Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Nebraska Water Center Annual Report 2025

Nebraska Water Center: Administrative Materials

Training Nebraska's future water professionals, research publications, water sciences laboratory impact and know your well curriculums and community impact

Frozen Commons: Food Security And Food Sovereignty In Rural Alaskan Communities And Tribes, Catey Selby, Weiwei Mo

Honors Theses and Capstones

This project explored the challenges, needs, and potential solutions related to food security and food sovereignty in rural Alaskan communities. These communities have long relied on traditional subsistence practices like fishing, hunting, and foraging, but those practices have been increasingly affected by climate change, regulatory restrictions, and commercial overfishing. Key issues identified included shorter hunting seasons, changes in animal migration, unsafe ice conditions, habitat loss, complex land ownership, and permitting barriers. Large-scale commercial fisheries also put additional pressure on subsistence resources, reducing access to traditional food sources.

The project focused on identifying key stakeholders—such as government agencies, tribal organizations, and …

Quantifying Inositol Phosphate Dephosphorylation To Understand The Role Of Recalcitrant Organic Phosphorus Forms On Harmful Algal Blooms In Freshwater Systems, Iffat Tasnim

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Organophosphorus such as phytic acid, a surrogate species of inositol phosphate (IP), may serve as a source for orthophosphate (OP) in freshwater. In absence of OP, competent aquatic microorganisms upregulate the production of specialized enzymes to obtain growth-sustaining OP from organic phosphorus (org-P) forms. The contribution of recalcitrant org-P to the OP pool has been overlooked due to the lack of capable tools to measure OP production from org-P accurately. The objective of this study was to quantify OP production from phytic acid (a surrogate form of recalcitrant org-P) to assess the contribution of recalcitrant org-P forms to the total …

Thermo-Rheological And Tribological Properties Of Low- And High-Oleic Vegetable Oils As Sustainable Bio-Based Lubricants, Abiodun Saka, Tobechukwu K. Abor, Anthony C. Okafor, Monday U. Okoronkwo

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Vegetable oil-based lubricants have attracted increased research attention in recent decades as sustainable alternatives to conventional petroleum-based lubricants in metal machining. However, more studies are required to fully elucidate the thermo-rheological and tribological properties. This study presents an investigation of the thermo-rheological and tribological properties of different vegetable oils, including low- and high-oleic soybean oil, high-oleic sunflower, safflower, and canola oils. The lubricity, and evolution of viscosity and thermodynamic properties as a function of temperature were investigated to obtain important parameters including the viscosity index, flow behavior index, flow activation energy, specific heat capacity, thermal conductivity, coefficient of friction, contact …

Applying Transfer Learning For Street-Scale Nuisance Flood Forecasting In Coastal-Urban Cities, Binata Roy, Jonathan L. Goodall, Diana Mcspadden, Chetan Kumar, Steven Goldenberg, Yidi Wang, Malachi Schram

VMASC Publications

An important challenge with Machine Learning (ML) is its transferability; i.e., whether a ML model trained on one set of data can be applied to a second set of data without requiring full re-training of the model. Transfer Learning (TL) addresses this challenge by transferring knowledge learned in the source domain (the data it was trained on) to the target domain (a second set of data that is statistically different but related, which the model was not trained on). This study investigates the use of TL for street-scale nuisance flood forecasting by exploring whether a ML model trained for one …

Green Chelation Strategy For Deashing Of Algal Biomass, Agyare Asante, George Daramola, Ryan W. Davis, Sandeep Kumar

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

This study investigated a green chelation strategy for deashing algal biomass using nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) and deionized water (DI) to enhance its suitability for biofuel and bioproduct applications. Solid-state algal turf scrubber (SS ATS), green algal turf scrubber (ATS), and Scenedesmus were analyzed, with Scenedesmus selected for detailed evaluation due to its high ash removal efficiency. The objective was to optimize a purification process that minimizes ash and heavy metal content while preserving biochemical integrity. Algal biomass underwent sequential washing with DI, NTA, and NTA+DI under varying temperatures (90-130 °C). Analytical techniques including Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, Inductively Coupled …

A Global Application Programming Interface-Enabled Earthquake Ground Motion Relational Database For Engineering Applications, Tristan E. Buckreis, Chukwuebuka C. Nweke, Pengfei Wang, Scott J. Brandenberg, Maria E. Ramos-Sepúlveda, Rashid Shams, Shako Mohammed, Renmin Pretell, Silvia Mazzoni, Paolo Zimmaro, Jonathan P. Steward

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

We present a application programming interface (API)-enabled relational database of global earthquake ground motion intensity measures, associated metadata, and processed time-series data. Raw ground motion records were processed by the authors using either manual or semi-automated processing procedures, and every processed record has passed a quality review by a trained analyst. Computed intensity measures include peak acceleration and velocity, pseudo-spectral acceleration response spectra, cumulative absolute velocity, Arias Intensity, and Fourier amplitude spectra. The processed time-series data, associated metadata, and ground motion intensity measures were organized into a web-served relational database consisting of 32 tables connected by primary/foreign key pairs. Ground …

Sustainable Management Of Erosive Shores: An Interdisciplinary Approach Integrating Engineering And Social Sciences At A Tide-Dominant Beach Area, Jun Ik Sohn, Hyun Dong Kim, Kiran Adhithya Ramakrishnan

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

This study investigates the causes and consequences of shoreline erosion at Kkotji Beach, a prominent tourist destination on the west coast of South Korea, where the degradation of the coastal environment has increasingly threatened the local tourism industry and economy, by employing a mixed-methods approach that combines field observations with MIKE 21 hydrodynamic simulations and by integrating perspectives from coastal engineering and the social sciences to develop practical, site-specific strategies for mitigating erosion, enhancing public awareness, and promoting sustainable coastal planning and development that support long-term environmental resilience and economic stability. The results show that dominant ebb currents drive southward …

Physics-Informed Deep Learning With Kalman Filter Mixture For Traffic State Prediction, Niharika Deshpande, Hyoshin (John) Park

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Accurate traffic forecasting is crucial for understanding and managing congestion for efficient transportation planning. However, conventional approaches often neglect epistemic uncertainty, which arises from incomplete knowledge across different spatiotemporal scales. This study addresses this challenge by introducing a novel methodology to establish dynamic spatiotemporal correlations that captures the unobserved heterogeneity in travel time through distinct peaks in probability density functions, guided by physics-based principles. We propose an innovative approach to modifying both prediction and correction steps of the Kalman Filter (KF) algorithm by leveraging established spatiotemporal correlations. Central to our approach is the development of a novel deep learning model …

A Bridge Too Low: Solutions For Fermi Questions, May 2025, John Adam

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

The article discusses a low bridge in Keswick, England, near the River Greta, with an arch shaped like a semiellipse. It presents Fermi questions related to the bridge's dimensions, such as the maximum distance a person of a certain height can walk under it without hitting their head. The solutions involve mathematical calculations and approximations, including the use of formulas provided by the Indian mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan.

The Pluralistic Natural Capital Values Of A Tropical City, Adrienne Grêt-Regamey, Justine Saunders, Peter Edwards, Daniel Richards, Jahson I. Alemu, Natasha Bhatia, Roman Carrasco, Zuzana Drillet, Tze Kwan Fung, Yan Feng Leon Gaw, Wanggi Jaung, Andrea Law, Rachel Ai Ting Leong, Aikeen Youu Ming Lim, Mahyar Masoudi, Yudhishthra Nathan, Rachel Rui Ying Oh, Wen Ting Ooi, Fairul Edros Ahmad Shaikh Shaikh, Xiao Ping Song, Claudia L.Y. Tan, Puay Yok Tan, Sergio Wicki, Lynn-Wei Wong, Yanyun Yan, Erik Yando, Alex Thiam Koon Yee, Jingyuan Zhang, Daniel A. Friess

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Nature in cities is essential for human well-being. Quantifying and valuing the goods and services provided by nature to city dwellers is missing in tropical contexts. Yet, as cities worldwide face similar challenges, understanding the services provided by tropical urban ecosystems becomes imperative for effective management. Here, we present the first Natural Capital Assessment of a tropical city, unveiling three critical insights. Firstly, we demonstrate the vital reliance of a developed tropical city on nature, particularly for climate change mitigation through regulating services. Secondly, we identify intact natural areas as Singapore’s most valuable assets, stressing the significance of the quality …

Drone-Based Medication Delivery For Rural, Flood-Prone Coastal Cities, Yin-Hsuen Chen, Amro M. El-Adle, Kevin J. O'Brien, Taylor Wentworth, Heather G. Richter

Center for Geospatial Science, Education & Analytics Faculty Publications

Access to healthcare remains a critical challenge for rural populations, particularly in flood-prone coastal communities where transportation barriers limit access to essential medical services. This study evaluates the effectiveness of drone-based medication delivery in improving healthcare accessibility for vulnerable populations on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. Compared to traditional personal vehicle travel, drone delivery reduced trip times from up to 50 minutes to under 10 minutes for more than 80% of the population, including elderly patients. Using publicly available datasets, we developed two transportation vulnerability indices that incorporate age, travel time, and flood risk to prioritize patients for drone-based pharmaceutical delivery. These …

Centralized Deep Reinforcement Learning For Homogeneous Multi-Component Maintenance Optimization, Joseph W. Wittrock

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores an application of reinforcement learning (RL) in maintenance optimization. Recent advances in hardware-accelerated computation and deep learning have made RL a powerful tool for solving optimization problems which are too complex for traditional methods. Maintenance optimization involves improving the efficiency and effectiveness of maintenance activities through data-driven approaches, ultimately reducing costs and increasing asset availability. Making informed maintenance decisions is crucial to long-term sustainability.

A desirable maintenance policy maximizes a utility signal while minimizing the cost of maintenance. Techniques in sequential decision making such as dynamic programming (DP) and RL have found success in optimizing these maintenance …

Dam It All: A Multi-Scalar Investigation Into The Ecological Role And Function Of Beaver Dams, Kenneth Larsen

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The central theme of this dissertation is ecological scaling, which examines how small, localized features, such as beaver ponds, contribute to large-scale watershed processes and how different modeling approaches at various scales reveal distinct insights. Through a combination of probabilistic modeling and high-resolution empirical research, this work demonstrates that small ponded systems, particularly those created by beavers (Castor canadensis), serve as critical biogeochemical control points, whose contributions to sediment and nutrient dynamics have been historically underestimated.

In Chapter 1, I contextualize this research within the broader fields of freshwater ecology, watershed modeling, and ecological restoration. I introduce the …

Mangroves: A Lesson On Modeling Changing Shorelines, Willa Skye

ENGS 15.11: Design and Education

This lesson is an overview of storm barriers, specifically mangroves and how they maintain shorelines. It is meant to offer a visual experience of coastline protection and provide a background for deeper understanding about intertidal zones and their conservation. Students will spend time creating a solution to a flooding problem by making a mock coast and storm barrier. To wrap-up the lesson, students will pair up, then reflect on their model and then individually write or draw their takeaways.

A Blueprint To Greener Shorelines: Advancing The Effectiveness, Sustainability, And Widespread Adoption Of Coastal Nature-Based Solutions Through Transdisciplinary Research, Taylor M. Sloey, Sierra Hildebrandt, Rebecca L. Morris, Matthew V. Bilskie, Aaron Bland, David Bushek, Gabriella Dipetto, Daniel Elefant, Vincent Encomio, Ramin Familkhalili, Christine Hladik, Danielle Kreeger, Avery B. Paxton, Cindy M. Palinkas, Latina Steele, Andrew Scheld, Daisuke Taira, Jason D. Toft, Armando J. Ubeda, Christine Whitcraft, Donna Marie Bilkovic

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Coastal nature-based solutions (NbS) have emerged as powerful tools to enhance sustainable development and ecological restoration goals. As a rapidly growing field spanning across social, political, ecological, economic, and engineering disciplines, it is critical that researchers working in coastal NbS regularly attempt to identify emerging focal areas for scientific inquiry. Following the 27th Biennial meeting of the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation, we provide a transdisciplinary perspective (including biologists, engineers, oceanographers, geoscientists, economists, and facilitators of workforce training programs) of pertinent research questions that, if answered, will advance the effectiveness, sustainability, and widespread adoption of coastal NbS. These suggestions for …

Evaluation Of Practical Methods To Determine If A Karst Creek Is Gaining Or Losing: Case Study Of Leith Creek, Elizabeth Jones

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Karst landscapes are abundant in Missouri, with features such as caves, springs, and sinkholes that form through the dissolution of limestone. Leith Creek is a small stream in Polk County, Missouri fed by two springs and the shallow unconfined Springfield Plateau aquifer, a highly karstified aquifer which is made up of limestone and minor interbedded shale-mudstone units. To determine if Leith Creek is gaining or losing, stream flow, water chemistry and temperature sensors were monitored. Stream flow results required multiple visits to take measurements while temperature sensors required two visits, one to install the dataloggers and another to remove the …

Integrated Valuation Of The Ecological, Social And Economic Benefits Provided By A Multifunctional Nature-Based Solution, Laura Costadone, Shan Zhang

ODU Articles

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) offer multifunctional approaches to address climate change and environmental challenges, providing a sustainable alternative to traditional gray infrastructure. Despite their promise, widespread adoption remains limited, in part due to an incomplete understanding of their full costs and benefits relative to conventional infrastructure. Traditional benefit–cost analyses often overlook non-monetized benefits and the interconnected ecosystem services provided by NbS. This study introduces a methodological approach to quantify both the physical and monetary value of ecosystem services and co-benefits delivered by an NbS project. We applied an integrated valuation framework to a case study in Virginia Beach, VA, USA, where …

Long-Term Traffic Prediction Using Deep Learning Long Short-Term Memory, Ange-Lionel Toba, Sameer Kulkarni, Wael Khallouli, Timothy Pennington

School of Cybersecurity Faculty Publications

Traffic conditions are a key factor in our society, contributing to quality of life and the economy, as well as access to professional, educational, and health resources. This emphasizes the need for a reliable road network to facilitate traffic fluidity across the nation and improve mobility. Reaching these characteristics demands good traffic volume prediction methods, not only in the short term but also in the long term, which helps design transportation strategies and road planning. However, most of the research has focused on short-term prediction, applied mostly to short-trip distances, while effective long-term forecasting, which has become a challenging issue …

Engagement In Practice: Partnering With Communities To Address Nuisance Flooding Challenges, Carol L. Considine, Mujde Erten-Unal, Dalya Ismael, Luka Alandra Hamal-Serenity, Farzaneh Soflaei

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

Many communities are already experiencing the impacts of climate change that disrupt their daily lives. In Coastal Virginia, these impacts take the form of nuisance and stormwater flooding caused by sea level rise and changes in precipitation. Coastal Virginia has one of the highest relative sea level rise rates on the Atlantic Coast and the regional planning district commission recommends that Atlas 14 rainfall intensity, duration, and frequency curves be increased by 20% to account for changes in rainfall. The Coastal Community Design Collaborative (CCDC), a partnership between Hampton University Architecture and Old Dominion University Engineering & Technology, has had …

Structural Analysis And Design Methodologies Of Roller Coasters, Benjamin Komar

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This project explores the structural analysis behind the design of roller coaster tracks and supports as practiced by modern engineers. It also examines various roller coaster design methods currently in use. This research will be used to craft a detailed explanation of the roller coaster design process. Additionally, a 3D model of a roller coaster was developed based on the researched design procedures, featuring three track sections with different loading conditions to create a supporting structure for 2D truss analysis. The results of the truss analysis were then compared to those obtained using RISA-3D, a finite element structural design software.

Crop2cloud Platform: Real-Time Data Integration For Agricultural Water Monitoring, Bryan Nsoh, Abia Katimbo, Kendall Dejonge, Wei-Zhen Liang, Hongzhi N. Guo, Yufeng Ge, Derek M. Heeren, Yeyin Shi, Xin Qiao, Daran R. Rudnick, Hope Njuki Nakabuye, Birru Girma, Isa Kabenge, Joshua Wanyama

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Efficient water management is vital for sustainable agriculture, yet integrating real-time data for precise irrigation remains a challenge. This study designed the Crop2Cloud (C2C) platform, a system that leverages advanced sensors using Internet of Things (IoT), edge and cloud computing techniques, and computed Water Stress Indices (WSIs) and machine learning models (i.e., fuzzy logic), to provide scalable and real-time irrigation decisions. The C2C platform aggregates several data including Volumetric Water Content (VWC) from TDR sensors (Acclima Inc., US) installed at four multiple depths, canopy temperatures (Tc) measured by Infrared Radiometers (IRTs) (Apogee Instruments, US), as well as weather information and …

Cover Crops Can Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions From No-Till Maize In Southern Brazil: Insights From A Long-Term Field Experiment, Guilherme Rosa Da Silva, Adam J. Liska, Cimélio Bayer

Adam Liska Papers

Brazil is one of the countries that has the most agricultural area under no-till (NT) management. This research study aims to evaluate life-cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from maize (M) grain production in agroecosystems that used different cover crops under NT management in southern Brazil. The data for this study were from a long-term 41-year field experiment in southern Brazil. The long-term experiment evaluated the effects of fallow (F) and cover crops (oat (O), vetch (V), cowpea (B), pigeon pea (P), and lablab (L)) on nitrous oxide and methane emissions and soil carbon (C) sequestration in maize agroecosystems. Five cropping …

Cognitive Map Generation For Vision And Language Navigation, Alexander Sandoval Mesa

Dissertations and Theses

Visual-Language Navigation (VLN) presents significant challenges for autonomous agents, such as robots and virtual assistants, particularly in complex, dynamic environments where the seamless integration of visual perception and natural language understanding is critical. Traditional VLN systems often struggle with effectively aligning language instructions and visual scene understanding, limiting their adaptability and navigation efficiency.

This thesis proposes a novel Cognitive Map-based framework that addresses these challenges by transforming natural language navigation instructions into structured graph representations. The Cognitive Map consists of nodes representing waypoints, landmarks, decision points, and edges encoding spatial relationships and navigational actions. These maps are generated using Large …

Advancing Sustainability In Civil Engineering Technology Through The Engineering For One Planet Framework, Dalya Ismael, Vukica M. Jovanovic, Murat Kuzlu, Charles Lowe, Lisa Bosman

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

As global environmental challenges intensify, integrating sustainability into engineering technology education is increasingly critical. Yet, many programs lack comprehensive methods to embed sustainability principles, leaving graduates underprepared to address real-world environmental issues. Courses on sustainability often approach it in isolated or superficial contexts, unable to capture its complexity. The purpose of this study is to showcase one approach for embedding the Engineering for One Planet (EOP) framework into the Sustainable Building Practices course within the Civil Engineering Technology Department. The newly developed curriculum integrated learning outcomes from three EOP topics: Environmental Impact Assessment, Materials Selection, and Systems Thinking. Students were …

Characterization Of A Large-Scale Electrohydrodynamic Vortex Confinement Flow For Particle Agglomeration, Sanjay Dangi

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

With industrialization and the increasing use of microplastics and nanoparticle-based products, the concentration of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the biosphere has increased due to the disposal of manufacturing waste and expired parts. If inhaled, PM2.5 can have detrimental health effects, as these particles can travel deep into the lungs and even penetrate blood vessels. Conventional fabric filters used for indoor air quality control have drawbacks, including the need for periodic filter replacement and a high-pressure drop across the filter over time, which leads to increased power consumption. In power plants, electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) are primarily used to collect fly …

Climate Variability Study For Arid Regions, Faisal Almutairi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Water is the primary source for all living species to thrive, and water scarcity has been a primary concern for biological species and plants in arid regions due to urban planning, population growth, poor water management, and overgrazing. The objective of this research was to study the climate variability in precipitation and temperature for an arid region. This research encompasses two distinct studies. The first study examined the impact of climate variability on precipitation in Phoenix. Precipitation data were acquired from NOAA from 1948 to 2023 and the study was broken down into three time scales: annually, seasonally, and monthly. …

Bibliometric And Visualisation Analysis Of Biomass Burning Research In Thailand (1997-2024), Weerachon Sawangproh, Arika Bridhikitti

Applied Environmental Research

Biomass burning is a major driver of air pollution and climate-related impacts in Thailand, but a national-level synthesis of research efforts is lacking. This study conducts a comprehensive bibliometric and qualitative review of 256 peer-reviewed publications from 1997–2024, using Scopus-indexeddata to explore research trends, thematic patterns, and existing gaps. The analysis reveals a strong emphasis on atmospheric chemistry, air quality modeling, and remote sensing, which collectively account for more than 60% of the research landscape.Studies frequently focus on pollutants such as PM2.5,PAHs, carbon monoxide, and heavy metals, with biomass burning identified as a dominant source, especiallyduring the dry season in …

Quantifying Biodiversity In The Absence Of Taxonomic Data: A Study Of Thailand’S Economic Development Zones, Nikorn Mahawan, Wanpen Charoentrakulpeeti

Applied Environmental Research

The biodiversity status measures the ecological capacity of a given area. However, biodiversity assessments in developing countries are limited by the absence of taxonomic data on plants and animals. By developing methods to evaluate biodiversity via alternative data, it is now possible to quantify the ecological carrying capacity in areas where taxonomic data are lacking. The relationship between forest ecosystem health and biodiversity values can be used to estimate biodiversity values by considering the proportions of different land use types that are associated with forest ecosystem abundance. The biodiversity value of the area can be assessed by adding the abundance …

Low-Temperature Catalytic Oxidation Of White Spirit Vapor In Air By Binary Oxides Of Feo-Mnox Supported On Oms-2 Material, Ngo Quoc Nguyen, Pham Duy Quang, Nguyen Ha Nhu, Le Thi Van Anh, Nguyen Thi Thuy, Vo Thanh Hang, Le Van Thang, Nguyen Thi Le Lien, Nguyen Trung Thanh, Nguyen Nhat Huy

Applied Environmental Research

In this work, catalysts of iron and manganese oxides supported on OMS-2 were prepared and applied to remove white spirit (WS) in air. Among the fabricated catalysts, the FeO-MnOx/OMS-2 catalyst with a surface Fe+Mn loading of 15% (Fe:Mn = 6:4) exhibited the highest catalytic performance, achieving a high WS removal efficiency of 97.91% at 200 °C. The catalyst retained the cryptomelane-type tunnel structure of OMS-2 and possessed enhanced redox activity due to the synergistic interaction between surface Fe and Mn species. The physico-chemical properties were characterized via BET, EDS, FTIR, XRD, and SEM. The suitable conditions for WS oxidation were …