Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Visual Shm For Concrete Infrastructure Using A Wall-Climbing Robot, Liang Yang, Yong Chang, Biao Jiang, Jizhong Xiao

INSPIRE-UTC Annual Meetings

Concrete structural health monitoring (SHM) is urgently required with more and more severe aging problems happen. Conventional manual inspection approach is labor-intensive and time-consuming. In this paper, we propose a wall-climbing robotic approach for visual inspection of concrete structures using a deep neural network and 3D semantic reconstruction to build a 3D map overlaid with defects. The wall-climbing robot uses a negative pressure module to operate on both vertical and horizontal surfaces. An RGB-D camera is mounted in the robot with an Intel-NUC computer as visual positioning and image processing core to make metric measurement, Our main contribution is the …

Roller Chain-Like Robot For Steel Bridge Inspection, Son Thanh Nguyen, Hung Manh La

INSPIRE-UTC Annual Meetings

This paper presents a novel design of steel bridge/structure inspection robot. Compared to most existing robots designed to work on particular surface contour of steel structures such as flat or curving, the proposed roller chain-like robot can implement and transfer smoothly on many kind of steel surfaces. The developed robot can be applied to inspection tasks for steel bridges with complicated structures. The robot is able to carry cameras, sensors for visual and specialized examination. Rigorous analysis of robot kinematics, adhesion force and turn-over failure has been conducted to demonstrate the stability of the proposed design. Mechanical and magnetic force …

A Genetic Algorithm For Minmax K-Chinese Postman Problem With Applications To Bridge Inspection, Siming Liu, Sushil J. Liu, N. Harris, Hung Manh La

INSPIRE-UTC Annual Meetings

Bridge inspections ensure transportation infrastructure safety and save lives but current manual bridge inspections can be slow and costly. Automated bridge inspection research mitigates these problems and we investigate a multirobot approach to automated bridge inspection by mapping the inspection problem to the well known k-Chinese Postman problem and using multiple robots for faster, more cost-effective, and more standardized bridge inspections. We first show that a genetic algorithm quickly approaches the optimal solution to the 1-postman problem corresponding to a single robot inspecting a bridge. Then, we use the same genetic algorithm to efficiently solve the more difficult, multi-robot, NP-hard, …

Unmanned Aerial And Traversing Robot As Mobile Platform For Bridge Inspections, Alec M. Reven, Clayton A. Fritsche, Genda Chen

INSPIRE-UTC Annual Meetings

In this study, a bridge inspection robot deployment system (BIRDS) is designed, prototyped, and tested to facilitate the remote inspection of bridges with nondestructive evaluation tools such as microwave and hyperspectral cameras. The multimodal robotic system utilizes both flying and driving technologies. First, BIRDS as an unmanned aerial vehicle flies to the underside of the bridge to be inspected. When in position, BIRDS is engaged with the bottom flange of a bridge girder with a specifically designed roller clamping system and then traverses the bridge in a stable manner, providing high quality images from cameras. Finally, BIRDS simply detaches from …

9th International Conference On Structural Health Monitoring Of Intelligent Infrastructure (Smhii-9) Conference Program, Smhii-9

INSPIRE-UTC Annual Meetings

No abstract provided.

Remote Sensing Of Explosives-Induced Stress In Plants: Hyperspectral Imaging Analysis For Remote Detection Of Unexploded Threats, Paul V. Manley, Vasit Sagan, Felix B. Fritschi, Joel Gerard Burken

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Explosives contaminate millions of hectares from various sources (partial detonations, improper storage, and release from production and transport) that can be life-threatening, e.g., landmines and unexploded ordnance. Exposure to and uptake of explosives can also negatively impact plant health, and these factors can be can be remotely sensed. Stress induction was remotely sensed via a whole-plant hyperspectral imaging system as two genotypes of Zea mays, a drought-susceptible hybrid and a drought-tolerant hybrid, and a forage Sorghum bicolor were grown in a greenhouse with one control group, one group maintained at 60% soil field capacity, and a third exposed to …

Developing High Performance Magnesium Phosphate Cement Composite Bipolar Plates For Fuel Cells, Wenbin Hao, Hongyan Ma, Guoxing Sun, Zongjin Li

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In this work, we report a comprehensive study on developing high performance magnesium phosphate cement (MPC) composite bipolar plates for fuel cells. The MPC composite bipolar plates composed of MPC with partial replacement of fly ash as the binding matrix phase and multiple carbon-based materials (including graphite, carbon fiber and multi-walled carbon nanotubes) as the conductive phase. A simple hot-press process was applied to produce the MPC composite. After the optimization on the formula and the structure of the MPC composite and the processing parameters, all the US DOE 2015 technical targets, including electrical conductivity, flexural strength, corrosion resistance were …

Adhesion Of Two-Dimensional Titanium Carbides (Mxenes) And Graphene To Silicon, Yanxiao Li, Shuohan Huang, Congjie Wei, Chenglin Wu, Vadym Mochalin

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Two-dimensional transition metal carbides (MXenes) have attracted a great interest of the research community as a relatively recently discovered large class of materials with unique electronic and optical properties. Understanding of adhesion between MXenes and various substrates is critically important for MXene device fabrication and performance. We report results of direct atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements of adhesion of two MXenes (Ti₃C₂T_x and Ti₂CT_x) with a SiO₂ coated Si spherical tip. The Maugis-Dugdale theory was applied to convert the AFM measured adhesion force to adhesion energy, while taking into account …

Load Distribution Of A Prestressed Self-Consolidating Concrete Bridge, Eli S. Hernandez, John J. Myers

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Bridge A7957 is the first Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) large-scale project using self-consolidating concrete (SCC) and high-strength self-consolidating concrete (HS-SCC). The objective of this research was to monitor the initial in-service behavior of the precast-prestressed concrete primary elements of Bridge A7957 and to obtain the load distribution of the bridge using field and finite element models (FEM) data. An initial series of diagnostic load tests was conducted on the bridge superstructure. Embedded sensors recorded strain variations at different section of the instrumented girders for different load configurations. An automated total station (ATS) collected the vertical deflection of the girders …

Contractual Guidelines For Contractors Working Under Projects Funded By Southeastern Us Dots, Islam H. El-Adaway, Amr Elsayegh, I. S. Abotaleb, C. Smith, M. Bootwala, S. Eteifa

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Transportation projects in the infrastructure sector contribute to approximately 42% of the total expenditures on public construction projects in the US. The main source of funding of these projects is the taxpayer's hard-earned money. The ever-growing problem by transportation projects is that the available funds are less than those required to have a stable and well maintained transportation network. Unnecessary costs in these projects are mainly caused by Conflicts, Claims and Disputes (C2D). According to recent reports, C2D in construction is greatly attributed to poor contract administration. The goal of this paper is to provide better understanding and utilization of …

Performance Based Design For Bridge Piers Impacted By Heavy Trucks, Anil K. Agrawal

INSPIRE Archived Webinars

Based on bridge failure data compiled by New York State Department of Transportation, collision, both caused by vessel and vehicles, is the second leading cause of bridge failures after hydraulic. Current AASHTO-LRFD (2012) recommends designing a bridge pier vulnerable to vehicular impacts for an equivalent static force of 600 kips (2,670 kN) applied in a horizontal plane at a distance of 5.0 feet above the ground level. This research presents a performance-based approach for designing a bridge pier subject to impacts by tractor-semi-trailer weighing up to 80,000 lb based on an extensive investigation using finite element model of a tractor-semitrailer …

Rubberized Chip Seal Implementation In Mid-Missouri, Alireza Pourhassan, Ahmed Gheni, Mohamed Elgawady

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Technical Reports

Chip seal is one of the most common and cost-effective maintenance treatment approaches to improve the life-time of pavements. Recently, the research team developed a rubberized chip seal where natural aggregate is replaced with crumb rubber obtained from recycled tires. During this study, chip seal specimens with crumb rubber and mineral aggregate were designed and constructed according to three different common methods including McLeod, Kearby, and modified Kearby.

The macrotexture of the laboratory specimens was investigated using the sand patch and image processing methods to show how each reflects on the skid resistance. The values of the mean texture depth …

Full Functionality And Recovery Assessment Framework For A Hospital Subjected To A Scenario Earthquake Event, Emad M. Hassan, Hussam Mahmoud

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Modeling the recovery process of a community's infrastructure after the occurrence of extreme events is now at the forefront of research. Estimating post-disaster recovery of either single or multiple infrastructure in a community requires proper flow and interaction of information of the physical, economic and social components of the involved sectors. Understanding this recovery process is essential, particularly for critical infrastructure, such as a hospital, which is vital for a community's well-being. In this study, the full seismic functionality and recovery process of a six-story hospital, located in Memphis, TN, is quantified and assessed using a comprehensive 3-D finite element …

Uav/Satellite Multiscale Data Fusion For Crop Monitoring And Early Stress Detection, V. Sagan, M. Maimaitijiang, P. Sidike, M. Maimaitiyiming, H. Erkbol, S. Hartling, K. T. Peterson, J. Peterson, Joel Gerard Burken, F. Fritschi

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Early stress detection is critical for proactive field management and terminal yield prediction, and can aid policy making for improved food security in the context of climate change and population growth. Field surveys for crop monitoring are destructive, labor-intensive, time-consuming and not ideal for large-scale spatial and temporal monitoring. Recent technological advances in Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and high-resolution satellite imaging with frequent revisit time have proliferated the applications of this emerging new technology in precision agriculture to address food security challenges from regional to global scales. In this paper, we present a concept of UAV and satellite virtual constellation …

Affordable Learning Solutions And Interactive Content In Engineering Mechanics, Nicolas Ali Libre

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Digital Affordable Learning Solutions (ALS) provides students with quality yet affordable educational content and enables instructors to utilize multimedia and interactive technology as effective ways of delivering course material. The reduced course content expenses not only allow more students to access the educational material, but also permit the instructors to customize and adapt the material to their teaching style. Incorporation of interactive technology through visually appealing media such as animations, graphics, simulations, videos, and three-dimensional models promotes students' interest in learning theoretical and abstract subjects in science and engineering. In this study, the incorporation of an interactive eBook as an …

On The Inference Of The State Of Turbulence And Mixing Efficiency In Stably Stratified Flows, Amrapalli Garanaik, Subhas K. Venayagamoorthy

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Scaling arguments are presented to quantify the widely used diapycnal (irreversible) mixing coefficient Γ = ∈PE/∈ in stratified flows as a function of the turbulent Froude number Fr = ∈/Nk. Here, N is the buoyancy frequency, k is the turbulent kinetic energy, ∈ is the rate of dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy and ∈PE is the rate of dissipation of turbulent potential energy. We show that for Fr≫1, Γ ∝ Fr^-2, for Fr∼ O (1), Γ ∝ Fr^-1 and for Fr ≪ 1, Γ ∝ Fr⁰. These scaling results are tested using high-resolution direct numerical …

Advanced Removal Of 4-Nitrophenol By Emerging And Intensifying Technology Of Emulsion Liquid Membrane With Magnetic Nanoparticles, Qusay Al-Obaidi, Muthanna H. Al-Dahhan

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

4-nitrophenol is one of the phenolic compounds found in industrial wastes that needs to be removed from treated wastewater. Emulsion liquid membrane (ELM) has been introduced as a developing technology for advanced wastewater and water treatment. This emerging technology of treatment can be intensified by strategically adding nanoparticles to organic membrane phase (O). To facilitate the industrial implementation of ELM with nanoparticles, we used magnetic iron nanoparticles added to the organic phase (O) in order to recover them by a magnet for reuse. This also assists in de-emulsification step. The results show that with the use of 1% (W/W) of …

Program Progress Performance Report #4, Missouri University Of Science And Technology. Inspire - University Transportation Center

Semi-Annual Progress Reports

No abstract provided.

Strength Of Steel-To-Steel Screw Connections -- Update To Provisions, Thomas Stevens, Thomas Sputo, Jennifer Bridge

American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) Specifications, Standards, Manuals and Research Reports (1946 - present)

The objective of this project is to review the existing provisions of the AISI S100-16 North American Specification for Cold-Formed Steel Structural Members, for screw connections loaded in shear and tension (but not combined actions). A recent study by the Steel Deck Institute (Sputo 2017) revealed possible unconservative results for screw pull-over, particularly in thinner sheets and/or lower ductility.

This study performed a comprehensive analysis of available steel-to-steel screw connection strength test data, totaling 702 shear tests, 143 pull-over tests, and 335 pull-out tests. The tested strength of these connections was compared to the predicted strength from the existing …

Characterization Of Air Dissolution And Reappearance Under Pressure In Cement Pastes By Means Of Rheology, Daniel Galvez-Moreno, Dimitri Feys, Kyle Riding

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Concrete pumping is the most used technique to transfer concrete from the mixer truck to the formwork. Numerous studies have been performed on the flow behavior of concrete in pipes, as well as the consequences of pumping on fluid and hardened concrete properties. One of the negative consequences of pumping concrete is a decrease in freeze-thaw resistance. This is caused by a decrease in air content and an increase in air bubble size, due to dissolution and reappearance of air and air bubble coalescence under pressure. This paper investigates the capability of rheology to understand air dissolution and reappearance in …

Hydration Of Binary Portland Cement Blends Containing Silica Fume: A Decoupling Method To Estimate Degrees Of Hydration And Pozzolanic Reaction, Wenyu Liao, Xiao Sun, Aditya Kumar, Hongfang Sun, Hongyan Ma

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Determination of degrees of hydration/reaction of components of blended cementitious systems (i. e., cement and SCMs: supplementary cementitious materials) is essential to estimate the systems' properties. Although the best methods for determining degrees of reaction of different SCMs have been recommended by RILEM TC238, they rely on either expensive equipment (e.g., nuclear magnetic resonance) or time-consuming sample preparation and data processing (e.g., backscattered electron image analysis). Furthermore, these methods cannot simultaneously characterize degree of hydration of cement and degree of reaction of SCMs. A novel decoupling method, which can simultaneously estimate the degree of hydration of cement and the degree …

Design And Fabrication Of Automatic Single Axis Solar Tracker For Solar Panel, Ghazanfar Mehdi, Naveed Ali, Shafquat Hussain, Asad A. Zaidi, Ahmer Hussain Shah, M. Mustafa Azeem

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Sun energy is a considered to be one of most promising sources to address the world energy crises. Photovoltaic cell is one of the prominent sources of energy. The most important factors that affect the efficiency of solar cells are cell temperature, maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and energy conversion efficiency. The optimization of these factors improves solar cells efficiency for more reliable applications. This study associated by means of the designing and manufacturing process of single axis tracker device by using photo voltaic conversion panels. This solar tracker system assures the conversion optimization of electricity from the source of …

Battery-Free Wireless Strain Measurement Using An Antenna Sensor, Yang Wang

INSPIRE Archived Webinars

A battery-free antenna sensor can wirelessly measure strain on a structure. Bonded to the surface of a base structure, the antenna sensor deforms when the structure is under strain, causing the antenna’s electromagnetic resonance frequency to change. This resonance frequency change can be wirelessly interrogated and recorded by a reader through electromagnetic backscattering. A radio frequency identification (RFID) chip on the sensor harnesses a small amount of energy from the interrogation signal and responds to the reader. The resonance frequency change identified by the reader is then used to determine the strain applied on the structure. The latest antenna sensor …

Seismicity Enhances Macrodispersion In Finite Porous And Fractured Domains: A Pore-Scale Perspective, Lizhi Zheng, Lichun Wang, Wen Deng

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Understanding the effects of oscillating flow field induced by seismicity on the transport process is vital for predicting the fate and transport of solute in many dynamic environments. However, there is prominent discrepancy in arguing with the response of dispersion to the oscillating flow field (i.e., the longitudinal dispersion coefficient would decrease, increase, or maintain unchanged). To unravel the underpinning physics about this controversial response, we simulated two-hundred twenty pore-scale numerical experiments for the seismicity-induced oscillating flow field and associated solute transport in the idealized finite porous (i.e., fluidic plate) and fractured (i.e., parallel plates) domains. The numerically obtained breakthrough …

Flexural Behavior Of Hybrid Composite Beam (Hcb) Bridges, Mohamed A. Aboelseoud, John J. Myers

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A new hybrid composite beam (HCB) has recently been used in the construction of three bridges in Missouri, USA. HCB consists of self-consolidating concrete (SCC) that is poured into classical arch shape and tied at the ends by steel tendons. Both the concrete and the steel are tucked inside a durable fiberglass shell, and the voids are filled with polyiso foam. This paper aims to examine the flexural behavior of an in-service HCB, evaluate the current methodology and assumptions, and propose modifications to that methodology. To achieve these goals, the strains induced in HCB elements due to different loading stages …

Probabilistic Seismic Demand Analysis Of A Bridge With Unbonded, Post-Tensioned, Concrete-Filled, Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Tube Columns, Manisha Rai, Mohamed Elgawady, Adrian Rodriguez-Marek

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Ground motions at sites close to a fault are sometimes affected by forward directivity, where the rupture energy arrives at the site in a form of a very short duration pulse. These pulses impose a heavy demand on structures located in the vicinity of the fault. In this research, a probabilistic seismic demand analysis (PSDA) for a self-centering bridge is carried out. The bridge columns consisted of unbonded, post-tensioned, concrete-filled, fiber-reinforced polymer tubes. A bridge model was developed and non-linear time history analyses were performed. Three different methodologies that used spectral accelerations to predict structural responses were used, and a …

Mechanism Of Tricalcium Silicate Hydration In The Presence Of Polycarboxylate Polymers, Rachel Cook, Hongyan Ma, Aditya Kumar

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Abstract: The early-age hydration of cement is inhibited in the presence of comb-shaped polycarboxylate ether (PCE) polymer -- a dispersant commonly added to control rheological properties of fresh cement paste. This study employs a series of microcalorimetry experiments and phase boundary nucleation and growth simulations to elucidate the effects of dosage and molecular architecture of PCE on hydration of tricalcium silicate (Ca₃SiO₅ or C₃S in cement notation), the dominant phase in cement. Results show that PCE -- regardless of its molecular architecture -- suppresses early-age hydration of C₃S. PCE-induced retardation becomes increasingly more …

Balancing The Performance And Environmental Concerns Of Used Motor Oil As Rejuvenator In Asphalt Mixes, Eslam Deef-Allah, Magdy Abdelrahman, Mark W. Fitch, Mohyeldin Ragab, Mousumi Bose, Xiaolong He

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Road deterioration inspires researchers to enhance the properties of asphalt binder for better performing mixes. Recycled tire rubber, or crumb rubber modifier (CRM), and used motor oil (UMO) are two modifiers that enhance asphalt binder performance through two different mechanisms. CRM affects high-temperature properties while UMO modifies low-temperature properties. Potential environmental concerns arising from the use of UMO have been raised in the literature. In this paper, the two recycled materials were investigated for their ability to complement each other. Both performance benefits of using both materials and the environmental concerns of using UMO were studied. Four CRM asphalt binders …

Review Of Fiber Optic Sensors For Structural Fire Engineering, Yi Bao, Ying Huang, Matthew S. Hoehler, Genda Chen

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Reliable and accurate measurements of temperature and strain in structures subjected to fire can be difficult to obtain using traditional sensing technologies based on electrical signals. Fiber optic sensors, which are based on light signals, solve many of the problems of monitoring structures in high temperature environments; however, they present their own challenges. This paper, which is intended for structural engineers new to fiber optic sensors, reviews various fiber optic sensors that have been used to make measurements in structure fires, including the sensing principles, fabrication, key characteristics, and recently-reported applications. Three categories of fiber optic sensors are reviewed: Grating-based …

Large-Strain Strength Of Polymer-Modified Kaolinite And Fly Ash-Kaolinite Mixtures, Xin Kang, Junnan Cao, Bate Bate

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Polymers have gained gradual attention in soil stabilization as a sustainable alternative to inorganic counterparts such as cement. However, the effects of polymers on the strength of soils and soil-waste mixtures are still unclear. Meanwhile, waste recycling has been important in fostering a sustainable environment in recent decades. To solve the deficiency in knowledge, large-strain strength of polymer-modified kaolinite (KA) and Class-F fly ash-kaolinite mixtures (FAKAs) was investigated with isotropically consolidated undrained triaxial compression tests. Both synthetic polymer (polyethylene oxide, PEO) and naturally occurring biopolymers (chitosan and xanthan gum) were used. An interface model was also proposed to account for …