWF engaged with Water in the West to assess the scope, …

Environmental Sustainability Of Soft Soil Improvement Via Vacuum And Surcharge Preloading, Cholachat Rujikiatkamjorn, Buddhima Indraratna

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Due to environmental concerns, sustainable ground improvement is considered a critical part of modern infrastructure development. Current policy on environmental sustainability often expects noise-free, chemical-free, and low carbon emission processes, while being economical. In this context, the application of prefabricated vertical drains (PVD) with vacuum preloading is regarded as one of the most sustainable ground improvement techniques. Compared with other ground improvement methods such as piling and chemical stabilization, this method will not only save a considerable cost in embankment construction, but will also improve the construction rate of coastal highways and rail tracks and their load-carrying capacity. The utilization …

Supercomputer Design: An Initial Effort To Capture The Environmental, Economic, And Societal Impacts, Marshall T. Mcdonnell

Faculty Publications and Other Works -- Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Abstract Currently, the Green500 is possibly the largest effort to direct the evolution of supercomputing towards sustainable design but does not address life-cycle impacts of a supercomputer. Supercomputer assessment with economical, environmental, and societal impacts considered would provide an optimal future supercomputer design that is sustainable. Some of the benefits of such an assessment would help determines the complete impact for bringing a supercomputer online, determine impact “hot spots” in design, and determine optimal locations for construction. By combining process-LCA and EIO-LCA methods, an initial model for in-depth sustainability analysis of supercomputer design has been developed and the results presented. …

Environmental Impact Assessment Of Post Tensioned And Reinforced Concrete Slab Construction, D Miller, J H. Doh, H Guan, M Mulvey, S Fragomeni, T Mccarthy, T Peters

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

In Australia, approximately 30 million tonnes of finished building products are produced each year, with over 56% of this quantity, by mass, being attributed to concrete and a further 6%, steel, highlighting the importance of maximising design efficiencies. The cement industry has been reported responsible for 5% of global carbon dioxide emissions while the construction, operation and maintenance of buildings are estimated to account for 50% of all energy usage and more than 50% of all anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions globally. This research determines some environmental advantages achievable through application of alternate concrete slab construction methods for a typical …

Travel Distance Judgment: An Environmental Distance Information Cognitive Processing Perspective, Mengxiang Li, Chuan-Hoo Tan, Kwok-Kee Wei

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

A consumer makes travel distance judgment to determine the place to visit. Stores that gain favorable travel distance judgment could gain access to a large volume of customer base. Travel distance judgment is often made with the aid of technologies, such as the mobile location-based service (LBS). In the present research-in-progress, we build on the human's environmental distance information cognitive processing model to propose how the travel distance information and visual geospatial information jointly influence a consumer's travel distance judgment. We posit that the combination of direct-distance travel information and destination visual reachable geospatial information (2D-map) could result in favorable …

Evaluation Of The Environmental Impacts Of Bridge Deck Runoff, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Lauren Swadener, Ekizabeth G. Jones

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

Bridges are located in very close proximity to receiving waters, and regulatory agencies often require specific stormwater control measures for bridge deck runoff. While there is some information available on roadway runoff, few studies have focused on bridge deck runoff. Currently, there is no information available regarding the impacts of bridge deck runoff on receiving waters in Nebraska. Due to the cost, maintenance, and design issues associated with implementing structural controls for bridge deck runoff, it is important to develop a better understanding of the relationship between bridge deck runoff and potential impacts to receiving streams. The objectives of this …

Slides: Natural Gas: Game Changer Or Runner Left On Base? Working To Get It Right In Co!, Gary Graham

Drawing the Blueprint for a Sustainable Natural Gas Future (January 18)

Presenter: Dr. Gary Graham, Director, Lands Program, Western Resource Advocates

21 slides

Agenda: Drawing The Blueprint For A Sustainable Natural Gas Future, University Of Colorado At Denver. Wirth Chair In Environmental And Community Development Policy, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center. Intermountain Oil And Gas Bmp Project

Drawing the Blueprint for a Sustainable Natural Gas Future (January 18)

A stakeholder-led forum discussing the key topics affecting natural gas as a safe and sustainable energy resource. Participants learned about the current research and related resources at Colorado’s three research universities and participated in designing future research needs.

Exploring Technological-Organizational And Environmental Characteristics Related To Rfid Adoption Intention In The Saudi Arabia's Retail Industry, Salem Alqahtani, Samuel Fosso Wamba

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Drawing on the diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory as well as on the emerging literature on RFID technology, this study explores a set of technological, organizational and environmental characteristics that will play an important role in the RFID adoption decision process within the Saudi retail industry. Results of data collected among seven (7) Saudi large-scale retailers are presented and discussed, together with the implications for research and practice.

Materials For Presentation: Water Banks: Voluntary And Flexible Water Supplies For The Colorado River's Uncertain Future [Outline], Robert Wigington

Navigating the Future of the Colorado River (Martz Summer Conference, June 8-10)

4 pages.

"Robert Wigington, The Nature Conservancy"

Slides: Smart Fallowing: New Strategies In Ag Forbearance, Bonnie Colby

Navigating the Future of the Colorado River (Martz Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Dr. Bonnie Colby, Department of Agriculture & Resource Economics, University of Arizona

34 slides

Slides: Long-Term Augmentation Of The Water Supply Of The Colorado River System, Les Lampe

Navigating the Future of the Colorado River (Martz Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Les Lampe, Colorado River Water Consultants, Las Vegas, Nevada

29 slides

Geo-Environmental Approaches For The Remediation Of Acid Sulphate Soil In Low-Lying Floodplains, Buddhima Indraratna, Gyanendra Regmi, Long Nghiem, Alexandra N. Golab

Faculty of Engineering - Papers (Archive)

Acidity generated from the oxidation of pyrite and other sulphidic compounds that exist at shallow depths in acid sulphate soils (ASS) presents a challenging environmental problem in coastal Australia. The generated acidic groundwater can adversely impact coastal ecosystems, aquaculture and agriculture. Groundwater manipulation using weirs and modified floodgates in creeks and flood mitigation drains in ASS-affected farmland, which has been practiced for over a decade for preventing pyrite oxidation, is not effective in low-lying floodplains due to the high risk of flooding. In this paper, the authors present an overview of their experience in coastal Australia, a critical evaluation of …

Spatial And Temporal Interpolation Of Environmental Data, Tom Smith, Phil Jones, Elizabeth Kent, Maurice Cox, Noel A. Cressie, Dick Dee, Richard Smith

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Environmental data analyzed to a regular spatial and temporal grid is often desired for monitoring and climate studies. For example, monitoring of regional to global temperature change and changes in the daily temperature range and extremes may use analyzed temperatures. We use the term 'analyses' in the broadest sense to encompass any form of transformation to a regular grid (so from simple gridding through to dynamical reanalyses). Resolution depends on the period and region of the analysis: typically coarser analysis grids correspond to longer periods and larger areas. Some analyses are updated in near-real time.