Civil Engineering Commons^™

Effectiveness Study On Temporary Pavement Marking Removals Methods, Dr. Yong Cho, Dr. Jae-Ho Pyeon, Koudous Kabassi

Mid-America Transportation Center: Final Reports and Technical Briefs

This study was conducted to identify effective temporary marking removal methods and procedures on concrete and asphalt pavements. Pavement markings provide guidance to road travelers and can lead to accidents when not properly removed. Current state guidelines on removal do not provide clear and objective methods of measurement. After testing the most common removal methods, this research concluded that removing markings by chemical was not only cost efficient, result-oriented, and effective compared to other methods, but it was also safe to the environment and road users. Finally, a baseline of measurements was developed by the research team for this project, …

A Financial Impact Assessment Of Ld 1725: Stream Crossings Presentation, New England Environmental Finance Center

Economics and Finance

This report looks at the potential financial impact of LD 1725 on the estimated 30,000 stream crossings in the State of Maine that would be affected by the law. Our research for this report included the analysis of nearly 2000 stream crossings and the data collection necessary for the development of extensive stream crossing replacement cost models. We found that the 1.2 bankfull requirements in LD 1725 would result in a 75% ‐ 250% increase in structure widths for stream crossing projects across the state. An upsize of this magnitude would increase the cost of replacing stream crossings statewide by …

Fracture Energy Method For Determining Stiffness In Polymer Modified Asphalt Binders Using The Single Edge Notched Beam, Alejandro Rosales

McNair Scholars Research Journal

Transverse cracking is a prevalent problem that occurs in asphalt pavement binders in cold climates and diminishes the integrity of the road as well as shortens the life span of the road leading to premature failure. Current specification for testing asphalt pavement binders for transverse cracking fails to accurately model the behavior of modified asphalt binders because it does not take into account the effects of physical hardening. Furthermore, current specification, which employs the use of the bending beam rheometer (BBR) and direct tension tests, was developed through the use of unmodified asphalt pavement binders and so it does not …

Modelling Of Highway Bridge Traffic Loading: Some Recent Advances, Bernard Enright, Colin C. Caprani, Eugene J. Obrien

Conference papers

The accurate estimation of site-specific lifetime extreme traffic load effects is an important element in the cost-effective assessment of bridges. In recent years, the improved quality and increasing use of weigh-in-motion technology has meant that better quality and larger databases of vehicle weights are now available. This has enabled measurements of the regular occurrence of extremely heavy vehicles, with weights in excess of 100 t. The collected measurements have been used as the basis for building and calibrating a Monte Carlo simulation model for bridge loading. The computer programs written to implement this model generate simulated traffic in two lanes …

Structural Health Monitoring For Damage Detection Using Wired And Wireless Sensor Clusters, Thomas Terrell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sensing and analysis of a structure for the purpose of detecting, tracking, and evaluating damage and deterioration, during both regular operation and extreme events, is referred to as Structural Health Monitoring (SHM). SHM is a multi-disciplinary field, with a complete system incorporating sensing technology, hardware, signal processing, networking, data analysis, and management for interpretation and decision making. However, many of these processes and subsequent integration into a practical SHM framework are in need of development. In this study, various components of an SHM system will be investigated. A particular focus is paid to the investigation of a previously developed damage …

Evaluating The Use Of Steady Burn Warning Lights On Drums For Workzone Safety, Prasad Nannapaneni

Wayne State University Dissertations

Abstract

EVALUATING THE USE OF

STEADY BURN WARNING LIGHTS ON DRUMS

FOR WORK ZONE SAFETY

by

PRASAD LAKSHMI VARA NANNAPANENI

May 2011

Advisor: Dr. Timothy Gates

Major: Civil Engineering

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

Roadway maintenance and repair has become increasingly commonplace in the United States over the past several decades as our roadway infrastructure has continued to age and deteriorate. Maintenance and repair work on an existing roadway often presents the challenge of maintaining traffic on the existing roadway while work is being performed, thereby necessitating the use of what is commonly referred to as a roadway "work zone". One …

Characteristics And Causal Factors Of Claims In Michigan Highway Construction Projects, Abel K. Sahlool

Wayne State University Dissertations

The US highway system is the largest road network system in the world. MDOT administers about 9,722 route-miles, (28,000 lane-miles) of roadway networks in Michigan. Every year, hundreds of projects worth millions of dollars are let by the State Transportation Agency (STA).

Majority of these projects are successfully completed within the original scope of work, budget, schedule, and without litigation. However; some projects end up in litigation and disputes costing tax payers a great amount of money and the STA a great amount of resources. The number and cost of these construction claims has been substantially increasing in recent years. …

Investigating Rfid For Linear Asset Management, Judy A. Perkins Ph.D., P.E., Erick C. Jones Ph.D., P.E., Cssbb, Judith L. Mwakalonge Ph.D., E.I.T

Mid-America Transportation Center: Final Reports and Technical Briefs

A linear asset is defined as an asset whose length plays a critical role in its maintenance. Examples of such assets include roads, pipelines, and railroad tracks. Major features of a roadway asset include traffic lights, number of lanes, speed limits, guardrails, and highway billboards. Linear assets, along with their features, are hard to physically access; therefore, previously captured inventory information files may be inaccurate. To address this problem, some of the transportation agencies are investigating technologies that will assist in solving this asset inventory problem. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a technology that uses communication via radio waves to …

Improving The Freight Transportation Roadway System During Snow Events: A Performance Evaluation Of Deicing Chemicals, Christopher Y. Tuan, Barbara M. Gerbino-Bevins

Mid-America Transportation Center: Final Reports and Technical Briefs

The ability of state DOTs to adequately clear roadways during winter weather conditions is critical for a safe and effective freight transportation system. Variables affecting winter maintenance operations include the type of precipitation, air and pavement temperature, traffic, wind, time of day, day of week, and maintenance equipment. The main objective of this study is to identify the best practices for normal deicing operations, based on the performance rating of deicing chemicals. Optimum deicer/brine ratios and the associated application rates will be determined for various weather conditions. The best practices will ensure effective deicing operation and economical use of deicing …

Impact Of Large 0.7 Inch Strand On Nu-I Girders, Maher K. Tadros Ph.D., P.E., George Morcous Ph.D.

Mid-America Transportation Center: Final Reports and Technical Briefs

The NU I-Girder series uses a unique cross-section and high-strength concrete to achieve longer spans. The objective of this project was to develop the quality control and design criteria required to introduce 0.7 inch strands at 2 in. spacing in NU I-Girders. Compared to 0.5 inch strands, only 1/2 of the total number of strands would be needed. This would result in immediate labor savings in precast concrete product costs. More importantly, having the ability to introduce almost twice the prestressing force, compared to 0.5 inch strands, and 135% of the prestressing force, compared to 0.6 inch strands, could result …

A Framework For The Nationwide Multimode Transportation Demand Analysis, Hojong Baik Ph.D., Yuepeng Cui, Tao Li

Mid-America Transportation Center: Final Reports and Technical Briefs

This study attempts to analyze the impact of traffic on the US highway system considering both passenger vehicles and trucks. For the analysis, a pseudo-dynamic traffic assignment model is proposed to estimate the time-dependent link flow from the intercity travelers on the network covering the continental U.S. A two-stage simulation scheme was designed to separate the intercity and non-intercity travelers involved in the link flow. The fuel consumption and emissions from the intercity travelers are estimated based on data in Mobile, the emission model developed by EPA. The suggested methodology could be adopted in further deployment of a nationwide transportation …

Transit System Evaluation Process: From Planning To Realization, K Bartman, Jennifer Ogle, Mashrur Chowdhury, Anne Dunning

Publications

Many frameworks exist to help transit agencies plan, operate, and monitor the performance of transit in rural and urban communities. No framework integrates these three critical business practices into one coherent and flexible framework useful to rural and small-sized cities. The primary objective of this research was to integrate planning, operations, and performance measurement activities into a framework designed to evaluate transit in the context of overall mobility. By combining planning, evaluation, and performance monitoring processes, a succinct framework useful to transit agencies and planners was created. In addition to city entities, colleges and universities operating or contracting transit systems …

Evaluating Beat Structure And Truck Allocation For The Tarrant County Courtesy Patrol, Farzad Daneshgar

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

Non-recurring congestion poses a significant concern to urban freeway drivers. Effective incident management relies on many tools to lessen the overall impact of crashes, road debris, and stalled/disabled vehicles. While many of the tools are based in a region's traffic management center, many urban areas have adopted freeway service patrol (FSP) programs that patrol the freeway network searching for incidents, providing aid to motorists, and assisting with incident management and clearance. While FSP operations can be assessed in terms of response and clearance times, FSP management must consider the beat structure and fleet allocation. This investigation considers response time and …

Characterization And Evaluation Of Gas Generation Potential Of Municipal Solid Waste From A Closed Section Of A Landfill, Sonia Samir

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

At present, there are more than 40 closed municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills around DFW and North Texas. A closed landfill might have potential benefits for gas recovery and utilization due to the presence of organic components in the MSW. The decomposition of organic components of MSW produces gas. The decomposition process after landfill closure may continue for 20 to 100 years depending on the operational practice of the landfill. However, to evaluate the methane potential of a closed landfill it is important to have the understanding of the characteristics of the existing or decomposed landfill wastes. The current study …

The Last Planner System For Realiable Project Delivery, Alok Patel

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

The Last Planner System is a production planning system designed to produce predictable work flow and rapid learning in programming, design, construction and commissioning of projects. The Last Planner System (LPS) is developed by Glenn Ballard and Greg Howell as a production planning and control system to assist in smoothing variations in construction work flow, developing planning foresight, and reducing uncertainty in construction operations. The LPS challenges the old practices of developing schedules and pushing them from top management down to frontline people to execute. It advocates collaborative planning, performing collaborative constraint analysis, and learning from planning failures. The LPS …

Determination Of Geotechnical Properties Of Clayey Soil From Resistivity Imaging (Ri), Golam Kibria

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

The use of resistivity imaging (RI) in the subsurface investigation has increased in recent years. RI is a non destructive method and provides a continuous image of the subsurface. Based on the electrical conduction phenomenon of soil, spatial and temporal moisture variation and he-terogeneity of subsurface can be evaluated from RI. However, only qualitative evaluation of sub-surface can be obtained from RI. The correlation between RI results and geotechnical engineering properties of soils has become an important issue for rigorous use of this method in site in-vestigation. The current study attempts to develop the relationship and correlations between geo-technical parameters …

Comparison Of Dust Generation From Open Cut And Trenchless Technology Methods For Utility Construction, Sahajanand Madhusudan Kamat

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

Construction industry has changed many aspects of human life and is still evolving at a rapid pace. New and better technologies which are environmentally friendly and safe are being introduced in this industry. But with the passage of time, this industry has got riddled with loss of human life and quality due to various scenarios. One of the major contributors to such conditions is dust generated on a construction site. The amount of dust a worker inhales during his whole career is very dangerous. This research has found out that using trenchless technology, this exposure to dust can be reduced …

The Effect Of Fiber Corrosion On Shear Capacity Of Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete Beams And An Initial Investigation On Alkali-Silica Reaction In Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete, Regina Nyambura Waweru

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

The first part of this research aims to investigate the effect of fiber corrosion on the shear capacity of Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete beams. It will also strive to determine at what reduction in minimum diameter of the fiber does the effect of corrosion become most severe on the shear capacity of the beam. Four simply-supported beams with a shear span to depth ratio of 3.3 were subjected to a monotonically increasing load. The targeted concrete compressive strength for all beams was 6000 psi. This however differed from the measured strength due to a number of factors as will be …

Development Of A True-Cost Concept For Renewal Of Municipal Underground Pipeline Systems, Dennis Abraham

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Asset management principles for underground pipeline infrastructure (UPI) are used by municipalities for efficient delivery of water, wastewater, and storm sewers. Due to budget constraints and limited resources, municipalities need to improve their operations, utilizing an optimum cost to provide their asset management services. Life cycle costs (LCC) include the total cost of facility ownership taking into account all capital costs, operation and maintenance costs, and renewing or disposing costs. Asset management costs include the maintenance and renewal portion of LCC. The main objective of this research is to develop asset management strategies with consideration of all the cost factors …

Local Calibration Of Mechanistic Empirical Pavement Design Guide For North Eastern United States, Shariq A. Momin

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

The Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG) developed under the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) 1-37A project is based on mechanistic-empirical analysis of the pavement structure to predict the performance of the pavement under different sets of conditions (traffic, structure and environment). MEPDG takes into account the advanced modeling concepts and pavement performance models in performing the analysis and design of pavement. The mechanistic part of the design concept relies on the application of engineering mechanics to calculate stresses, strains and deformations in the pavement structure induced by the vehicle loads. The empirical part of the concept is based on …