Civil Engineering Commons^™

Toward Non-Corrosion And Highly Sustainable Structural Members By Using Ultra-High-Performance Materials For Transportation Infrastructure, Shih-Ho Chao, Ashish Karmacharya

Data

Corresponding data set for Tran-SET Project No. 18STUTA01. Abstract of the final report is stated below for reference:

"This research focused on investigating a highly sustainable and efficient reinforced concrete structural member for future infrastructure by utilizing emerging high-performance materials. These materials include ultra-high-performance fiber-reinforced concrete (UHP-FRC) and corrosion-resistant high-strength fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) bars. Four reduced scale UHP-FRC specimens were tested under large displacement reversals to prove the proposed new ductile-concrete strong-reinforcement (DCSR) design concept by fully utilizing these ultra-high-performance materials. Micro steel fibers were incorporated into three specimens and ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers were blended into the fourth …

Evaluating How The Quality Of Pedestrian Infrastructure Affects The Choice To Walk, Gregory Rowangould, Alexis Corning-Padilla

Data

Corresponding data set for Tran-SET Project No. 18PPUNM02. Abstract of the final report is stated below for reference:

"While the benefits of walking are well understood, the physical design of sidewalks and their maintenance needs generally receive much less attention in both research and practice than the infrastructure used by other modes of transportation. As a result, we know comparatively little about how the design of sidewalks and quality of the overall pedestrian environment affect the decision to walk. In our study we conducted a household travel survey to collect data on walking frequency and attributes related to sidewalk quality …

Accounting For Temperature Effects On The Performance Of Soil Moisture Sensors In Sandy Soils, Michelle Schwartz, Zhen Li, Toshihiro Sakaki, Ali Moradi, Kathleen Smits

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications - Archive

Capacitance sensors are widely used to monitor volumetric water content in both field and lab settings due to their low cost, ease of use, and capability of providing continuous measurements. However, these sensors are sensitive to temperature variations. Previous attempts to develop calibration equations that negate thermal effects incorporate many empirical constants that vary based on soil and sensor type. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of temperature on sensor performance and develop an improved calibration equation for a widely used capacitance soil moisture/temperature sensor, the ECH2O 5TM. Small cell experiments were conducted with silica sands …

Sequential Electrocoagulation-Electrooxidation For Virus Mitigation In Drinking Water, Joe Heffron, Donald R. Ryan, Brooke K. Mayer

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Electrochemical water treatment is a promising alternative for small-scale and remote water systems that lack operational capacity or convenient access to reagents for chemical coagulation and disinfection. In this study, the mitigation of viruses was investigated using electrocoagulation as a pretreatment prior to electrooxidation treatment using boron-doped diamond electrodes. This research is the first to investigate a sequential electrocoagulation-electrooxidation treatment system for virus removal. Bench-scale, batch reactors were used to evaluate mitigation of viruses in variable water quality via: a) electrooxidation, and b) a sequential electrocoagulation-electrooxidation treatment train. Electrooxidation of two bacteriophages, MS2 and ΦX174, was inhibited by natural organic …

Communication Of Recommendations For The Disposal Of Unused Prescription Opioid Medications By Stakeholders In The News Media, Megan Lynn Petrik, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Susan M. Moeschler, Benjamin D. Blair

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Objective

The opioid epidemic is a national public health emergency that requires a comprehensive approach to reduce opioid-related deaths. Proper and timely disposal of unused prescription opioids is one method to deter improper use of these medications and prevent overdose. The objective of this study was to understand how recommendations for disposing of unused prescription opioids, including both take-back programs and toilet disposal, are communicated to the public.

Methods

Two hundred sixty-three US newspaper articles published between January 1, 2014, and June 30, 2017, containing information on opioids and take-back programs were found using LexisNexis. Using content analysis, articles were …

Methane Yield And Lag Correlate With Bacterial Community Shift Following Bioplastic Anaerobic Co-Digestion, Kaushik Venkiteshwaran, Nicholas Benn, Saba Seyedi, Daniel Zitomer

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Past plastic management practices have resulted in pollution. An improved management scenario may involve adding used bioplastic to anaerobic digesters to increase methane for renewable energy. In this work, effects of polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) bioplastic anaerobic co-digestion with synthetic primary sludge on operation and microbial communities were investigated. Co-digesters treating sludge were co-fed 20% untreated or pretreated (55 °C, pH 12) PHB. Pretreatment resulted in shorter lag (5 d shorter) before methane production increased after co-digestion. At steady-state, co-digesters converted 86% and 91% of untreated and pretreated PHB to methane, respectively. Bacterial communities were different before and after bioplastic co-digestion, whereas …

Bs News September/October

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

Mitigating Reflective Cracking Through The Use Of A Ductile Concrete Interlayer, Qian Zhang, Mohammad Khattak, Adway Das

Publications

Reflective cracking is considered one of the most important issues that causes premature deterioration of composite pavements. Many types of mitigation methods have been studied in the past. However, they are either not effective in delaying the reflective cracking, or they only extend the service life by a few years. To address this critical issue and significantly extend the service life of the composite pavement, in this research, a ductile interlayer made of engineered cementitious composites (ECC) was proposed. It was hypothesized that by adding a thin layer of highly ductile ECC material between the existing pavement and overlay, reflective …

Performance Of Drilled Shaft Under Combination Of Complicated Loads Under Hurricane Event, Jie Huang, Sazzad Bin-Shafique

Publications

This project includes experimental and numerical studies to investigate and assess the impact of vertical loads on a laterally loaded drilled shaft under various conditions. The experimental study includes lab testing and lab-scale load test to examine a drilled shaft subjected to vertical and lateral loads at a reduced scale. With the data obtained from the lab-scale testing, a numerical model was calibrated, which was used to perform a parametric study to scrutinize the effect of many possible factors such as soil stiffness, soil friction angle, and drilled shaft geometry. With all the factors considered in this study, the vertical …

Investigation Of Physical And Dynamic Properties Of High Porous Concrete, Ildar Akhmadullin

Publications

This project pursued two main objectives: (1) providing opportunities to Baton Rouge Community College (BRCC) students to develop hands-on laboratory skills and exposure to the transportation field, and (2) investigating porous concrete properties. Several BRCC student groups performed the work presented within this report; students prepared samples with different porosity and permeability according to standard specifications. The testing of the samples was performed at the Louisiana Transportation Research Center (LTRC) facility under the supervision of LTRC specialists. Findings indicate that the porosity of samples is backward proportional to the compression strength. This function is not linear but can be estimated …

Toward Non-Corrosion And Highly Sustainable Structural Members By Using Ultra-High-Performance Materials For Transportation Infrastructure, Shih-Ho Chao, Ashish Karmacharya

Publications

This research focused on investigating a highly sustainable and efficient reinforced concrete structural member for future infrastructure by utilizing emerging high-performance materials. These materials include ultra-high-performance fiber-reinforced concrete (UHP-FRC) and corrosion-resistant high-strength fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) bars. Four reduced scale UHP-FRC specimens were tested under large displacement reversals to prove the proposed new ductile-concrete strong-reinforcement (DCSR) design concept by fully utilizing these ultra-high-performance materials. Micro steel fibers were incorporated into three specimens and ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers were blended into the fourth specimen. One specimen with ASTM A1035 MMFX high-strength steel rebars, one with high-strength glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) …

Evaluating How The Quality Of Pedestrian Infrastructure Affects The Choice To Walk, Gregory Rowangould, Alexis Corning-Padilla

Publications

While the benefits of walking are well understood, the physical design of sidewalks and their maintenance needs generally receive much less attention in both research and practice than the infrastructure used by other modes of transportation. As a result, we know comparatively little about how the design of sidewalks and quality of the overall pedestrian environment affect the decision to walk. In our study we conducted a household travel survey to collect data on walking frequency and attributes related to sidewalk quality and the quality of the walking environment in Albuquerque, New Mexico. We used summary statistics and statistical modeling …

Combining Virtual Reality And Machine Learning For Enhancing The Resiliency Of Transportation Infrastructure In Extreme Events, Supratik Mukhopadhyay, Yimin Zhu, Ravindra Gudishala

Publications

Traffic management models that include route choice form the basis of traffic management systems. High-fidelity models that are based on rapidly evolving contextual conditions can have significant impact on smart and energy efficient transportation. Existing traffic/route choice models are generic and are calibrated on static contextual conditions. These models do not consider dynamic contextual conditions such as the location, failure of certain portions of the road network, the social network structure of population inhabiting the region, route choices made by other drivers, extreme conditions, etc. As a result, the model’s predictions are made at an aggregate level and for a …

Integrated Full-Scale Physical Experiments And Numerical Modeling Of The Performance And Rehabilitation Of Highway Embankments, Navid Jafari, Anand Puppala, Sayantan Chakraborty, Burak Boluk

Publications

The study aimed to fundamentally understand how soil strength and hydraulic properties are impacted by recurring cycles of wetting and drying induced by climate variability, with the practical implication of forecasting the stability of highway embankment slopes. The review of literature on the effects of long-term cyclic wetting-drying phases on hydro-mechanical properties of clayey soils suggests that only a few cycles of wetting and drying can impact the strength and hydraulic conductivity, where the latter can increase several orders of magnitude. Laboratory model-scale experiments of Louisiana and Texas soils are still ongoing and will relate the laboratory test results to …

Development Of Geopolymer-Based Cement And Soil Stabilizers For Transportation Infrastructure, Miladin Radovic, Anand Puppala

Publications

Geopolymer Cement (GPC) has drawn much attention in the recent years as an alternative to Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) for soil stabilization, pavements, bridges and other transportation structures due to their good mechanical properties in comparison to OPC. In addition, GPC can be processed at room temperatures from aqueous solutions of waste materials (e.g. fly ash) or abundant natural sources (e.g. clay), thereby significantly reducing CO2 production associated with processing of OPC. As such, GPC proves to be a more sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative than OPC. This research explores methods to develop GPC with desired properties and evaluate their …

How Effective Are Toll Roads In Improving Operational Performance?, Sonu Mathew, Srinivas S. Pulugurtha

Mineta Transportation Institute

The main focus of this research is to develop a systematic analytical framework and evaluate the effect of a toll road on region’s traffic using travel time and travel time reliability measures. The travel time data for the Triangle Expressway in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States was employed for the assessment process. The spatial and temporal variations in the travel time distributions on the toll road, parallel alternate route, and near-vicinity cross-streets were analyzed using various travel time reliability measures. The results indicate that the Triangle Expressway showed a positive trend in reliability over the years of its operation. The …

Effects Of Electro-Osmotic Consolidation Of Clays And Its Improvement Using Ion Exchange Membranes, Lucas Martin

Dissertations

Electro-osmosis is an established method of expediting consolidation of soft, saturated clayey soils compared to commonly used methods, such as preloading with wick drains. In electro-osmotic consolidation a direct current (DC) is applied via inserted electrodes. This causes hydrated ions in the interstitial fluid to migrate to oppositely charged electrodes. Because the clay particles have a negative surface charge, the majority of ions in the interstitial fluid are positively charged. Therefore, the net flow will be towards the negatively charged electrode (cathode), where the water can be removed and thus consolidation is achieved. Certain problems, such as pH changes in …

Evaluation Of Low And High Frequency Dynamic Response For Condition Assessment Of Reinforced Concrete Structures, Ali Hafiz

Dissertations and Theses

Concrete is widely used for civil infrastructure structures and they experience deterioration and degradation due to aging, increases in the traffic loads, harsher environmental conditions, use of deicing chemicals, etc. Therefore, evaluating the integrity of reinforced concrete structures has become of increasing interest for infrastructure owners and managers. A number of non-destructive testing (NDT) and structural health monitoring (SHM) methods have been developed in recent decades to aid in evaluating structures and provide input for asset management. One family of these methods uses the dynamic response of a structural member: stress waves (high frequency) and structural vibrations (low frequency). Both …

Soil-Bentonite Slurry Trench Cutoff Wall Bore Logs, Jeffrey C. Evans

NSF Soil-Bentonite Slurry Trench Cutoff Wall Documents

Bore logs for the soil-bentonite slurry trench cutoff wall constructed in Montandon Pennsylvania.

Optimizing The Valorization Of Industrial By-Products For The Induction Healing Of Asphalt Mixtures, Amir Tabakovic, Marta Vila-Cortavitarte, Daniel Jato-Espino, Daniel Castro-Fresno

Articles

Self-healing within asphalt pavements is the process whereby road cracks can be repaired automatically when thermal and mechanical conditions are met. To accelerate and improve this healing process, metal particles are added to asphalt mixtures. However, thisapproach is costly both in economic and environmental terms due to the use of virgin metallic particles. So, even though the self-healing of asphalt mixtures has been widely addressed in experimental terms over the years, there is a lack of research aimed at modelling this phenomenon, especially with the purpose of optimizing the use of metal particles through the valorization of industrial by-products. As …