Geotechnical Engineering Commons^™

Integrated Geophysical, Geotechnical, And Mineralogical Characterization Of Expansive Weches Formation Soils In East Texas: Implications For Infrastructure Design, Samuel Annobil

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the geotechnical, geophysical, and mineralogical characteristics of soils derived from the Weches Formation in Nacogdoches County, East Texas, with emphasis on the relationships among electrical resistivity, moisture condition, compaction state, and mineralogical composition. The Weches Formation is well known for producing clay-rich, moisture-sensitive soils that pose challenges to subgrade performance because of their plasticity and swelling behavior. Representative soil samples were collected and subjected to laboratory testing, including particle size analysis, Atterberg limits, Standard Proctor compaction, free swell tests, electrical resistivity measurements, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) mineralogical analysis. The soils are predominantly fine-grained and clay-rich, with USCS …

Simulation Of A Buried Hydrogen Pipeline In Kansas State Soil, Sidney Hines

Master's Theses

Underground pipelines can be used to transport large amounts of pressurized hydrogen gas over several hundred kilometers. The design will be sensitive to the pipe material, diameter, and trench construction, and traffic loads above the pipe. The purpose of this paper is to conduct various geotechnical engineering analyses (seepage, stress, and slope stability) using the software program GeoStudio (version 2025.2.0) on a buried steel or FRP pipe section in a specific soil type, Harney Soil. Harney soil is of particular interest, because it is the Kansas State Soil and the analysis is for a buried gas pipe to run through …

Shear Stability Enhancement In Fracture Plugging Zones: Unveiling Failure Mechanisms And Adhesive Benefits Through Photoelastic Analysis, Haoran Jing, Yili Kang, Chengyuan Xu, Lei Liu, Xiaopeng Yan, Zhenjiang You

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Addressing lost circulation during drilling operations typically involves the utilization of lost circulation materials (LCMs) to create a fracture plugging zone (FPZ), which effectively decouples the wellbore fluid column pressure (Pw) from the formation pressure (Pf). This FPZ, comprised of aggregated granular LCM particles, frequently succumbs to shear stress, with shear failure being the predominant mode of structural failure, leading to ongoing fluid losses. To illuminate the failure mechanisms of the FPZ under conditions of escalating drilling differential pressure (Pw - Pf), we utilized photoelastic experiments to capture and visualize the evolving mesoscopic mechanical structure of the FPZ. Photoelastic images …

Machine Learning-Based Upscaling Of Rock Permeability From Pore Scale To Core Scale: Effect Of Training Dataset Size And Sub-Core Volumes, Yaotian Guo, Fei Jiang, Takeshi Tsuji, Yoshitake Kato, Mai Shimokawara, Lionel Esteban, Mojtaba Seyyedi, Marina Pervukhina, Maxim Lebedev, Ryuta Kitamura

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Permeability characterizes the capacity of porous formations to conduct fluids, thereby governing the performance of carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), hydrocarbon extraction, and subsurface energy storage. A reliable assessment of rock permeability is therefore essential for these applications. Direct estimation of permeability from low-resolution CT images of large rock samples offers a rapid approach to obtain permeability data. However, the limited resolution fails to capture detailed pore-scale structural features, resulting in low prediction accuracy. To address this limitation, we propose a convolutional neural network (CNN)-based upscaling method that integrates high-precision pore-scale permeability information into core-scale, low-resolution CT images. In …

A Rapid Field Moisture Measurement Unit For Compaction Acceptance Of Unbound Materials, Chuanjun Liu, Xiong Zhang, Jenny Liu

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The moisture content (MC) was a critical parameter that needed to be monitored in geomaterial compaction. Nuclear density gauges (NDGs) had been the practice in MC and density measurement for decades but had become less desirable due to cost, regulatory, and safety concerns. Meanwhile, lightweight deflectometers (LWDs), proposed as an alternative to NDGs, did not have a function of MC measurement. This study aimed to identify a rapid field moisture analyzer to work with LWDs for evaluating the compaction acceptance of unbound materials in situ. The study started with evaluating the effectiveness and practicability of two existing moisture analyzers recommended …

Influence Of Wicking Geotextile Installation On Moisture Migration In Silt Under Rainfall Infiltration, Yipeng Guo, Dahao Zou, Min Hu, Xiong Zhang, Fang Xu, Yongjie Zhang, Jiejing Chen

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Silt is widely used in subgrade construction in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River in China due to limited availability of high-quality fill. However, its high moisture sensitivity and low strength often lead to pumping, settlement, and deformation. This study investigates the hydraulic performance of a wicking geotextile in silt under simulated rainfall infiltration using one-dimensional soil column experiments. Three installation configurations were evaluated: (i) a control sample (CS) without geotextile, (ii) an embedded sample (ES) with the geotextile fully installed as a capillary barrier, and (iii) a surface-exposed sample (SES) with the geotextile extended to the …

Fiber-Reinforced Foam Concrete Using Quarry Micro Fines And Sugarcane Bagasse Ash: A Box–Behnken Design Optimization And Performance Assessment, Ravindaran Thangavel, Sanjay Kumar Shukla, Mini K. Madhavan

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Foam concrete is well-appreciated for its thermal and acoustic benefits and is prepared by introducing foam into cement slurry/mortar. The current research examines the feasibility of Quarry Micro Fines (QMF), a waste generated from the quarries during sand manufacturing, as a substitute for fine aggregate in the preparation of foam concrete. During the preparation of concrete, a portion of cement is replaced with sugarcane bagasse ash (SCBA), while polypropylene (PP) fibers are added to improve the shrinkage resistance and tensile strength of the resulting concrete. A three-factor, three-level Box–Behnken Design (BBD) in Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was used to optimize …

Effect Of Snow Melt On Slope Stability, Gustav G. Gothberg

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This project explores the effect of snow melt on slope stability. The different types of slope failure are examined to determine which are most affected by snow melt. Then, the report examines the equations that geotechnical engineers use to determine the exact moment when a slope fails. Using GeoStudio modeling software, Slope/W, landslides caused by snow melt were modeled. GeoStudio was also used to explore methods of mitigating the effects of snow melt. This project also explores how to take advantage of these models to minimize the damage done by landslides.

Integrated Thermal, Energy, And Structural Performance Assessment Of A Novel In-Service Shallow Geothermal Bridge Deicing System, Alireza Fakhrabadi

Civil Engineering Dissertations

Understanding the performance of bridge deck deicing systems under winter weather conditions is important for improving transportation safety and reducing long-term deterioration of bridge infrastructure. Bridge decks are more vulnerable to icing than ground-supported pavements because they are exposed to ambient air, wind, and radiation from multiple directions, while they do not receive thermal support from the underlying soil. Conventional deicing methods, especially chloride-based salts, can reduce ice formation in the short term, but repeated application may accelerate reinforcement corrosion, concrete damage, and environmental concerns. Therefore, shallow geothermal energy has been considered as a sustainable alternative for bridge deck deicing …

Reliability-Based Performance Evaluation Of Slurry Wall For Leakage Control At Chakaria Landfill, Bangladesh, Shishir Bhandari

Civil Engineering Theses

Landfill leachate threatens groundwater quality in low-lying coastal Bangladesh, where a shallow water table and a discontinuous natural clay barrier heighten contamination risk beneath municipal solid waste sites. At the Chakaria Landfill in Cox's Bazar District, a cement-bentonite slurry wall was proposed as a vertical cutoff to control seepage, but its reliability under the site's high-groundwater condition had not previously been evaluated in probabilistic terms.

This study evaluated the wall's performance using a two-dimensional SEEP/W finite-element seepage model, a validated response surface (RSM) equation relating seepage rate to wall permeability, thickness, depth, and a Hasofer-Lind first-order reliability (FORM) analysis built …

Study Of Bearing Capacity Testing And Soil Preparation Techniques In Lunar Highlands Simulant At Field Scale, Christi A. Lecaptain

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Humanity seeks to return to the surface of the Moon with the advent of the Artemis missions. These endeavors plan to be the beginning of a new era as NASA and other space organizations seek to establish a lunar base. Ahead of any astronauts or mining infrastructure, the physical groundwork will need to be laid to support the arrival of rockets, boots, and rover wheels. As surfaces are prepared, they will need to be tested and verified to ensure the stability of any structures placed on top. Understanding the bearing capacity is vital to soil quality testing. A standard terrestrial …

Stress-Strain Behavior Of Saturated Clays From Vane Shear Test Results: A Numerical Approach, Gustavo Rodrigues De Avila Oliveira

Master’s Theses

The vane shear test (VST) is widely used to estimate the undrained shear strength of soft cohesive soils; however, it does not directly provide constitutive information such as the stress–strain response. Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH), a mesh-free numerical method, offers an attractive alternative for modeling the large deformations involved in the VST and extracting additional information from the test.

This study develops and calibrates a two-dimensional SPH model to simulate the field vane shear test and investigate the stress–strain behavior of soft soils. The VST was implemented within an SPH framework, while field and laboratory data were used to define …

A Coupled Thermo-Hydraulic Transfer Model For Soil Freezing, Antai Dong, Xiong Zhang

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Frost heave is a common challenge in cold regions, threatening infrastructure stability. Despite decades of research, numerical simulation remains difficult due to the complex nature of coupled processes. This study presents a coupled thermo-hydraulic model for soil freezing, developed within the framework of unsaturated soil mechanics. The model uses suction and temperature as primary variables and incorporates a method to estimate ice content. It employs a soil freezing characteristic surface (SFCS), previously developed in related work, to calculate unfrozen water content as a function of both suction and temperature in partially frozen soils. The model is implemented in COMSOL for …

Performance Comparison Of A Low Mass Vibratory Lunar Surface Compactor In Vacuum Versus Atmosphere, Robin D. Austerberry

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

As space agencies prepare to return to the moon, an emphasis is being placed on establishing a sustained human presence that requires permanent structures and supporting infrastructure, making site preparation a critical factor. Michigan Technological University’s Planetary Surface Technology Development Lab has developed a novel low-mass surface compaction tool for use on a site preparation vehicle in collaboration with Colorado School of Mines. Testing in vacuum is necessary to simulate a relevant environment, which is required to increase the technology readiness level of this tool to TRL 5. Testing concluded significant interactions between the presence of atmosphere and other factors. …

Impact Of Natural Disasters On Construction And Engineering Solutions, Karima Ao Damson

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This Honors Research Project seeks to research and explain the impact of natural disasters on the construction and reconstruction of infrastructure in countries with the highest risk of natural disasters and compare them to the requirements in the United States in the states most prone to natural disasters. The objectives are to identify the countries most prone to natural disasters, describe the environmental impacts of the natural disasters, describe the impacts on construction and reconstruction requirements, and research whether construction and civil engineering solutions currently applied to the individual countries could be improved or reproduced in other countries exposed to …

Soil Freezing Characteristic Surface For Partially Frozen Soils, Antai Dong, Xiong Zhang, Ming Xiao

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The soil freezing characteristic curve (SFCC), which relates unfrozen water content to temperature, is a fundamental constitutive relationship in frost heave simulations. However, the influence of soil suction, another critical state variable, is often neglected. This study highlights how the SFCC is significantly affected by suction conditions, with unfrozen water content varying markedly between saturated (suction = 0) and completely dried (suction = ∞) conditions at the same subfreezing temperature. Recognizing this limitation, the concept of the soil freezing characteristic surface (SFCS) is proposed to incorporate the impacts of both temperature and suction on unfrozen water content. After that a …

Potential Of Stamp Sands As Cemented Tailings, Samuel Sukaria

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Worldwide mine tailings ponds and reservoirs occupy some 534 billion m³ of space with the volume expected to increase as economic demand for minerals increases over the next decades. These reservoirs produce adverse effects on local communities and ecosystems through structural failure resulting in mass flooding events, drainage of pollutants into water supply and emissions of airborne particulate matter. Methods developed to find use for tailings include extraction of residual minerals and aggregates in construction materials. The latter method has already been used in mining operations to stabilize mining reservoirs and stopes, and as placement for temporary road work …

Pile Setup Effects On Driven Piles In Southeastern Coastal States, Peya Sharif

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The resistance of driven piles typically increases with time after installation, a phenomenon known as pile setup. This behavior is primarily associated with the dissipation of excess porewater pressure and the progressive reconsolidation of soil surrounding the pile shaft, particularly it is observed in cohesive soils. Although several empirical and analytical models have been proposed to estimate pile setup, their practical implementation in foundation design remains limited due to uncertainties associated with soil conditions, pile geometry, resistance variability, and time dependent behavior. To address some of these uncertainties, this study collected 221 pile load test data at the End of …

Workshop Outcomes Report: 2nd International Workshop On Seismic Resilience Of Arctic Infrastructure And Social Systems, Majid Ghayoomi, Daniela Morganti

Faculty Publications

The report provides an overview of the second international workshop on Seismic Resilience of Arctic Infrastructure and Social Systems. The report discusses agenda, workshop activities, interdisciplinary working groups, and results. It ends with several strategic questions and investigation plans that were developed as part of the workshop activities.

Numerical Investigation Of The Influence Of Fiber Content On The Shear Performance Of Uhpc Deep Beams Reinforced With Hybrid Steel And Synthetic Fibers, Hossein Mirzaaghabeik, Sanjay Kumar Shukla, Nuha S. Mashaan

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This study investigates the shear performance of ultra-high-performance concrete deep beams (UHPC-DBs) reinforced with hybrid fibers comprising 5D steel fibers and Forta-Ferro (FF) synthetic fibers. UHPC-DBs are widely used in bridges, piles, and transfer girders because of their high load-bearing capacity. Although fiber content strongly influences shear behavior, the contribution of synthetic fibers in hybrid systems remains insufficiently understood. To address this gap, finite element analysis based on the concrete damage plasticity (CDP) model was developed in ABAQUS and validated using experimental results from five previously tested UHPC-DBs with different fiber contents. Load–deflection response, crack patterns, shear capacity, mid-span deflection, …