Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Marquette University

Discipline
Keyword
Publication Year
Publication
Publication Type
File Type

Articles 31 - 60 of 440

Full-Text Articles in Civil and Environmental Engineering

Impact Of Traffic On Air Pollution In A Mid-Sized Urban City During Covid-19 Lockdowns, Nathan Hay, Otito Onwuzurike, Somesh Roy, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Margaret L. Mcnamara, Walter M. Mcdonald Jun 2023

Impact Of Traffic On Air Pollution In A Mid-Sized Urban City During Covid-19 Lockdowns, Nathan Hay, Otito Onwuzurike, Somesh Roy, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Margaret L. Mcnamara, Walter M. Mcdonald

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

In this study, we evaluated the changes in air pollutant concentrations around Milwaukee, WI, during and after lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic for a period of 126 days. Measurements of particulate matter (PM1, PM2.5, and PM10), NH3, H2S, and O3 + NO2, were made on a 74-km route of arterial and highway roads from April to August 2020 using a Sniffer 4D sensor mounted to a vehicle. Traffic volume during measurement periods were estimated from smartphone-based traffic data. From lockdown (March 24, 2020–June 11, 2020) to …

Go to article

Pyrolysis—A Tool In The Wastewater Solids Handling Portfolio, Not A Silver Bullet: Benefits, Drawbacks, And Future Directions, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Zhongzhe Liu, Yiran Tong, Hari Santha, Lynne Moss, Daniel Zitomer May 2023

Pyrolysis—A Tool In The Wastewater Solids Handling Portfolio, Not A Silver Bullet: Benefits, Drawbacks, And Future Directions, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Zhongzhe Liu, Yiran Tong, Hari Santha, Lynne Moss, Daniel Zitomer

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Pyrolysis is the process whereby carbonaceous materials, such as biosolids, are heated between 400°C and 900°C in the absence of oxygen. Three main products are generated: a solid product called biochar, a py-liquid that consists of aqueous phase and non-aqueous phase liquid, and py-gas. The biochar holds value as a beneficial soil amendment and sequesters carbon. The py-liquid is potentially hazardous and needs to be dealt with (including potentially reducing it on-site via catalysis or thermal oxidation). Py-gas can be used on-site for energy recovery. Pyrolysis has gained recent interest due to concern over per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in …

Go to article

An Inexpensive, Reproducible Method To Quantify Activated Sludge Foaming Potential: Validation Through Lab-Scale Studies And Year-Long Full-Scale Sampling Campaign, Grace K. Scarim, Emily Lou Lamartina, Kaushik Venkiteshwaran, Daniel Zitomer, Ryan J. Newton, Patrick J. Mcnamara Apr 2023

An Inexpensive, Reproducible Method To Quantify Activated Sludge Foaming Potential: Validation Through Lab-Scale Studies And Year-Long Full-Scale Sampling Campaign, Grace K. Scarim, Emily Lou Lamartina, Kaushik Venkiteshwaran, Daniel Zitomer, Ryan J. Newton, Patrick J. Mcnamara

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Activated sludge is a conventional treatment process for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and total suspended solids (TSS) removal at water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs). Foaming events are a common operational issue in activated sludge and can lead to decreased treatment efficiency, maintenance issues, and potential environmental health risks. Stable foaming events are caused by biological and chemical drivers (i.e., microbes and surfactants) during the aeration process. However, foaming events are difficult to predict and quantify. We present an inexpensive and easy-to-use method that can be applied at WRRFs to quantify foaming potential. Subsequently, the method was applied over a year-long …

Go to article

Pyrolysis Transports, And Transforms, Pfas From Biosolids To Py-Liquid, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Melvin S. Samuel, Sandeep Sathyamoorthy, Lynne Moss, Danny Valtierra, Hugo Cortes Lopez, Nicholas J. Nigro, Stephen Somerville, Zhongzhe Liu Feb 2023

Pyrolysis Transports, And Transforms, Pfas From Biosolids To Py-Liquid, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Melvin S. Samuel, Sandeep Sathyamoorthy, Lynne Moss, Danny Valtierra, Hugo Cortes Lopez, Nicholas J. Nigro, Stephen Somerville, Zhongzhe Liu

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in wastewater solids have resulted in bans on land application of biosolids, causing utilities to explore thermal treatment options. Pyrolysis is a thermal treatment process that converts wastewater solids to biochar, py-liquid (i.e., aqueous phase liquid and non-aqueous phase liquid), and py-gas. Research on the impact of pyrolysis on PFAS in biosolids has yielded mixed results, and no research has investigated if PFAS are present in the py-liquid. The goals of this research were to determine if pyrolysis releases PFAS with the effluent py-liquid and to distinguish “removal” from “transformation” of PFAS. Triplicate …

Go to article

Scan4façade: Automated As-Is Façade Modeling Of Historic High-Rise Buildings Using Drones And Ai, Yuhan Jiang, Sisi Han, Yong Bai Dec 2022

Scan4façade: Automated As-Is Façade Modeling Of Historic High-Rise Buildings Using Drones And Ai, Yuhan Jiang, Sisi Han, Yong Bai

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

This paper presents an automated as-is façade modeling method for existing and historic high-rise buildings, named Scan4Façade. To begin with, a camera drone with a spiral path is employed to capture building exterior images, and photogrammetry is used to conduct three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction and create mesh models for the scanned building façades. High-resolution façade orthoimages are then generated from mesh models and pixelwise segmented by an artificial intelligence (AI) model named U-net. A combined data augmentation strategy, including random flipping, rotation, resizing, perspective transformation, and color adjustment, is proposed for model training with a limited number of labels. As …

Go to article

Automatic Concrete Sidewalk Deficiency Detection And Mapping With Deep Learning, Yuhan Jiang, Sisi Han, Dapeng Li, Yong Bai, Mingzhu Wang Nov 2022

Automatic Concrete Sidewalk Deficiency Detection And Mapping With Deep Learning, Yuhan Jiang, Sisi Han, Dapeng Li, Yong Bai, Mingzhu Wang

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Vertical displacement is a common concrete slab sidewalk deficiency, which may cause trip hazards and reduce wheelchair accessibility. This paper presents an automatic approach for trip hazard detection and mapping based on deep learning. A low-cost mobile LiDAR scanner was used to obtain full-width as-is conditions of sidewalks, after which a method was developed to convert the scanned 3D point clouds into 2D RGB orthoimages and elevation images. Then, a deep learning-based model was developed for pixelwise segmentation of concrete slab joints. Algorithms were developed to extract different types of joints of straight and curved sidewalks from the segmented images. …

Go to article

Impact Of Stormwater Infiltration On Rainfall-Derived Inflow And Infiltration: A Physically Based Surface–Subsurface Urban Hydrologic Model, Kun Zhang, Anthony J. Parolari Jul 2022

Impact Of Stormwater Infiltration On Rainfall-Derived Inflow And Infiltration: A Physically Based Surface–Subsurface Urban Hydrologic Model, Kun Zhang, Anthony J. Parolari

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

The subsurface fate of stormwater infiltration enhanced by green infrastructure (GI) is unknown. GI redirects stormflows from the surface into the subsurface, which can be partitioned to evapotranspiration or baseflow, or be intercepted by buried infrastructure trenches. Stormwater that infiltrates sanitary sewer pipes is referred to as rainfall-derived inflow and infiltration (RDII) and represents a rapid pathway for infiltrated stormwater to reach receiving waters. To quantify the partitioning of infiltrated stormwater between slow and fast flows, a physically-based hydrologic model was developed integrating coupled surface–subsurface processes and urban sewer systems and applied to a sewershed near Milwaukee, WI. In this …

Go to article

Experimental Study And Piezoresistive Mechanism Of Electrostatic Self-Assembly Of Carbon Nanotubes–Carbon Black/Epoxy Nanocomposites For Structural Health Monitoring, Yanlei Wang, Yao Fu, Ziping Meng, Baolin Wan, Baoguo Han Jul 2022

Experimental Study And Piezoresistive Mechanism Of Electrostatic Self-Assembly Of Carbon Nanotubes–Carbon Black/Epoxy Nanocomposites For Structural Health Monitoring, Yanlei Wang, Yao Fu, Ziping Meng, Baolin Wan, Baoguo Han

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Since electrostatic self-assembly carbon nanotubes–carbon black (CNTs–CB) composite fillers have good electrical conductivity and an easy dispersion process, they were incorporated into epoxy matrix to fabricate the CNTs–CB/epoxy nanocomposites. The mechanical properties, electrical conductivity, piezoresistivity, as well as microstructure characterization of the CNTs–CB/epoxy nanocomposites were experimentally investigated. The piezoresistive mechanisms of the CNTs–CB/epoxy nanocomposites were also established based on tunneling conduction and contacting conduction. The significant improvements in compressive yielding strength and elastic modulus of the nanocomposites could be attributed to the stable interfacial interaction. A moderate percolation threshold was obtained at 0.41 vol% for the CNTs–CB/epoxy nanocomposites in comparison …

Go to article

Meta-Analysis Of The Prevalence Of Dissolved Organic Nitrogen (Don) In Water And Wastewater And Review Of Don Removal And Recovery Strategies, Synthia P. Mallick, Zayed Mallick, Brooke K. Mayer Jul 2022

Meta-Analysis Of The Prevalence Of Dissolved Organic Nitrogen (Don) In Water And Wastewater And Review Of Don Removal And Recovery Strategies, Synthia P. Mallick, Zayed Mallick, Brooke K. Mayer

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Most wastewater removal and recovery processes primarily target dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) species, leaving the untreated non-reactive dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) in the effluent. This DON fraction can account for a substantial part of the total nitrogen (N) load. We analyzed large datasets of N species and concentrations (with a focus on quantifying the fraction of DON) in surface water, ground water, and wastewater effluent across the United States. We then reviewed strategies to remove and recover DON based on results of a range of treatment technologies reported in the literature, including laboratory-scale up to full-scale operation in wastewater treatment …

Go to article

Simple Rebar Anchorage Slip Macromodel Considering Corrosion, Ahmad Soraghi, Qindan Huang Jul 2022

Simple Rebar Anchorage Slip Macromodel Considering Corrosion, Ahmad Soraghi, Qindan Huang

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Reinforcement slip in the footing of a reinforced concrete (RC) column can significantly influence the lateral displacement of the column, a critical structural response under lateral loads such as seismic loading. Many past researchers studied and developed models to capture the anchorage slip of rebar; however, there is still a need for a model that can reflect the actual bond-slip relationship (especially in the presence of corrosion) and yet is simple-to-use for structural analysis. In this study, a simple bar stress-slip macromodel is developed to predict reinforcement anchorage slip given a rebar stress. The proposed rebar anchorage slip model is …

Go to article

Lab-Scale Data And Microbial Community Structure Suggest Shortcut Nitrogen Removal As The Predominant Nitrogen Removal Mechanism In Post-Aerobic Digestion (Pad), Fabrizio Sabba, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Eric Redmond, Mike Young, Leon Downing Jul 2022

Lab-Scale Data And Microbial Community Structure Suggest Shortcut Nitrogen Removal As The Predominant Nitrogen Removal Mechanism In Post-Aerobic Digestion (Pad), Fabrizio Sabba, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Eric Redmond, Mike Young, Leon Downing

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Implementing an aerobic digestion step after anaerobic digestion, referred to as “post aerobic digestion” (PAD), can remove ammonia without the need for an external carbon source and destroy volatile solids. While this process has been documented at the lab-scale and full-scale, the mechanism for N removal and the corresponding microbial community that carries out this process have not been established. This research gap is important to fill because the nitrogen removal pathway has implications on aeration requirements and carbon demand, that is, short-cut N-removal requires less oxygen and carbon than simultaneous nitrification–denitrification. The aims of this research were to (i) …

Go to article

Seasonal And Spatial Patterns Differ Between Intracellular And Extracellular Antibiotic Resistance Genes In Urban Stormwater Runoff, Kassidy N. O'Malley, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Walter M. Mcdonald Jul 2022

Seasonal And Spatial Patterns Differ Between Intracellular And Extracellular Antibiotic Resistance Genes In Urban Stormwater Runoff, Kassidy N. O'Malley, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Walter M. Mcdonald

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Antibiotic resistance is a public health threat that is exacerbated by the dispersion of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) into aquatic environments. Urban stormwater runoff has been recognized as a source of and a mechanism by which intracellular ARGs (iARGs) can be transported into receiving environments. The prevalence and behavior of extracellular ARGs (eARGs) in stormwater, however, has yet to be considered. This study quantified four iARGs and eARGs under baseflow and stormflow conditions. Urban stormwater runoff was found to be a source of all the ARGs examined, with the absolute concentration of all iARGs and two eARGs (ermF …

Go to article

Sequential Electrolysis And Reverse Osmosis To Improve Arsenic Removal From Water, Yizhi Hou, Brooke K. Mayer Jul 2022

Sequential Electrolysis And Reverse Osmosis To Improve Arsenic Removal From Water, Yizhi Hou, Brooke K. Mayer

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Reverse osmosis (RO) typically removes >98% arsenate (As[V]) but removes arsenite (As[III]) comparatively poorly (approximately 50%–80%). Therefore, oxidizing As(III) to As(V) can improve arsenic removal using RO. In this study, electrolytic oxidation was used to oxidize As(III) in the feed water, and an extreme low-pressure RO membrane was subsequently used to remove the arsenic. Using Ti/IrO2 electrodes under 30 mA DC current in 500 mg/L NaCl solution primarily generated free chlorine, which completely oxidized 300 μg/L As(III) to As(V). Subsequent arsenic removal by RO increased from 54.2% without oxidation to 98.2% with oxidation. Using electrolysis-RO, arsenic removal significantly increased beyond …

Go to article

Tensile Strain And Damage Self-Sensing Of Flax Frp Laminates Using Carbon Nanofiber Conductive Network Coupled With Acoustic Emission, Yanlei Wang, Guipeng Chen, Yongshuai Wang, Baoguo Han, Baolin Wan, Qingduo Hao, Yulei Bai Jun 2022

Tensile Strain And Damage Self-Sensing Of Flax Frp Laminates Using Carbon Nanofiber Conductive Network Coupled With Acoustic Emission, Yanlei Wang, Guipeng Chen, Yongshuai Wang, Baoguo Han, Baolin Wan, Qingduo Hao, Yulei Bai

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

The strain and damage self-sensing properties of carbon nanofibers (CNFs)/flax fiber-reinforced polymer (FFRP) laminates under tension were investigated via simultaneously measuring the changes of electrical resistance (ER) and acoustic emission (AE) signals. The piezoresistive mechanisms together with the damage evolution of CNFs/FFRP laminates were also explored. The results revealed that both ER and AE responses to tensile strains in CNFs/FFRP laminates could be segmented into three stages, which confirmed their good damage self-sensing ability. The isochronous and reversible electrical resistance responses to tensile strains proved the stability and repeatability of strain self-sensing capability for CNFs/FFRP laminates. Moreover, in-situ ER measurement …

Go to article

Development Of Probabilistic Failure Pressure Models For Pipelines With Single Corrosion Defect, Kiswendsida J. Kere, Qindan Huang Jun 2022

Development Of Probabilistic Failure Pressure Models For Pipelines With Single Corrosion Defect, Kiswendsida J. Kere, Qindan Huang

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Many models have been developed in the past to predict the failure pressure of a pipeline with a single corrosion defect. However, most of the existing models are conservative and may lead to unnecessary repairs and maintenance in the pipeline risk management. The aim of this study is to develop probabilistic failure pressure prediction models that are suitable for risk assessment of corroded pipelines. The proposed models are developed at three levels of pipe ultimate strength based on a comprehensive database (consist of both experimental and numerical data) established in this study. When comparing with the existing models, it is …

Go to article

An Extraction Method To Quantify The Fraction Of Extracellular And Intracellular Antibiotic Resistance Genes In Aquatic Environments, Kassidy N. O'Malley, Walter M. Mcdonald, Patrick J. Mcnamara May 2022

An Extraction Method To Quantify The Fraction Of Extracellular And Intracellular Antibiotic Resistance Genes In Aquatic Environments, Kassidy N. O'Malley, Walter M. Mcdonald, Patrick J. Mcnamara

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

As the abundance and diversity of antibiotic resistance genes increases in the environment, there is a concurrent increase in the threat to public and ecosystem health. Extracellular antibiotic resistance genes (eARGs) are cell-free DNA that can promote the development of antibiotic resistance via transformation by competent bacterial cells. Despite this role, eARGs have not been well characterized in different environmental waters. Their small size and low concentrations in some aquatic environments render them difficult to extract. The aim of this research was to modify an eARG extraction method to determine the abundance of both eARGs and intracellular ARGs (iARGs) in …

Go to article

Assessing Flooding Impact To Riverine Bridges: An Integrated Analysis, Maria Pregnolato, Andrew O. Winter, Dakota Mascarenas, Andrew D. Sen, Paul Bates, Michael R. Motley May 2022

Assessing Flooding Impact To Riverine Bridges: An Integrated Analysis, Maria Pregnolato, Andrew O. Winter, Dakota Mascarenas, Andrew D. Sen, Paul Bates, Michael R. Motley

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Flood events are the most frequent cause of damage to infrastructure compared to any other natural hazard, and global changes (climate, socioeconomic, technological) are likely to increase this damage. Transportation infrastructure systems are responsible for moving people, goods and services, and ensuring connection within and among urban areas. A failed link in these systems can impact the community by threatening evacuation capability, recovery operations and the overall economy. Bridges are critical links in the wider urban system since they are associated with little redundancy and a high (re)construction cost. Riverine bridges are particularly prone to failure during flood events; in …

Go to article

Fixed-Bed Column Study Of Phosphate Adsorption Using Immobilized Phosphate-Binding Protein, Faten B. Hussein, Brooke K. Mayer May 2022

Fixed-Bed Column Study Of Phosphate Adsorption Using Immobilized Phosphate-Binding Protein, Faten B. Hussein, Brooke K. Mayer

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Bio-adsorption using high-affinity phosphate-binding proteins (PBP) has demonstrated effective phosphorus removal and recovery in batch-scale tests. Subsequent optimization of design and performance of fixed-bed column systems is essential for scaling up and implementation. Here, continuous-flow fixed-bed column tests were used to investigate the adsorption of inorganic phosphate (orthophosphate, Pi) using phosphate-binding proteins immobilized on resin (PBP–NHS) targeting Pi removal to ultra-low levels followed by recovery. Time to breakthrough decreased with higher influent Pi concentration, smaller bed volume, and higher influent flow rates. The Thomas and Yoon-Nelson breakthrough models adequately described PBP-NHS resin performance with a correlation coefficient of R2 > 0.95. …

Go to article

Fast-Pgmed: Fast And Dense Elevation Determination For Earthwork Using Drone And Deep Learning, Sisi Han, Yuhan Jiang, Yong Bai Apr 2022

Fast-Pgmed: Fast And Dense Elevation Determination For Earthwork Using Drone And Deep Learning, Sisi Han, Yuhan Jiang, Yong Bai

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

This paper presents a time- and cost-effective elevation determination method for earthwork operations using ready-to-fly imaging drones and deep learning technologies. The proposed method is named the fast pixel grid/group matching and elevation determination (Fast-PGMED) algorithm. The input data are a pair of approximate 2:1-scale top-view images, and the output is the determined elevation map for the scanned station. Feature matching of the two multiscale images is conducted by calculating correlations between target patch predictions (via DeepMatchNet, a fully convolutional network) and potential target patches (via virtual elevation model). The overall processing time is about 21 s …

Go to article

Post Aerobic Digestion (Pad) Is A Solids Sidestream Nutrient Removal Process That Utilizes Native Carbon: Performance And Key Operational Parameters From Two Full-Scale Pad Reactors, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Fabrizio Sabba, Eric Redmond, Patrick Dunlap, Thomas Worley-Morse, Christopher Marks, Leon Downing Apr 2022

Post Aerobic Digestion (Pad) Is A Solids Sidestream Nutrient Removal Process That Utilizes Native Carbon: Performance And Key Operational Parameters From Two Full-Scale Pad Reactors, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Fabrizio Sabba, Eric Redmond, Patrick Dunlap, Thomas Worley-Morse, Christopher Marks, Leon Downing

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Nutrient management is a critical issue for Water Resource Recovery Facilities, and sidestream treatment technologies to reduce nutrient loads often focus on liquid sidestreams and require external carbon sources. Post aerobic digestion (PAD), whereby an aerobic digester follows an anaerobic digester, treats a solids stream (i.e., anaerobic digester effluent) to reduce nitrogen loads. Volatile solids reduction occurs in this process with residual organic compounds serving as a native carbon source for denitrification. While this process has been evaluated at the lab-scale, information on operational parameters that affect full-scale performance is limited. We evaluated two separate full-scale PAD reactors …

Go to article

Modeling Multimodal Access To Primary Care In An Urban Environment, Danielle Eden Del Conte, Amanda Locascio, Joseph Amoruso, Margaret L. Mcnamara Mar 2022

Modeling Multimodal Access To Primary Care In An Urban Environment, Danielle Eden Del Conte, Amanda Locascio, Joseph Amoruso, Margaret L. Mcnamara

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Access to primary health care facilities is a key component of public health, and measuring that access is vital to understanding how to target interventions. Transportation is one dimension of access and measuring distance via multiple modes allows better understanding of how varied populations access health care, particularly those who do not have access to a personal vehicle. This work builds on the 2-Step Floating Catchment Area (2SFCA) method to include travel by car, bus, bicycle, and walking. Travel time data are sourced from OpenStreetMap and transit data incorporates stop and schedule information from the General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS). …

Go to article

Glycerol-Driven Denitratation: Process Kinetics, Microbial Ecology, And Operational Controls, Matthew Baideme, Chenghua Long, Luke Plante, Jeffrey A. Starke, Michael A. Butkus, Katrik Chandran Feb 2022

Glycerol-Driven Denitratation: Process Kinetics, Microbial Ecology, And Operational Controls, Matthew Baideme, Chenghua Long, Luke Plante, Jeffrey A. Starke, Michael A. Butkus, Katrik Chandran

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Denitratation, the selective reduction of nitrate to nitrite, is a novel process and when coupled with anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) could achieve resource-efficient biological nitrogen removal of ammonium- and nitrate-laden waste streams. Using a fundamentally-based, first principles approach, this study optimized a stoichiometrically-limited, glycerol-driven denitratation process and characterized mechanisms supporting nitrite accumulation with results that aligned with expectations. At the optimal influent chemical oxygen demand to nitrate ratio of 3.0 : 1 identified, glycerol supported selective nitrate reduction to nitrite (nitrite accumulation ratio, NAR = 62%) and near-complete nitrate conversion (nitrate reduction ratio, NRR = 96%), indicating its viability in …

Go to article

Paper Mill Sludge Biochar To Enhance Energy Recovery From Pyrolysis: A Comprehensive Evaluation And Comparison, Zhongzhe Liu, Matthew Hughes, Yiran Tong, William Kreutter, Hugo Cortes Lopez, Simcha L. Singer, Daniel Zitomer, Patrick J. Mcnamara Jan 2022

Paper Mill Sludge Biochar To Enhance Energy Recovery From Pyrolysis: A Comprehensive Evaluation And Comparison, Zhongzhe Liu, Matthew Hughes, Yiran Tong, William Kreutter, Hugo Cortes Lopez, Simcha L. Singer, Daniel Zitomer, Patrick J. Mcnamara

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Bio-oil and pyrolysis gas (py-gas) are two pyrolysis products available for potential energy recovery. Crude bio-oil, however, is typically corrosive and unstable, requiring special combustion equipment or catalytic upgrading to produce drop-in-grade fuel. In contrast, py-gas is readily useable in standard equipment for energy recovery. Previous research revealed that Ca-impregnated biochar catalyst improved bio-oil to py-gas conversion. Biochar produced from paper mill sludge (p-sludge) has very high Ca content. In this study, the catalytic ability of p-sludge biochar was systematically evaluated for the first time in pyrolysis. P-sludge biochar resulted in higher py-gas yield (40 wt% of total pyrolysis products) …

Go to article

Effect Of Joint Rotation On Curling Responses In Airfield Rigid Pavements, Jaime Hernandez, Imad L. Al-Qadi Jan 2022

Effect Of Joint Rotation On Curling Responses In Airfield Rigid Pavements, Jaime Hernandez, Imad L. Al-Qadi

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

This paper quantifies the relevance of restriction to joint rotation of an airfield concrete pavement when calculating critical curling stresses and deflections using a validated finite element model. The validation uses strains measured at the John F. Kennedy International Airport. To calculate critical curling stresses and deflections, the pavement was subjected to 5263 h of temperature variation determined by utilising the enhanced integrated climate model and thermocouple readings. The profiles include a wide range of average temperatures, temperature gradients, and temperature nonlinearity. Three conditions were included: (1) joints free to displace and rotate; (2) joints free to rotate, but partially …

Go to article

Targeting Current And Future Threats: Recent Methodological Trends In Environmental Antimicrobial Resistance Research And Their Relationships To Risk Assessment, Tucker R. Burch, Ryan J. Newton, Lee K. Kimbell, Emily Lou Lamartina, Kassidy N. O'Malley, San Marie Victoria Thomson, Christopher Marshall, Patrick J. Mcnamara Jan 2022

Targeting Current And Future Threats: Recent Methodological Trends In Environmental Antimicrobial Resistance Research And Their Relationships To Risk Assessment, Tucker R. Burch, Ryan J. Newton, Lee K. Kimbell, Emily Lou Lamartina, Kassidy N. O'Malley, San Marie Victoria Thomson, Christopher Marshall, Patrick J. Mcnamara

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing public health threat. Improved surveillance of AMR's genetic indicators in environmental reservoirs should lead to a more comprehensive understanding of the problem at a global scale, as with SARS-CoV-2 monitoring in sewage. However, the “best” monitoring approach is unclear. Some scientific works have emphasized monitoring for the abundance of already-known antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs); others have emphasized monitoring for the potential of new ARGs to arise. The goal of this study was to examine which methods were employed by highly-cited papers studying AMR in environmental engineering and agricultural systems, thus providing insight into current …

Go to article

Building And Infrastructure Defect Detection And Visualization Using Drone And Deep Learning Technologies, Yuhan Jiang, Sisi Han, Yong Bai Dec 2021

Building And Infrastructure Defect Detection And Visualization Using Drone And Deep Learning Technologies, Yuhan Jiang, Sisi Han, Yong Bai

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

This paper presents an accurate and stable method for object and defect detection and visualization on building and infrastructural facilities. This method uses drones and cameras to collect three- dimensional (3D) point clouds via photogrammetry, and uses orthographic or arbitrary views of the target objects to generate the feature images of points’ spectral, elevation, and normal features. U-Net is implemented in the pixelwise segmentation for object and defect detection using multiple feature images. This method was validated on four applications, including on-site path detection, pavement cracking detection, highway slope detection, and building facade window detection. The comparative experimental results confirmed …

Go to article

Slicing-Based Artificial Intelligence Service Provisioning On The Network Edge: Balancing Ai Service Performance And Resource Consumption Of Data Management, Mushu Li, Jie Gao, Conghao Zhou, Xuemin Shen, Weihua Zhuang Dec 2021

Slicing-Based Artificial Intelligence Service Provisioning On The Network Edge: Balancing Ai Service Performance And Resource Consumption Of Data Management, Mushu Li, Jie Gao, Conghao Zhou, Xuemin Shen, Weihua Zhuang

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Edge intelligence leverages computing resources on the network edge to provide artificial intelligence (AI) services close to network users. As it enables fast inference and distributed learning, edge intelligence is envisioned to be an important component of 6G networks. In this article, we investigate AI service provisioning for supporting edge intelligence. First, we present the features and requirements of AI services. Then we introduce AI service data management and customize network slicing for AI services. Specifically, we propose a novel resource-pooling method to regularize service data exchange within the network edge while allocating network resources for AI services. Using this …

Go to article

Progress And Prospect Of Anodic Oxidation For The Remediation Of Perfluoroalkyl And Polyfluoroalkyl Substances In Water And Wastewater Using Diamond Electrodes, Sean T. Mcbeath, Adrián Serrano Mora, Fatemeh Asadi Zeidabadi, Brooke K. Mayer, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Madjid Mohseni, Michael R. Hoffman, Nigel J. D. Graham Dec 2021

Progress And Prospect Of Anodic Oxidation For The Remediation Of Perfluoroalkyl And Polyfluoroalkyl Substances In Water And Wastewater Using Diamond Electrodes, Sean T. Mcbeath, Adrián Serrano Mora, Fatemeh Asadi Zeidabadi, Brooke K. Mayer, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Madjid Mohseni, Michael R. Hoffman, Nigel J. D. Graham

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Although diamond electrodes are widely used in the field of electroanalysis and sensing, their application in the field of environmental engineering has yet to be fully realized. Many research studies have considered their potential application in water and wastewater treatment, where the in-situ electrochemical process can avoid the need for chemical additives by facilitating the oxidation of pollutants on the electrode surface or mediated by electrochemically synthesized oxidants in solution. Diamond-based electro-oxidation can effectively treat a number of organic micropollutants and is now being evaluated for the abatement of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, which pose health concerns and are ubiquitous …

Go to article

Collaborative Multi-Resource Allocation In Terrestrial-Satellite Network Towards 6g, Shu Fu, Jie Gao, Lian Zhao Nov 2021

Collaborative Multi-Resource Allocation In Terrestrial-Satellite Network Towards 6g, Shu Fu, Jie Gao, Lian Zhao

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Terrestrial-satellite networks (TSNs) are envisioned to play a significant role in the sixth-generation (6G) wireless networks. In such networks, hot air balloons are useful as they can relay the signals between satellites and ground stations. Most existing works assume that the hot air balloons are deployed at the same height with the same minimum elevation angle to the satellites, which may not be practical due to possible route conflict with airplanes and other flight equipment. In this paper, we consider a TSN containing hot air balloons at different heights and with different minimum elevation angles, which creates the challenge of …

Go to article

Enhanced Energy And Resource Recovery Via Synergistic Catalytic Pyrolysis Of Byproducts From Thermal Processing Of Wastewater Solids, Zhongzhe Liu, Matthew Hughes, Yiran Tong, Jizhi Zhoud, William Kreutter, Danny Valtierra, Simcha L. Singer, Daniel Zitomer, Patrick J. Mcnamara Nov 2021

Enhanced Energy And Resource Recovery Via Synergistic Catalytic Pyrolysis Of Byproducts From Thermal Processing Of Wastewater Solids, Zhongzhe Liu, Matthew Hughes, Yiran Tong, Jizhi Zhoud, William Kreutter, Danny Valtierra, Simcha L. Singer, Daniel Zitomer, Patrick J. Mcnamara

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Wastewater sludge drying and incineration are conventional solids handling processes that are sometimes employed in water resource reclamation facilities. However, these two processes generate byproducts, sludge drying chaff and sludge incinerator ash, which are landfilled without taking advantage of their value. To gain value from these byproducts, a new synergistic catalytic pyrolysis process using chaff and ash was investigated in this study to improve energy production (i.e. generating a high yield pyrolysis gas) and generate useful products. Ash was used as a catalyst to decrease bio-oil that is corrosive and challenging for combustion in standard equipment, while increasing pyrolysis gas …

Go to article

First Prev Next Last