Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Exploration Of The Characteristics And Trends Of Electric Vehicle Crashes: A Case Study In Norway, Chenhui Liu, Li Zhao, Chaoru Lu

Mid-America Transportation Center: Final Reports and Technical Briefs

With the rapid growth of electric vehicles (EVs) in the past decade, many new traffic safety challenges are also emerging. With the crash data of Norway from 2011 to 2018, this study gives an overview of the status quo of EV crashes. In the survey period, the proportion of EV crashes in total traffic crashes had risen from zero to 3.11% in Norway. However, in terms of severity, EV crashes do not show statistically significant differences from the Internal Combustion Engine Vehicle (ICEV) crashes. Compared to ICEV crashes, the occurrence of EV crashes features on weekday peak hours, urban areas, …

Characterization And Utilization Of Alkali-Activated Concrete For Sustainable Infrastructures, Eslam Gomaa

Doctoral Dissertations

“This study has investigated the feasibility of using locally available fly ashes (FAs) to synthesize alkali-activated concrete (AAC) for different structural and repair applications. Using AAC made of 100% FA reduces global CO2 emissions, saves energy, and decreases raw material consumption during the production process of ordinary Portland cement. Class C FAs, sourced from Labadie, Jeffery City, Kansas City, Thomas Hill, and Sikeston power plants in the state of Missouri, were used to synthesize the AAC. Sodium silicate (SS), Na2SiO3, and sodium hydroxide (SH), NaOH were used as the alkali activators. Slag, crumb rubber, and air-entraining admixture were used as …

A Three-Dimensional Fully Coupled Hydro-Mechanical Elasto-Plastic Model For Unsaturated Soils With Consideration Of Hysteresis Behavior, Beshoy Sami Moussa Riad

Doctoral Dissertations

"Unsaturated soils are often used as a construction material in transportation infrastructures; in which it is subjected to cyclic traffic loadings and/or seasonal wetting-drying cycles. While mechanical hysteresis is a common feature of soils in general, hydraulic hysteresis is associated with unsaturated soils. Most existing constitutive models paid limited attention to the mechanical and hydraulic hysteresis behavior of unsaturated soils. This research presents a three-dimensional model for unsaturated soils and a chemo mechanical model for saturated soils. The unsaturated soils’ model has the following characteristic features: (a) the hydraulic and mechanical behaviors are fully coupled under 3D conditions; (b) it …

Strategies To Improve Shrinkage Resistance Of Cement-Based Materials For Extrusion-Based 3d Printing, Kavya Vallurupalli

Doctoral Dissertations

"The main objective of this study is to develop new generation of shrinkage-resistant 3D printable mortar mixtures. To this end, the research work was carried out to: i) identify key material and processing parameters that affect printability; ii) investigate the influence of water-to-cement ratio, superplasticizer dosage, and welan gum content on mortar printability; iii) propose a “printability window” where rheological properties and desorptivity can secure successful printing; iv) investigate effect of shrinkage mitigation materials (expansive agent (EA), pre-saturated lightweight sand (LWS), superabsorbent polymers (SAP), and shrinkage reducing admixture) on printability and shrinkage performance of mortar; and v) evaluate the effect …

Design And Performance Of Self-Consolidating And Thixotropic Ultra-High-Performance Concrete For Infrastructure Construction And Rehabilitation, Le Teng

Doctoral Dissertations

"The objective of this research is to develop two classes of ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC), one with self-consolidating consistency and the other with improved thixotropy. Tailoring the rheological properties of low yield stress UHPC can improve dispersion and orientation of steel fibers used in the design of UHPC, hence enhancing the tensile and flexural properties. Similarly, improving the thixotropy of UHPC can enable unique performance for the design of thin bonded bridge deck overlay. The research investigated various thixotropy enhancing admixtures to enhance the structural build-up at rest of UHPC. A total of 16 bonded overlay slab specimens were used to …

Investigating The Interaction Between The Recycled Components And The Asphalt Binders, Plant, Lab, And Field Mixes, Eslam Deef-Allah

Doctoral Dissertations

"Modifying asphalt binders and mixes with recycled components is common practice due to their environmental and economic merits. Literature has indicated that different recycled components interact with (blend with) asphalt differently, ranging from no blending, partial blending, or full blending. The degree of blending between recycled components and virgin asphalt binders (VABs) and the exchanged components impact the performance of modified asphalt binders. However, the nature of the interaction process between the recycled components and the VABs is not fully understood. The primary objective of this study was to explore the interactions between recycled components and VABs. By understanding the …

Theoretical Determination Of The Yield Curve For Unsaturated Soils, Sara Fayek

Doctoral Dissertations

"An important step to developing a good understanding of the behavior of unsaturated soils is to adopt a formal and simple constitutive framework and to conduct high-quality and short-time experiments. Barcelona Basic Model (BBM) was the first elastoplastic constitutive model for unsaturated soils. The yield curve, which separates the elastic region from the elastoplastic region, is an important aspect of constitutive modeling for unsaturated soils. Most concepts for unsaturated soils were developed based upon the results from suction-controlled triaxial (SCTX) tests. Though, the SCTX tests on unsaturated soils are costly, time-consuming, and laborious, and their results are questionable. This study …

Promoting Distributed Energy Deployment And Diffusion For Sustainable Civil Infrastructure Using Multi-Agent Based Modeling And Quantitative Analytics, Gasser Ali

Doctoral Dissertations

"Distributed Solar Generation (DSG) using small-scale Photo-Voltaic (PV) is an evolving technology with increasingly growing market penetration due to its significant benefits to consumers and broader power systems. DSG is sustainable, provides reliability, and is cost-effective where solar energy is abundant. However, the increasingly growing adoption of DSG creates uncertainties in forecasting electric power demand and market behavior. It also causes concerns of a “utility death spiral”. To this end, the goal of this research is to critically analyze the diffusion and benefits of DSG in the electric power infrastructure as a complex System-of-Systems (SoS). Specifically, this dissertation addresses the …

Experimental And Design Evaluation Of Multi-Bolted Gfrp Joints, Amir Hossein Houshmandyar

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

For infrastructure system implementation, high strength/stiffness to self-weight ratio, corrosion resistance and ease of fabrication are just a few of the many advantages of pultruded fiber reinforced polymer (PFRP) composites over traditional construction materials. However, challenges of engineered FRP materials are addressed via continuous updating of design codes. For example, the anisotropic nature of FRP composite materials includes different mechanical properties in different directions (pull or longitudinal direction vs. transverse to pull direction) of a structural member, resulting in design complexities over isotropic materials. Typically, infrastructure systems are built by bolting FRP structural members because of certain advantages of bolted …

Climatic And Land Cover Sensitivities Of Stormwater Runoff In A Coastal Natural-Urban Basin Of Texas, Usa., Nusrat Nasrin Khan

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Changes in climatic and land use drivers typically drive stormwater runoff quantity and quality. This study focuses on determining the stormwater runoff sensitivities to variation in climatic and land cover changes in a coastal natural-urban basin. A mechanistic hydrologic model was developed for the Spring San Jacinto Basin (SSJB) of Texas, USA considering the basin as a pilot study area by using the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Storm Water Management Model 5.2. The SSJB drains an area of 1949 km² ultimately into the northern Gulf of Mexico, USA through peripheral neighborhoods of the Greater Houston area. The model …

Distracted Driving And Pedestrians' Effects On Headway At Signalized Intersections, Bassel Elgamal

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Distracted driving and pedestrians pose one of the most difficult challenges to ensuring a safe and efficient transportation system. Modern communications have delivered greater convenience. However, this has come at the cost of attention spans. Safety has been thoroughly explored in terms of distracted driving and pedestrians. However, impacts on traffic operations have received minimal research attention. Few studies provided a theoretical mechanism on how intersection operations can be affected but failed to quantify the real-life impacts on traffic operations. Furthermore, new Florida laws prohibit cellphone usage while driving but is allowed when the vehicle is stationary, which may result …

ประสิทธิภาพในการปิดรอยร้าวของมอร์ตาร์ซ่อมแซมตัวเองที่มีส่วนผสมของสารพอลิเมอร์ดูดซับขั้นพิเศษและไมโครแคปซูลสปอร์ของแบคทีเรียเอ็มไอซีพี, ณัฏฐชัย ทรัพย์วิไล

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

งานวิจัยนี้มีวัตถุประสงค์เพื่อศึกษาประสิทธิภาพการซ่อมแซมรอยร้าวด้วยตัวเองและผลกระทบของปริมาณไมโครแคปซูลที่บรรจุสปอร์ของแบคทีเรียควบคู่กับสารพอลิเมอร์ดูดซับขั้นพิเศษ (SAP) โดยปริมาณไมโครแคปซูลสปอร์แบคทีเรียถูกควบคุมที่ร้อยละ 0.25, 0.5 และ 1.0 ของน้ำหนักของซีเมนต์ และมีการควบคุมปริมาณสารพอลิเมอร์ดูดซับขั้นพิเศษไว้ที่ร้อยละ 4 ของน้ำหนักซีเมนต์ ในงานวิจัยได้ทำการทดสอบคุณสมบัติเชิงรีโอโลยี ค่ากำลังรับแรงอัดประลัย และทดสอบคุณสมบัติด้านการซ่อมแซมรอยร้าวด้วยตัวเอง ในรูปแบบของการปิดตัวของรอยร้าว อัตราการไหลของน้ำผ่านรอยร้าว ควบคู่ไปกับการตรวจสอบโครงสร้างระดับจุลภาคด้วยเครื่องจุลทรรศน์อิเล็กตรอนแบบส่องกราด การเลี้ยวเบนของรังสีเอ็กซ์ และการวิเคราะห์ด้วยเครื่องเชิงความร้อน จากผลการศึกษาพบว่ามอร์ตาร์ที่มีการใส่ไมโครแคปซูลแบคทีเรียที่ร้อยละ 1 ของน้ำหนักซีเมนต์ ร่วมกับ SAP จะมีการปิดตัวรอยร้าวในช่วง 3 และ 28 วัน ที่ร้อยละ 49.74 และ ร้อยละ 80.35 ของความกว้างเริ่มต้นตามลำดับ อย่างไรก็ตามอัตราการปิดตัวของรอยร้าวในมอร์ตาร์ที่มีการใส่ไมโครแคปซูลสปอร์แบคทีเรียที่ร้อยละ 1 ของน้ำหนักซีเมนต์ ร่วมกับ SAP หลัง 28 วัน มีประสิทธิภาพการซ่อมแซมที่ต่ำกว่ามอร์ตาร์ที่มีการใส่ไมโครแคปซูลแบคทีเรียที่ร้อยละ 0.25 ของน้ำหนักซีเมนต์ ร่วมกับ SAP แสดงให้เห็นถึงประสิทธิภาพการปิดตัวของความกว้างรอยร้าวและร้อยละการซึมผ่านของน้ำที่ลดลงได้ดีกว่าประกอบกับมีคุณสมบัติทางกลเทียบเท่ากับมอร์ตาร์ที่มีการใช้วัสดุซ่อมแซ่มเพียง 1 ประเภท ซึ่งกล่าวได้ว่า SAP สามารถเพิ่มประสิทธิภาพการซ่อมแซมรอยร้าวด้วยตัวเองของแบคทีเรียที่ชักนำการตกตะกอนแคลเซียมคาร์บอเนตได้อย่างมีนัยยะสำคัญ ด้วยเหตุนี่จึงสามารถลดปริมาณจำนวนแบคทีเรียในส่วนผสมของคอนกรีต

การวิเคราะห์ผลตอบสนองต่อแผ่นดินไหวของเขื่อนดินถมแบ่งส่วนขนาดใหญ่, ณัฐนนท์ หนุนอนันต์

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

งานวิจัยชิ้นนี้นำเสนออิทธิพลของการวิเคราะห์แบบไฟไนต์อิลิเมนต์สามมิติของการวิเคราะห์ผลตอบสนองทางแผ่นดินไหวของเขื่อนแม่งัดสมบูรณ์ชล การวิเคราะห์ถูกกระทำเปรียบเทียบระหว่างการวิเคราะห์สามมิติและสองมิติโดยอ้างอิงข้อมูลจากงานวิจัยในอดีต การวิเคราะห์ประกอบไปด้วยการวิเคราะห์ธรณีวิทยาแผ่นดินไหวเชิงความน่าจะเป็นด้วยโปรแกรม R- CRISIS และการวิเคราะห์ไฟไนต์อิลิเมนต์ด้วยโปรแกรม PLAXIS 2D และ PLAXIS 3D ผลการวิจัยที่ได้บ่งชี้ว่า การเคลื่อนตัวในแนวเหนือน้ำ - ท้ายน้ำ จากการวิเคราะห์ทั้งสองกรณีมีค่าใกล้เคียงกัน ในขณะที่ผลการทรุดตัวจากการวิเคราะห์สามมิติมีค่ามากกว่า

ความต้านทานการซึมผ่านคลอไรด์ของมอร์ตาร์ที่ซ่อมแซมรอยร้าวโดยวิธีการตกตะกอนแคลเซียมคาร์บอเนตด้วยจุลินทรีย์, นัชชา นพคุณ

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

งานวิจัยนี้ศึกษาการซึมผ่านคลอไรด์ของมอร์ตาร์ที่ได้รับการซ่อมแซมหลังเกิดรอยร้าวโดยใช้แบคทีเรียเอ็มไอซีพีสายพันธุ์ บาซิลลัส สฟีรีคัส ในรูปแบบหยดเซลล์ที่มีชีวิตพร้อมสารอาหาร (ปริมาณการหยดเชื้อแบคทีเรียต่อสารอาหารต่อวันเท่ากับ 20:500 µL และ 40:1000 µL) และรูปแบบไมโครแคปซูลสปอร์แบคทีเรีย (1% และ 2% โดยน้ำหนักปูนซีเมนต์) โดยศึกษาความกว้างรอยร้าวที่แตกต่างกัน 2 ขนาด คือ รอยร้าวขนาดไม่มากกว่า 175 µm และขนาดที่มากกว่า 175 แต่น้อยกว่า 350 µm จากการทดสอบพบว่าค่าการไหลแผ่ของมอร์ตาร์ที่ไม่ใช้แบคทีเรียเป็นไปตามมาตรฐานและต่ำกว่ากลุ่มมอร์ตาร์ที่ใช้รูปแบบไมโครแคปซูลถึง 12.0-14.6% จากนั้นหลังบ่มน้ำครบ 28 วัน นำไปทดสอบกำลังรับแรงอัด มอร์ตาร์ที่ไม่ใช้แบคทีเรียมีค่ากำลังรับแรงอัด 43.3 MPa สูงกว่ากลุ่มใช้รูปแบบไมโครแคปซูลถึง 15.1-23.8% จากนั้นหลังสร้างรอยร้าวบนชิ้นตัวอย่าง ทดสอบประสิทธิภาพการซ่อมแซมรอยร้าว โดยให้อยู่ภายใต้สภาวะเปียกสลับแห้งเป็นจำนวน 14 รอบ (1 รอบ = 48 ชั่วโมง) กลุ่มที่ใช้รูปแบบการหยดเซลล์ที่มีชีวิตพร้อมสารอาหารจะให้สัดส่วนการซ่อมแซมรอยร้าวสูงที่สุด ทั้งในรอยร้าวขนาดเล็กและใหญ่ โดยมีสัดส่วนการซ่อมแซม เท่ากับ 100% และ 62.1% ตามลำดับ ถัดมาในกลุ่มที่ใช้รูปแบบไมโครแคปซูล พบว่าการซ่อมแซมเพิ่มขึ้นอย่างรวดเร็วในช่วง 4 รอบแรกของการซ่อมแซม และเพิ่มขึ้นอย่างคงที่จนครบกำหนดการซ่อมแซม โดยสามารถซ่อมแซมรอยร้าวได้ 72.7% และ 47.7% สำหรับรอยร้าวขนาดเล็กและขนาดใหญ่ ตามลำดับ ในขณะที่กลุ่มที่ไม่ได้ใช้แบคทีเรียซ่อมแซมมีสัดส่วนการซ่อมแซมรอยร้างเพียง 17.8% และ 13.9%สำหรับรอยร้าวขนาดเล็กและขนาดใหญ่ ตามลำดับ จากนั้นได้นำชิ้นตัวอย่างมาทดสอบความต้านทานการซึมผ่านของคลอไรด์ พบว่า เมื่อสัดส่วนการซ่อมแซมรอยร้าวมากมีแนวโน้มทำให้ค่าสัมประสิทธิ์การซึมผ่านคลอไรด์ลดน้อยลง อาทิ กลุ่มที่ใช้รูปแบบเซลล์ที่มีชีวิตพร้อมสารอาหารมาก (40:1000 µL) ในรอยร้าวขนาดเล็กที่ซ่อมแซมได้ 100% มีสัมประสิทธิ์การซึมผ่านคลอไรด์ใกล้เคียงกับกลุ่มมอร์ตาร์ธรรมดาที่ไม่มีรอยร้าว รวมถึงปัจจัยสำคัญอื่นที่ส่งผลต่อการซึมผ่านของคลอไรด์ ได้แก่ ความกว้างรอยร้าวที่เหลืออยู่หลังการซ่อมแซม ความสามารถในการซ่อมแซมรอยร้าวตลอดความลึกภายในเนื้อมอร์ตาร์ และสารอาหารที่ใส่ลงขณะผสมที่ทำให้เกิดรูโพรงภายในเนื้อมอร์ตาร์ ปัจจัยเหล่านี้พบในกลุ่มตัวอย่างที่ใช้รูปแบบไมโครแคปซูล จึงส่งผลให้มีค่าสัมประสิทธิ์การซึมผ่านคลอไรด์ที่สูงกว่ากลุ่มที่ใช้รูปแบบหยดเซลล์ที่มีชีวิตพร้อมสารอาหาร

Strain Gradient Shear Deformation Microshells: Formulation, Isogeometric Analysis, And Optimization, Toan Minh Le

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

The rapid development of micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) technology has empowered the fabrication of micro-sized, light weighted, and flexible thin-walled components. Due to the complex inherent physics and costly experiments at the microscale, reliable theoretical and numerical instruments for modeling and assisting the design of these innovative structures become desirable. This thesis, therefore, devotes to proposing a general strain-gradient-based shell model, a robust computational formulation, and efficient optimization approaches for microshells. The heart of the novel microshell model is based on the integration between the complete type-II formulation of Mindlin’s strain gradient elasticity, in which the importance of both strain-gradient and …

A Risk-Based System For Managing Construction Claim Causes: An Integrated Interpretative Structural Modeling And Bayesian Network Approach, Sang Quang Van

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Claims are troublesome and often lead to adverse impacts on construction projects, such as delays, cost overruns, and disputes among contracting parties. Numerous studies have been conducted to improve the understanding of claim causes; however, most previous research works have investigated claim causes individually and ignored the interdependences among claim causes. In addition, the determination of response strategies and methods for claim causes has scarcely been addressed. This research develops a risk-based system for managing claim causes in building construction projects. The main objectives of this research are twofold: (1) to quantify the impacts of claim causes considering their interdependences, …

North 14th Street Corridor Improvements Project, Ashley Nguyen, Samantha Corey, Maricela Paramo Reyes, Pooja Rajeev

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

The following project report was a study of the North 14^th Street corridor ranging from Adams Street to Virginia Street conducted by University of Nebraska-Lincoln students for a senior design capstone project. Main focuses of the project were the intersection of Adams and 14^th Street and the 14^th Street bridges over Cornhusker Highway and Oak Creek. Study of this area included work in transportation, traffic, structural, geotechnical, water resources, and environmental engineering. However, this report done by students should not take the place of work done by licensed professional engineers.

This project was done in collaboration with …

Analysis Of Shear Failure In Ultra-High Performance Concrete Beams, Kevin Conway

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) is an emerging cementitious material type currently undergoing research in different structural applications. This material is characterized by a compressive strength of 150 MPa (22 ksi), according to the Association Francaise de Genie Civil and the Federal Highway Administration, high tension strength, and high durability. Additionally, UHPC consists of secondary reinforcement in the form of steel or polymeric fibers, which enable UHPC to exhibit tension hardening behavior and tension ductility previously ignored in conventional concrete mixes. Previous research has focused on applications in the transportation and bridge design industries; however, applications in buildings and other heavy …

Testing The Influence Of Water Depth In Design Of Created Oyster Reef For Living Shoreline Applications, Peter Vien

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Living shoreline stabilization has become a popular practice in shoreline restoration and bank protection; however, there are still many uncertainties regarding effective site design using living materials. For example, natural wave-breaks may be formed of created reefs, but the optimum water depth for hydrodynamic influence may differ from the preferred depth to ensure organism recruitment. The objective of this research is to understand how water depth relative to the crest of submerged artificial oyster reef structures influences nearshore hydrodynamic processes and sediment transport or retention in nearshore areas. A field study, sited in a microtidal estuary on the Atlantic coast …

A Deep Learning Approach For Spatiotemporal-Data-Driven Traffic State Estimation, Amr Hatem Ragaa Abdelraouf

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

The past decade witnessed rapid developments in traffic data sensing technologies in the form of roadside detector hardware, vehicle on-board units, and pedestrian wearable devices. The growing magnitude and complexity of the available traffic data has fueled the demand for data-driven models that can handle large scale inputs. In the recent past, deep-learning-powered algorithms have become the state-of-the-art for various data-driven applications. In this research, three applications of deep learning algorithms for traffic state estimation were investigated. Firstly, network-wide traffic parameters estimation was explored. An attention-based multi-encoder-decoder (Att-MED) neural network architecture was proposed and trained to predict freeway traffic speed …

Automated Vehicle To Vehicle Conflict Analysis At Signalized Intersections By Camera And Lidar Sensor Fusion, Alabi Mehzabin Anisha

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

This research presents an approach for safety diagnosis using sensor fusion techniques. This work fuses the outputs of a roadside low-resolution camera and a solid-state LiDAR. For vehicle classification and detection in videos, the YOLO v5 object detection model was utilized. The raw 3D point clouds generated by the LiDAR are processed by two manual steps - ground plane transformation and background segmentation, and two real-time steps - foreground clustering, and bounding box fitting. Taking the generated 2D bounding boxes of both camera and LiDAR, we associate the common bounding box pairs by thresholding on the Euclidean distance threshold of …

Assessing Public Perception And Proposing An Organized Questionnaire For The Deployment And Adoption Of Autonomous Vehicles, Md Rakibul Islam

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Since the general public will play a central role in the evolution of AVs, research has been performed to assess their perception and acceptance of AVs. Nevertheless, the most potential users of AVs, i.e., young, students, and more educated people, have not received any particular focus in those studies. This research gap has motivated us to assess their perceptions. Extensive data analyses of the survey at the University of Central Florida with a sample of 315 reveal that on average 57% of the respondents were familiar with AVs, and about 44% of the respondents felt positive perceptions toward AVs. Around …

Development Of A Decision-Making Tool For Prediction Of Rainfall-Induced Landslides, Faisal Shakib Ahmed

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

Landslides are frequently observed in mountainous places following prolonged periods of rain, frequently resulting in substantial topography changes. They pose a significant risk to human lives and the built environment globally, particularly in areas prone to excessive rainfall. While slope failures can occur because of human-caused factors such as slope loading or toe cutting for construction purposes, many failures occur because of rainfall penetrating an otherwise stable slope. A greater understanding of the characteristics and mechanics of landslides is consequently critical for geotechnical research, particularly in evaluating prospective mitigation strategies. The potential of slope failure is a primary consideration when …

Sewer Vapor Intrusion Pathway: Simulation Of Indoor Piping Systems And Operation Of Aroma-Voc Gas Analyzer, Hong Cheng Tay

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

Vapor Intrusion (VI) is a transport phenomenon that occurs when contaminants migrate from sub-surface sources into indoor spaces. Sewer tunnels, plumbing connections, and piping infrastructures can be important contributors to an increased potential of VI in a site, which results in indoor concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOC). In the present work, the topic of sewer VI pathways were investigated through a prototype made from various types of indoor plumbing pipe fittings. This prototype simulates indoor piping systems and determine whether air and VOC were escaping through the pipe fittings. Moreover, this study is the first effort to use a …

Investigation Of Pfas Exposure Risks In Kentucky Using Mapping Tools, Sweta Ojha

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of environmentally-persistent compounds, are environmentally ubiquitous and challenging to remediate. Several studies show that PFAS are detected in drinking water systems when sampling is conducted, making human exposure via drinking water an important health consideration. This research: 1) develops a mapping tool for prioritizing sampling locations; 2) establishes a method for making GIS data and meta(data) in the mapping tool accessible; 3) fosters decision making by integrating knowledge brokering and the alignment interest and influence matrix (AIIM). The tool developed is this research is a geospatial and statistical PFAS hot-spot screening model that …

Load And Pressure Distribution As A Function Of Dynamic Contact Stress At The Railroad Crosstie-Ballast Interface, Habib Abdil Unluoglu

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

Excessive crosstie wear and abrasion and ballast wear and fouling are two of the fundamental problems contributing to inadequate railroad track performance. This adversely affects the attainment and long-term maintenance of desired track geometric requirements. The magnitudes and distribution of the stresses at the crosstie-ballast (CT-B) interface must be known to determine the stress distribution on the ballast. However, the stresses at the top of the ballast often vary significantly. This study examines a new approach to predicting dynamic contact pressures at the interface of crosstie and ballast using the ‘square wave theory.’ A data set of in-track CT-B interfacial …

Understanding The Differences Between Industry Objectives And Institutional Learning, Kristen Schell

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

To combat understaffing in the construction industry, it is necessary to employ the best candidates possible. By identifying the most desirable skills in a construction employee from an industry perspective, institutional learning can better prepare graduates for the construction workforce. Currently there exists an information gap in the objectives of the construction industry and institutional learning. This gap produces graduates, professors, and employers with expectations that do not align. Reducing this gap will aid in the success of hiring recently graduated construction students who can meet the ever-changing demands of the industry. Construction students who are fresh out of college …

Kinematics And Preliminary Fema P-695 Evaluation Of The Newz-Breakss Steel Boundary Frame With Buckling Restrained Brace Structural Fuses, Alexander M. Baker

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Buckling Restrained Braced Frames (BRBFs) have become a popular seismic force resisting system (SFRS) due to their high ductility and energy dissipation. However, BRBFs are also susceptible to large residual drifts, which can make repair difficult. Efforts to reduce the residual drift of BRBFs typically involve special self-centering braces, or by using a dual system in tandem with the BRBF. This study proposes an alternative approach, in which a self-centering steel rocking frame is used as the boundary frame for the BRBF. The proposed system, called the NewZ-BREAKSS Buckling Restrained Braced Frame (NZ-BRBF) utilizes the recently proposed NewZ-BREAKSS (NZ) boundary …

Using Stream Restoration To Mitigate Stormwater Runoff In An Urban Watershed: A Case Study, Jonathan M. Brantley

Theses and Dissertations--Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering

The goal of this case study was to evaluate the effectiveness a 275 m regenerative stream restoration design to mitigate stormwater runoff in a highly urbanized watershed. The restoration resulted in a wide, wetland-like floodplain, comprised of a rock base that was overtopped with a filtration media (approximately 30% woodchips and 70% topsoil). The creation of the floodplain-wetland complex in tandem with filtration media lead to increased storage capacity and an increase in hyporheic exchange within the system. Significant reductions were found for the storm hydrograph parameters volume, peak discharge, and time to peak. Reductions in baseflows were also noted …

Non-Destructive Characterization Of Bio-Cemented Soils Via Seismic Wave Measurement, Kyle Best

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The final outcome of this project is to examine the mechanical and resulting physical properties of bio-treated soil through microbial activity via non-destructive testing by seismic waves. The proposed bio-treatment strategy is through supplying specific nutrients for indigenous microbes within a soil specimen which in return produce calcium carbonates. The bio-minerals produced during these biogeochemical activities will improve the mechanical properties of soil by making cementation between soil grains. Additionally, a theoretical laboratory experimentational description will be provided to explain any associative effects on a specimen's water permeability or mechanical strength due to bio-mineralization within the samples. The characterization of …