Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Performance Of A Wastewater Treatment Pond System With Microfiltration, Eric Todd Martin

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

PERFORMANCE OF A WASTEWATER TREATMENT POND SYSTEM WITH

MICROFILTRATION

Eric Martin

The Woodlands Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWWTP) treats wastewater from the Woodlands housing community near Nipomo, California. The treated effluent is recycled for irrigation of a golf course within the community. The treatment facility consists of three facultative ponds in series followed by a microfiltration system and chlorine disinfection. Microfiltration of wastewater pond effluent is a fairly new, and potentially challenging, application of microfiltration. This thesis describes the operating conditions and behavior of the WWWTP pond system followed by a microfiltration system for the purpose of producing recyclable water …

Fault Mapping With The Refraction Microtremor And Seismic Refraction Methods Along The Los Osos Fault Zone, Justin Riley Martos

Master's Theses

The presence of active fault traces in proximity to any new infrastructure project is a major concern for the design process. The relative displacements that can be experienced in surface fault rupture during a seismic event must be either entirely avoided or mitigated in some way. Blind faults present a significant challenge to engineers attempting to identify these hazards. Current standards of practice employed to locate these features are time consuming and costly. This work investigates the geophysical methods of refraction microtremor (ReMi) and seismic refraction with regard to their applicability in this task. By imaging a distinct lateral variation …

Transferability And Robustness Of Predictive Models To Proactively Assess Real-Time Freeway Crash Risk, Cameron Hunter Shew

Master's Theses

This thesis describes the development and evaluation of real-time crash risk assessment models for four freeway corridors, US-101 NB (northbound) and SB (southbound) as well as I-880 NB and SB. Crash data for these freeway segments for the 16-month period from January 2010 through April 2011 are used to link historical crash occurrences with real-time traffic patterns observed through loop detector data.

The analysis techniques adopted for this study are logistic regression and classification trees, which are one of the most common data mining tools. The crash risk assessment models are developed based on a binary classification approach (crash and …

Dynamic Field Test Of A Model Levee Founded On Peaty Organic Soil Using An Eccentric Mass Shaker, E. T. Reinert, S. J. Brandenberg, J. P. Stewart, R. E.S. Moss

Civil and Environmental Engineering

A dynamic field test of a model levee was performed to study the behavior of very soft and compressible peaty organic soils that commonly underlie levees in the Sacramento / San Joaquin Delta in northern California. This first-of-its-kind test applied dynamic loads to the levee/peat system using a large eccentric mass shaker mounted on the levee crest. Loads from the shaker and the inertia of the levee section are transmitted to the peaty organic soils as base shear stresses, and rotational demands that manifest as normal pressures at the embankment/peat interface. We seek to characterize the transmission of seismic energy …

Dynamic Field Test Of A Model Levee Founded On Peaty Organic Soil Using An Eccentric Mass Shaker, E. T. Reinert, S. J. Brandenberg, J. P. Stewart, R. E.S. Moss

Civil and Environmental Engineering

A dynamic field test of a model levee was performed to study the behavior of very soft and compressible peaty organic soils that commonly underlie levees in the Sacramento / San Joaquin Delta in northern California. This first-of-its-kind test applied dynamic loads to the levee/peat system using a large eccentric mass shaker mounted on the levee crest. Loads from the shaker and the inertia of the levee section are transmitted to the peaty organic soils as base shear stresses, and rotational demands that manifest as normal pressures at the embankment/peat interface. We seek to characterize the transmission of seismic energy …

Electric Currents Due To Stress-Activated Positive Hole Charge Carriers In Ice, Cary T. Keller P.E., Friedemann T. Freund, Dale P. Cruikshank

STAR Program Research Presentations

Jupiter’s satellite Europa, whose surface is composed of ice with a possible water ocean beneath, could conceivably serve as an abode for extraterrestrial life. This and other icy celestial bodies may contain organic macromolecular solid material that is produced when surface ices are exposed to ultraviolet radiation and/or electrical energy. Tidal and tectonic stresses or meteorite impacts in icy crusts may produce electrical discharges, which would provide the energy for in-situ synthesis of the organic solids. This electrical energy can be provided by positive hole charge carrier activation. Positive holes exhibit properties such as the ability to flow out of …

Improved Microalgal Biomass Harvesting Using Optimized Environmental Conditions And Bacterial Bioflocculants, Derek C. Manheim

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

IMPROVED MICROALGAL BIOMASS HARVESTING USING OPTIMIZED ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS AND BACTERIAL BIOFLOCCULANTS

DEREK CONTE MANHEIM

The cost and energy balance of microalgae biofuel production is sensitive to the algae harvesting method, among many other factors. Bioflocculation and settling of suspended microalgae cultures is a harvesting method with potentially low cost and energy input. However, bioflocculation (the spontaneous flocculation of algal cells without chemical addition) has not been a reliable process with cultures grown in ponds. To provide insights to help improve algae settling, factors affecting the settling of algae were investigated in the laboratory using pure cultures of two common …

Engineering Performance Of Polymer Amended Soils, Gary E. Welling

Master's Theses

A laboratory test program was undertaken to evaluate a series of engineering properties over a range of soil types; amendment types and addition rates; and moisture contents to enhance understanding of the engineering significance of polymer amendment. Four soils were manufactured and tested with varying ranges of fines and plasticity. A proprietary elastic copolymer was tested at addition rates of 0.5% to 2.5% (dry weight basis). Cement was tested at addition rates of 1% to 4%. Lime was tested at an 8% addition rate. Water addition rates ranged from 4% dry of optimum to 4% wet of optimum. Engineering properties …

Scale Model Shake Table Testing Of Shallow Embedded Foundations In Soft Clay, Steven Kuo

Master's Theses

This research involves shake table testing of 1g scale models that mimic the coupled seismic response of a structure on a shallow mat foundation and foundation soil (known as soil-foundation-structural-interaction or SFSI). In previous research, SFSI effects have been quantified through analytical models, numerical analyses, and limited field data. This research works towards increasing the amount of empirical data through scale model shake table testing. A suite of earthquake time histories is considered in evaluating a nominal 10^th scale soil-structure model using a flexible wall barrel on a 1-D shake table. San Francisco Young Bay Mud (YBM) is used …

Coseismic Tectonic Surface Deformation During The 2010 Maule, Chile, MW 8.8 Earthquake, Keith Kelson, Robert C. Witter, Andrés Tassara, Isabelle Ryder, Christian Ledezma, Robb Moss, Laurie Johnson

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Tectonic deformation from the 2010 Maule (Chile) M_w 8.8 earthquake included both uplift and subsidence along about 470 km of the central Chilean coast. In the south, deformation included as much as 3 m of uplift of the Arauco Peninsula, which produced emergent marine platforms and affected harbor infrastructure. In the central part of the deformation zone, north of Constitución, coastal subsidence drowned supratidal floodplains and caused extensive shoreline modification. In the north, coastal areas experienced either slight uplift or no detected change in land level. Also, river-channel deposition and decreased gradients suggest tectonic subsidence may have occurred in …

Effects Of Alternate Cementitious Materials On Compressive Strength And Environmental Impacts Of Cement Mix Designs., Mitchell R. Bush

Materials Engineering

Specific proportions of Portland cement, fly ash, and blast furnace slag cement mixtures where chosen by a ternary phase diagram to be investigated. By experimental testing and company data history fly ash was limited to not exceed 30% and contribution of Portland cement must be over 50%. Ten chosen mix designs were batched by following ASTM C305-94 and cured for twenty-eight and forty-two days, the extended cure length allows the reaction of pozzolanic material with calcium hydroxide to complete. Compressive strength testing at forty-two days yielded low strength for mix designs with 20% or less Portland cement compared to our …

3d Digital Modeling For Urban Design + Planning, Emmanuel Velazco

City and Regional Planning

Cities throughout the country face a number of challenges in dealing with the changing development needs of the 21st century. In urban planning, the fusion of social, environmental, political, economic, and functional considerations are required. Today, local, state, and federal governments are experiencing an economic downturn, making resources scarce to plan for smarter development, attain greater public interest, and economic revival.

The primary objective of this project is to provide innovative solutions in city and regional planning using software applications, such as Google SketchUp, that enable assessment of various urban design projects. A second objective was to create a 3D …

Performance-Based Analysis Of A Reinforced Concrete Shear Wall Building, Garrett Richard Hagen

Master's Theses

PERFORMANCE-BASED ANALYSIS OF A REINFORCED CONCRETE SHEAR WALL BUILDING

Garrett Richard Hagen

In this thesis, a special reinforced concrete shear wall building was designed per ASCE 7-05, and then the performance was investigated using the four analysis procedures outlined in ASCE 41-06. The proposed building was planned as a 6-story office building in San Francisco, CA. The structural system consisted of a two-way flat plate and reinforced concrete columns for gravity loads and slender structural walls for seismic loads. The mathematical building models utilized recommendations from ASCE 41-06 and first-principle mechanics. Moment-curvature analysis and fiber cross-section elements were used in …

Model Performance Sensitivity To Objective Function During Automated Calibrations, Misgana Muleta

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Previous studies have reported limitations of the efficiency criteria commonly used in hydrology to describe goodness of model simulations. This study examined sensitivity of model performance to the objective function used during automated calibrations. Nine widely used efficiency criteria were evaluated for their effectiveness as objective function, and goodness of the model predictions were examined using 13 criteria. Two cases (Case I: Using observed streamflow data and Case II: Using simulated streamflow) were considered to accomplish objectives of the study using a widely used watershed model (SWAT) and good-quality field data from a well-monitored experimental watershed. Major findings of the …

Implementation, Design, And Cost Analysis Of A Concrete Washout System, Omar Adina

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

With the increase of environmental pollution in today’s world, many strategies and regulations are being enforced. These enforcements come from the state and federal governments, but public awareness is often overlooked. Stormwater regulations here in California have dramatically changed over the last decade, as the topic is investigated more often.

This senior project encompassed the design prototype and cost analysis of a permanent concrete washout station for the BioResource and Agricultural Engineering Department at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. The design parameters given were to construct a steel bin for the excess concrete to be dumped into during …

Throwing Frame For Athletes With Dissabilities, Andrew Higgins, Stefan Owechko, Gabriel (Gabe) Terrasas, Kevin Crisfield

Mechanical Engineering

Team Zeus’ senior project was to design, build and test a working throwing frame system for Bridge II Sports, a nonprofit organization in North Carolina. The throwing frame is used to allow athletes and individuals with disabilities to throw shot-put, discus, and javelin using a frame to sit against. Team Zeus was specifically tasked to build a frame that is lighter weight and more transportable than products that are currently on the market. This frame also is adjustable to accommodate a wide range of athlete weights, sizes, and abilities. The final result is a 35lb aluminum frame with two different …

Application Of A Heuristic Method To A Water Distribution System For Determining Optimal Water Quality Monitoring Locations, Lawrence David Johnson

Master's Theses

Although regulations and requirements for water quality source monitoring have increased, drinking water distribution systems can still be considered vulnerable to purposeful or accidental contamination.

This study analyzes the transport of the hypothetical contaminant Cryptosporidium through the distribution system of a city with a population of 30,000 to 50,000 in an attempt to locate the optimal monitoring locations in the distribution system. Cryptosporidium was selected due to its resistance to chlorine and it’s conservative properties for vulnerability assessments. The method for selecting the optimal monitoring locations was taken from Chastain (2004) which developed and examined the method for a virtual …

Approaches To Control Nitrate Pollution In The San Joaquin Watershed, Misgana K. Muleta, Stephen Clayton

Civil and Environmental Engineering

No abstract provided.

Evaluating Alternative Hydraulic Solutions To Limit Nutrient Contamination Of An Aquifer In Southern California, Jake M. Perry, Misgana K. Muleta

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Many small communities depend on groundwater sources for drinking water and they often use septic tanks for wastewater treatment and disposal. Nitrate and other pollutants leaking from poorly designed septic tank systems can percolate to the aquifers and alter quality of the groundwater. This study describes a groundwater model developed using Visual MODFLOW for an aquifer that is used as a water supply source for the communities of Beaumont and Cherry Valley, CA. The aquifer has been contaminated by nitrates leaking from septic tank systems. The model will assist in clarifying the extent of interactions between nitrate pollutants, percolation from …

A Formal Bayesian Approach For Uncertainty Analysis Of A Watershed Model, Misgana K. Muleta

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Uncertainty analysis (UA) has received substantial attention in water resources during the last decade. Bayesian approaches are often preferred for UA. This study describes a formal Bayesian approach for the assessment of parameter uncertainty and predictive uncertainty using a spatially distributed hydrologic model and will demonstrate its application using data from a well monitored experimental watershed. A Markov-Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) scheme has been used to sample posterior parameter distributions. A formal, flexible likelihood function that explicitly accounts for heteroscedasticity, temporal correlation and non-normality of simulation residuals has been used to describe closeness of the simulated and observed streamflow. Performance …

Uncertainty Analysis And Calibration Of Swmm Using A Formal, Bayesian Methodology, Misgana K. Muleta

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Importance of uncertainty analysis (UA) to estimate the degree of reliability associated with model predictions is being understood. Consequently, literature that describes various Bayesian methods for the assessment of parameter and model predictive uncertainty has been steadily rising. Applications dealing with urban stormwater management are, however, very limited. This study demonstrates successful application of a formal Bayesian methodology for UA of the U.S. EPA Stormwater Management Model (SWMM), a widely used urban stormwater management model, and illustrates the methodology using a highly urbanized watershed in southern California. DREAM(ZS), a recently developed effective and efficient sampling algorithm, and a generalized, formal …

Discussion Of “Comparison Of Base Shears Estimated From Floor Accelerations And Column Shears”, Rakesh K. Goel

Civil and Environmental Engineering

In lieu of a provided abstract, the first paragraph is provided:

The author agrees with Dr. Pinho about difficulties associated with the use of different damping models in nonlinear dynamic analysis. However, the focus of the original manuscript was to illustrate the difference between base shear estimated from floor accelerations, denoted as inertial base shear, and base shear estimated from column shears, denoted as the structural base shear. The difference between the two base shears exists regardless of the damping model used in the nonlinear analysis. In order to illustrate this conclusion, the Los Angeles building of the original manuscript …

Investigation Of A Commercial Product (Biowish™) For Nitrogen Management, Eva Lee

Master's Theses

Abstract

Investigation of a Commercial Product (BiOWiSH­­^TM) for Nitrogen Management

Eva Lee

BiOWiSH–Aqua, which has the capability of treating nitrogen from wastewater through bioaugmentation, is a commercial product consisting of a blend of microorganisms developed by BiOWiSH Technologies. A study of the treatment of nitrogen compounds (i.e. , , and ) using Biowish–Aqua was conducted using small scale experiments (flask experiments) and large scale experiments (column reactor experiments). In this work, column reactors were created to test Biowish–Aqua’s nitrogen treating capabilities by providing enough depth to simulate the dissolved oxygen gradient that can be observed in a pond. …

Best Management Practices Effectiveness To Reduce Sediment Transport To Morro Bay, Michael J. Randall

Master's Theses

The Morro Bay Watershed, which is located inSan Luis Obispo County,California, covers more than 48,000 acres of land and discharges intoMorroBaythrough the Morro Bay National Estuary (MBNE). The Chorro Creek Subwatershed consists of approximately 30,000 acres of the overall watershed. The MBNE provides an ecosystem that supports a variety of wildlife from the common sea gull to the endangered sea otter. The estuary is also home to over 200 species of birds. The operational waterfront of theMorroBayHarborwas and continues to be a strong supporter to the local economy of the City of Morro Bay. Numerous studies were conducted since the …

Evaluating Alternative Hydraulic Solutions To Limit Nutrient Contamination Of An Aquifer In Southern California, Jake Mendoza Perry

Master's Theses

Many small communities depend on groundwater sources for drinking water and they often use septic tanks for their sewer system needs. However, nitrates and other pollutants from septic systems can percolate to the aquifers and deteriorate quality of the groundwater, threatening the public health. This study has developed a groundwater model using Visual MODFLOW for an aquifer that is used as a water supply source for the cities of Beaumont and Cherry Valley, California. Septic systems are the suspected major source of nitrate contamination of the aquifer. The model has been developed to clarify the extent of interactions between nitrate …

Performance Based Analysis Of A Steel Braced Frame Building With Buckling Restrained Braces, Margaux Claire Burkholder

Master's Theses

This paper provides an assessment of the seismic performance of a code-designed buckling restrained braced frame building using the performance-based analysis procedures prescribed in ASCE 41-06. The building was designed based on the standards of the ASCE 7-05 for a typical office building located in San Francisco, CA. Nonlinear modeling parameters and acceptance criteria for buckling restrained brace components were developed to match ASCE 41-06 design standards for structural steel components, since buckling restrained braces are not currently included in ASCE 41-06. The building was evaluated using linear static, linear dynamic, nonlinear static and nonlinear dynamic analysis procedures. This study …

Scale Model Shake Table Testing Of Seismic Earth Pressures In Soft Clay, Robb Moss, R.E. Noche

Civil and Environmental Engineering

There is much uncertainty in seismic earth pressures for basement wall design and retaining wall design in clay soil. The research presented herein uses a scale model testing platform on a 1g shake table to measure the distribution and magnitude of seismic earth pressures for the prototype soil conditions of San Francisco Young Bay Mud (YBM). Similitude scaling of the dynamic soil properties, the wall dimensions, and the input time histories (among other variables) affords accurate modeling of the prototype scale wall. For basement conditions, inertial soil structure interaction (SSI) effects are included in the experiments. Care is taken to …

Quantifying The Life Cycle Benefits Of Performance-Based Design In Sustainable Design, David Isaac Carmona

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

Quantifying the Life Cycle Benefits of Performance-Based Design in Sustainable Design

David Carmona

For this thesis, a method is developed and tested for use with performance based design to quantify the sustainable and financial benefits of designing buildings to a structural performance level higher than Life-Safety. This paper starts to answer the question, “which would be a better investment: build structures to a performance level of Immediate Occupancy (IO) with the likelihood of less damage and downtime after an earthquake or continue to build to the building code’s implied minimum performance level of Life-Safety (LS)?”

An ASCE 7-05 designed …

Beneficial Reuse Of Corrugated Paperboard In Civil Engineering Applications, Gregory M. Stone

Master's Theses

Abstract

Beneficial Reuse of Corrugated Paperboard in Civil Engineering Applications

Gregory Michael Stone

An investigation was conducted to explore the potential for reuse of corrugated paperboard. Corrugated paperboard represents a large fraction of the municipal solid waste generated and discarded in the United States. Alternative applications for reuse can provide a significant benefit by reducing the volume of waste being disposed and by reducing the use of raw materials. Four civil engineering applications were examined for potential beneficial reuse of corrugated paperboard: slurry trench construction, vertical drilling, directional drilling, and controlled low strength materials (CLSM).

For the purpose of this …

Bridge Design For Earthquake Fault Crossings – Synthesis Of Design Issues And Strategies, Osmar Rodriguez

Master's Theses

This research evaluates the seismic demands for a three-span curved bridge crossing fault-rupture zones. Two approximate procedures which have been proved adequate for ordinary straight bridges crossing fault-rupture zones, i.e., the fault-rupture response spectrum analysis (FR-RSA) procedure and the fault-rupture linear static analysis (FR-LSA) procedure, were considered in this investigation. These two procedures estimate the seismic demands by superposing the peak values of quasi-static and dynamic bridge responses. The peak quasi-static response in both methods is computed by nonlinear static analysis of the bridge under the ground displacement offset associated with fault-rupture. In FR-RSA and FR-LSA, the peak dynamic responses …