Civil Engineering Commons^™

Transfer And Development Length Of Strands In Post-Tensioned Members After Anchor Head Failure, Elie El Zghayar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Post-tensioning tendons in segmental bridge construction are often only anchored within the deviator and pier segments. The effectiveness of the post-tensioning (PT) system is therefore dependent on proper functioning of the anchorages. On August 28, 2000 a routine inspection of the Mid-Bay Bridge (Okaloosa County, Florida) revealed corrosion in numerous PT tendons. Moreover, one of the 19-strand tendons was completely slacked, with later inspection revealing a corrosion-induced failure at the pier anchor location. Anchorage failure caused all PT force to transfer to the steel duct located within the pier segment that in turn slipped and caused the tendon to go …

Crack Detectability And Durability Of Coaxial Cable Sensors In Reinforced Concrete Bridge Applications, Genda Chen, Ryan D. Mcdaniel, Michael A. Brower, David Pommerenke

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The working mechanism and the measurement principle of topology-based crack sensors made of coaxial cables are briefly reviewed. The sensitivity, spatial resolution, and ruggedness of two coaxial cable sensors, respectively made of rubber and Teflon dielectric materials, were compared and validated with laboratory testing of a 4/5-scale, T-shaped, reinforced concrete beam-column specimen. Two Teflon sensors were installed on one of the solid decks of a three-span continuous highway bridge to investigate their durability and measurement repeatability. Laboratory tests indicated that both types of sensors have high sensitivity, but the Teflon sensor has a higher spatial resolution and a negligible spillover …

Indiana Pavement Preservation Program, Ghim Ping (Raymond) Ong, Tommy E. Nantung, Kumares C. Sinha

JTRP Technical Reports

State highway agencies are facing immense pressure to maintain roads at acceptable levels amidst the challenging financial and economic situations. In recent years, pavement preservation has been sought as a potential alternative for managing the pavement assets, believing that it would provide a cost-effective solution in maintaining infrastructural conditions and meeting user expectations. This study explores the potential of pavement preservation concepts in managing the agency‘s pavement assets by attempting to integrate pavement preservation considerations within the network-level pavement management system. Several elements are studied in the report: (i) determining triggers for pavement preservation treatments for use in a PMS, …

Evaluation Of Trenchless Renewal Methods For Potable Water Distribution Pipes, Abhay A. Jain

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

Undoubtedly, potable water pipes, as part of an underground infrastructure system, play a key role in maintaining quality of life, health and well being of human kind. As these potable water pipes reach the end of their useful life, they create high maintenance costs, loss of flow capacity, decreased water quality, and increased dissatisfaction. Trenchless renewal methods (TRMs) are a medium to renew deteriorated potable water pipes, thus decreasing leakage loss, emergency maintenance costs and customer complaints. TRMs also maintain the quality of the water leaving the treatment plant. America's drinking water systems faces an annual shortfall of at least …

An Investigation Of Productivity Loss Due To Outdoor Noise Conditions, Shripad Dilip Maldikar

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

Most people in day to day life at one time or other get irritated or distracted by surrounding noises. The irritation might have resulted in minor aggravation or may have been dramatic enough to hinder their work. This leads us to think whether there are any losses in the efficiency of construction workers due to surrounding varying noise conditions, or if they naturally adjust to their acoustic environment. In an effort to answer this question, this study on productivity loss due to varying sound conditions was conducted. It was found that, the efficiency of laborers was inversely proportional to the …

A Study Of The Strength Of Pervious Pavement Systems, Ikenna Uju

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents a study on the strength properties of the different pervious pavement systems installed at the Stormwater Management Academy field laboratory at University of Central Florida (UCF), Orlando. The strength tests were performed both in the laboratory and in the field. Laboratory testing was conducted to determine the compressive strength and flexural strength of the various pavement surfaces. Evaluation of field pavement performance was performed by comparing the deflection basins using the Falling Weight Deflectometer test on pervious concrete and porous asphalt with conventional impervious concrete and asphalt pavements of similar layer profile and thickness, respectively. From literature …

Feasibility Study Of Lightweight High-Strength Hollow Core Balsa-Frp Composite Beams Under Flexure, Kevin O'Neill

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The United States of America's Military, more specifically the Army, has since the late 1990's had a vested interest in the development of super-lightweight, portable, short-span composite bridge and decking components to replace aging heavy metal-alloy machine driven modular systems. The following study looks at the feasibility of using balsa wood as the structural core material in fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) wrapped hollow-core composites in short-span bridge applications. The balsa provides shear resistance and the FRP the flexural resistance, resulting in extremely high strength-to-weight and strength-to-depth ratios. Several scaled short span specimens were constructed and tested using a variety of …

A Field Investigation For The Wind Load Performance Of Vegetated Greenroofs Using Monitoring Systems, Melike Minareci

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Greenroof systems have been shown to be an environmentally friendly alternative based on various factors; such as, reduced lifecycle cost, improved air quality, ambient temperature reduction, stormwater management credit, sustainability and preservation of the environment. Recent research studies attempt to determine the construction methods of an ideal greenroof for environmental purposes, yet there is an absence of standards for the best design required to achieve acceptable structural performance and sustainability under wind loads. As a result, there is a need to document the effectiveness of greenroofs under high wind events by addressing the following questions: Do winds have an effect …

Performance-Based Plastic Design Of Earthquake Resistant Steel Structures: Concentrically Braced Frames, Tall Moment Frames, Plate Shear Wall Frames, Mohammad Reza Bayat

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

It is well known that structures designed by current codes experience large inelastic deformations during major earthquakes. However, current seismic design practice in the U.S. is based on elastic structural behavior and accounts for inelastic behavior only in an indirect manner through certain modification factors such as R, I, and Cd. Under moderate to severe earthquakes, inelastic activity, including severe yielding and buckling of structural members can be unevenly distributed in the structure which may result in global collapse or costly repair work. Recently, a new design method has been developed and referred to as Performance-Based Plastic Design (PBPD). This …

Evaluation Of Project Delivery Methods For Trenchless Construction, Sahar W. Hasan

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

The need of today's construction whether it be residential, commercial or infrastructure is to cut costs while maintaining schedule, scope, and delivering the expected quality. This realization has brought to light the importance of project delivery methods. Project delivery methods are no longer seen only as procedures to follow for a construction project; they have become instruments that are being used to save money, deliver projects ahead of schedule and come up with innovative design solutions by utilizing the contractor's expertise. This thesis evaluates the pros and cons of project delivery methods with respect to trenchless construction. Trenchless technology methods …

Investigating The Effects Of Various Crowd Characteristics On The Dynamic Properties Of An Occupied Structure, Robert Joseph Firman Iii

Honors Theses

One of the challenges for structural engineers during design is considering how the structure will respond to crowd-induced dynamic loading. It has been shown that human occupants of a structure do not simply add mass to the system when considering the overall dynamic response of the system, but interact with it and may induce changes of the dynamic properties from those of the empty structure. This study presents an investigation into the human-structure interaction based on several crowd characteristics and their effect on the dynamic properties of an empty structure. The dynamic properties including frequency, damping, and mode shapes were …

Development Of A Land Use Regression Model To Predict Nitrogen Dioxide Concentrations, Teresa Sosa

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Air pollution is a major environmental concern in the El Paso-Juárez region. According to the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales, SEMARNAT) the city of Juárez is one of the city's in México with the highest atmospheric levels of pollution because of its accelerated and unplanned urban growth. One air pollutant of concern is nitrogen dioxide (NO2) due to its detrimental health effects that have been associated with airway inflammation in healthy people and increased respiratory symptoms in people with asthma. Land use regression modeling is a GIS based approach that seeks to …

Determining The R Values For 12 Inch Deep Z-Purlins And Girts With Through-Fastened Panels Under Suction Loading, Kaye Dee Wibbenmeyer

Masters Theses

"Designing purlins for roof systems attached to through-fastened panels has been a subject well researched in the past. The current design specification uses a simplified approach to the designing of these members where the fully braced moment capacity of such members is multiplied by a reduction factor, commonly referred to as the R-value. This value represents the point in between the fully braced and fully unbraced member behavior. However, the current AISI Specification, S100, only contains R-values for purlins and girts up to 11.5 inches in depth. Since manufacturers are now rolling sections up to 12 inches deep, two confirmatory …

Corrosion Resistance Of Enamel-Coated Steel Reinforcement For Concrete, Charles Robert Werner

Masters Theses

"Originally developed to enhance the bond between concrete and steel, reactive enamel coatings have shown great promise in protecting steel from corrosive environments. However, the corrosion resistance of the material has not yet been tested beyond 40 days. Moreover, when the material was tested, it was applied to smooth steel pins, not deformed steel bars which are commonly used in reinforced concrete structures. Therefore, this study focused on the corrosion resistance of three different enamel coatings, along with a standard epoxy coating, each of which were applied to both smooth and deformed steel bars and included both short-term and long-term …

Nonlinear Finite Element Formulation Of The Soil Structure Interaction Through Two Parameter Foundation Model, Taraka Ravi Shankar Mullapudi

Masters Theses

"The response of shallow and raft foundations is having a significant importance due to its complex behavior because of the semi-infinite soil media. Winkler's model is the simplest model to deal with the structure and soil. The Winkler model represents the foundation reaction as proportional to the soil displacement at a particular point, which results in the elasticity of the soil being the only parameter in consideration. But in reality the soil cohesiveness is having a significant contribution in soil structure interaction, and therefore the consideration of coupling effects of Winkler springs need to be accounted. Most of the existing …

The Effectiveness Of The Natural Resource Conservation Service (Nrcs) And Huff Rainfall Distribution Methods For Use In Detention Basin Design, Todd Wayne Dablemont

Masters Theses

"This thesis focuses on the effectiveness of the NRCS and Huff rainfall distribution methods for use in detention basin design. This study required the use of HEC-HMS, hydrologic modeling software, in order to analyze the distribution methods. Three separate detention basins and their watersheds were modeled for this study. The watersheds were analyzed for both undeveloped and developed conditions. The parameters analyzed include detention basin inflow, detention basin outflow, watershed peak discharge, and detention basin storage capacity. The determination of detention basin effectiveness was based upon these parameters. The NRCS distribution method is widely used; however, many who use it …

Field Investigation Of Spalling In Bridge Decks With Partial-Depth Precast Concrete Panel Systems Using Non-Destructive Testing, Kandi Rebecca Wieberg

Masters Theses

"This study involved the investigation of the causes of spalling observed in several partial-depth precast prestressed bridge decks in the state of Missouri. Recently it has been observed that several bridges in Missouri with this type of construction have experienced spalling of concrete at the edges of the panels revealing an extreme condition of corrosion in the prestressing tendons, some to the point of rupture. Ground penetrating radar (GPR), which has been shown to be successful in bridge deck evaluation, was used to determine the relative condition of the prestressing tendons as well as the relative condition of the concrete …

Stability Of Streambanks Subjected To Highly Variable Streamflows: The Osage River Downstream Of Bagnell Dam, Kathryn Nicole Heinley

Masters Theses

"Streambank erosion of the Osage River downstream of Bagnell Dam is naturally-occurring; however, it may be significantly worsened due to releases made from the dam to generate hydropower. In this study, six typical outflow release patterns from Bagnell Dam were evaluated to determine their effects, if any, on the stability and the rate and amount of erosion of the banks of the Osage River.

The Bank Stability and Toe Erosion Model (BSTEM), version 5.2, was used to carry out the erosion and stability calculations. The model was validated by using data from another study and comparing the results from BSTEM …

Evaluation Of Liquefaction-Induced Lateral Spreading In The Midwest, Kermit Nathanial Applegate

Masters Theses

"The Central United States is home to several seismically active regions: the Wabash Valley Seismic Zone, the South Central Illinois Seismic Zone, and the New Madrid Seismic Zone. All three of these regions are capable of inducing large ground motion throughout the Mississippi Valley and along the eastern border of Missouri. This has been supported by many paleoseismic studies conducted throughout the region, which have identified numerous instances of liquefaction phenomena. The fluvial deposition process associated with the Mississippi river valley makes it a prime location for possible liquefaction and lateral spreading effects. However, there are few studies pertaining to …

Calibration Of Resistance Factors For Axial Capacity Of Driven Pile Into Missouri Soil, Mulugeta Abay Kebede

Masters Theses

"Over the past two decades the load resistance factor design (LRFD) has been accepted by the American Association for Transportation and Highway Officials (AASHTO) for the design of bridges. This approach is now gaining widespread popularity in the United States for substructure bridge design, including the design of driven pile foundations, as the states calibrate the geotechnical resistance factors for local geological conditions and practices. This study presents the geotechnical resistance factors calibrated for axially driven pile using the first-order reliability method (FORM) for the target reliability index of 2.33 and 3.0 based on 64 end-of-drives (EOD) and 22 beginning-of …