Civil Engineering Commons^™

Evaluation Of Non-Nuclear Devices In Measuring Moisture Content And Density Of Soils, Martin Jesus Sotelo

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The objective of this report was to assess the ability of several different devices to measure moisture content and dry density of various compacted geomaterials. The experimental research involved the testing of different subgrade soils and one base material. More than a dozen specimens, 2 ft in height and 1.5 ft in diameter, were constructed to evaluate the Transtech SDG 200, Purdue TDR, and the Decagon 10 HS moisture content sensor. The Speedy Moisture Tester and DOT600 Roadbed Water Content Meter were also evaluated using individual soil samples. All materials were tested at five different moisture contents, but at their …

Development Of An Electronic Vehicle Miles Travelled Toll Model, Marketa Vavrova

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This thesis presents the reasons why the fuel tax is no longer a viable source of revenues and suggests new sources of funding. One possibility is to replace the fuel tax with a distance-based toll applied nationwide. Vehicle miles travelled (VMT) fee is compared to the fuel tax, and the relationship between road infrastructure spending and fuel taxation in the United States (U.S.) and the European Union (EU) is explored. Also the European approach to taxation and tolling is described and compared to the situation in Texas.

The development of a statewide distance-based toll model to estimate the feasibility of …

Pvc Stay-In-Place Panel Covers For Tilt-Up And Pre-Cast Construction, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Octaform™ stay-in-place concrete forming system is PVC insulated concrete form system. These forms have been used in the industry for various applications to improve the insulation and corrosion resistance of structures. Octaform™ has developed the panel covers so the advantages of PVC stay-in-place concrete forming systems could be applied to tilt-up and pre-cast construction.

Conx Chassis System, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Often referred to as a full-scale “Erector Set”, the ConX System applies technology to the building industry resulting in dramatic efficiencies. The systems approach is made possible by employing automated and efficient processes, from design through fabrication, shipping, and field assembly.

Nightbreeze™: Integrated Heating, Ventilation And Cooling System, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

NightBreeze™ provides ventilation cooling automatically, eliminating the necessity of operating windows. NightBreeze™ uses the heating/air conditioning system fan to bring in filtered outside air and flush out warm, stale indoor air. The system also allows you to select the lowest temperature you want the house to reach overnight.

Cmic Xprojects, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

xProjects is a cloud based collaboration and project management solution that resolves the interoperability issues associated with integrated project delivery (IPD) and electrifies the IPD process by enabling capital project owners to collaborate seamlessly with multiple project stakeholders. Using XML adapters to create connections between systems, CMiC Real Time Integration (RTI) tags data so it can be transferred bi-directionally between participants within the project ecosystem with no loss of information or the need for re-entry.

Autodesk Buzzsaw®, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Autodesk® Buzzsaw® is a software solution enabling the successful execution of construction projects through a central database, collaboration and communication with access control. The software has capacities of exchanging and viewing drawings, schedule reminders and specifications. Users can directly comment on AutoCAD drawings with the date of comment and name of commenter displayed.

Bidtool.Net: An Integrated Web-Based Approach For Commercial Bid Data Management And Networking, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

BidTool is basically a web-based portal that allows the distribution and transfer of key commercial construction project data. Owners, architects, designers, engineers, estimators, contractors, material suppliers & construction professionals find track and manage everything from architectural plans specifications and renderings to action items and scheduling requirements such as bid due dates, pre bid meetings and bid results.

Contour Crafting, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Victims of disasters such as floods, earthquakes and war have to seek shelter elsewhere. A need arises to rapidly construct houses on site and at minimal cost. This will eliminate the need to transport pre-fabricated shelters long distances, saving the time and costs associated with transportation. Since Contour Crafting is an automated process, labor needs are highly minimized allowing relief workers to allocate their time and effort to rebuilding local infrastructure such as water sanitation and distribution systems, roads, electrical and communication systems as well as irrigations systems.

Super Flex Wall - New Frame System For High Rise Buildings, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

The "Super Flex Wall" is a structural frame method newly developed by the Takenaka Corporation, used in combination with a core wall (the earthquake-resistant reinforced concrete wall penetrating through the center of the building from the lower part to the top floor) and a structural control method or with a base-isolation method. Part of the structure is cantilevered from the central core along the periphery of the building.

Carbon Frp Grid Structures For Use In Reinforcing Concrete, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Carbon FRP Grids are structural reinforcement materials that improve the performance of concrete structures such as insulated wall panels, architectural panels, double tee parking garage tee beams, concrete countertops and other products. The carbon grids can be used in place of welded wire mesh in most structures and is imbedded the same way as a welded wire mesh.

Conx Space Frame System, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Off-site manufacture is one of the key initiatives being used by contractors to achieve these goals. Sandwich Plate System (SPS) Floors deliver a compelling off-site solution for structural floors. Their composite steel panels provide a similar performance to concrete floors at one quarter the weight, 10 - 15% shorter project schedules and broader benefits such as reduced complexity and the elimination of the majority of wet-work above ground level.

Optimal Advance Detector Location For Green Termination Systems On High-Speed Isolated Rural Intersections, Lili Du, Anuj Sharma, Srinivas Peeta

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Faculty Publications

This study seeks to identify the optimal location of an advance point traffic detector (APTD) to support green termination algorithms for enhanced dilemma zone protection systems at high-speed isolated signalized rural intersections. This is done by developing a nonlinear optimization model with the objective to maximize the opportunities to predict empty dilemma zones during a look-ahead time period subject to the prediction accuracy which is manifested through prediction efficiency and safety constraints in the model. The distance of the APTD from the stop bar of the intersection represents the decision variable. The Golden-Section line search algorithm combined with numerical integration …

Head Ejection During Barrier Impacts, Scott K. Rosenbaugh, Ronald K. Faller, Dean L. Sicking

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Faculty Publications

During oblique vehicular impacts with longitudinal barriers, an occupant’s head is often ejected out of a side window. When this occurs, the occupant’s head can contact the barrier or an object attached thereto. This impact event, often termed head slap, normally produces a serious injury or fatality. Roadside barriers and any attached hardware should be designed with sufficient offset at the top to preclude head slap for most impact conditions. The goal of this study was to identify the extent of head ejection that can be expected during high-speed crashes with longitudinal barriers. High-speed videos of full-scale vehicle crash tests …

Drop Weight Testing On Sandwich Panels With A Novel Thermoplastic Core Material, Christopher Y. Tuan

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Faculty Publications

A series of drop weight tests were conducted to evaluate the dynamic flatwise compression strength and flexural strength of sandwich panels with a novel core structure. This sandwich core material, known as Norcore, consists of interconnected cells in a unique configuration of truncated pyramid with sloping cell walls. Core materials made of thermoplastic including virgin Lexan, polycarbonate, polycarbonate regrind, high-impact polystyrene, and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene were tested. The test results showed that these sandwich panels have good strength as well as energy absorption capacities.

Evaluation Of Ice-Melting Capacities Of Deicing Chemicals, B. M. Gerbino-Bevins, Christopher Y. Tuan, M. Mattison

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Faculty Publications

Common deicing chemicals include sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, calcium chloride, calcium magnesium acetate, potassium acetate, potassium formate, and corn or beet-based deicer solution. Liquid deicers are commonly used for pre-wetting road salt, sand or other solid deicers, or mixed with salt brine as liquid deicer. Although manufacturers provide performance data under specific conditions, a standardized test is very much needed. Samples of sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, calcium chloride, potassium acetate, and beet juice-based chemical deicers were selected for performance evaluation. The SHRP Ice-Melting Capacity Test has been used in many research projects, but the results do not always correlate well …

Real-World Performance Of Longitudinal Barriers Struck By Large Trucks, Doug Gabauer

Faculty Journal Articles

Outside of relatively limited crash testing with large trucks, very little is known regarding the performance of traffic barriers subjected to real-world large truck impacts. The purpose of this study was to investigate real-world large truck impacts into traffic barriers to determine barrier crash involvement rates, the impact performance of barriers not specifically designed to redirect large trucks, and the real-world performance of large-truck-specific barriers. Data sources included the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (2000-2009), the General Estimates System (2000-2009) and 155 in-depth large truck-to-barrier crashes from the Large Truck Crash Causation Study. Large truck impacts with a longitudinal barrier were …

Strengthening Of Reinforced Concrete Beams Pre-Damaged In Shear, Yousef Mohammed Bachar Chekfeh

Theses

Repair and strengthening of existing reinforced concrete (RC) structures has increased drastically in recent years. Shear reinforcement in RC beams is typically of a small bar diameter, and hence any shear-damage would result in a severe safety hazard and a catastrophic mode of failure especially under extreme loading events. The present work was initiated to the effectiveness of different composite strengthening systems; namely externally bonded carbon fiber reinforced polymer (EB-CFRP), and near surface mounted glass fiber reinforced polymer (NSM-GFRP) to prolong the functional service life of RC beams pre-damaged in shear. It comprised experimental testing and analytical investigation.

The experimental …

Bridge Deck Cracking Investigation And Repair, Vidal Velez Vargas

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The focus of this study is to investigate the cracking of concrete bridge decks and the sealants used in repairing transverse cracks. Cracking could occur in both hardened mature concrete and early age concrete. Several factors affect concrete cracking, such as age-dependent material properties, thermal- and moisture-related stresses and strains, material viscoelastic behavior, restraints, concrete expansion and contraction, casting sequence, formwork, material characteristics, and environmental exposure. The causes of early age cracking are primarily attributed to effects such as plastic shrinkage, temperature effects, autogenous shrinkage, and drying shrinkage. This deck cracking could greatly reduce durability, lead to a loss of …

Flexural Behavior Of Laterally Damaged Full-Scale Bridge Girders Through The Use Of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers (Cfrp), Nicholas James Alteri

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

The repair and strengthening of concrete bridge members with CFRP has become increasingly popular over recent years. However, significant research is still needed in order to develop more robust guidelines and specifications. The research project aims to assist with improving design procedures for damaged concrete members with the use of CFRP.

This document summarizes the analysis and testing of full-scale 40’ foot long prestressed concrete (PSC) bridge girders exposed to simulated impact damage and repaired with carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRP) materials. A total of five AASHTO type II bridge girders fabricated in the 1960’s were taken from an …