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Electronic Theses and Dissertations

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Full-Text Articles in Civil and Environmental Engineering

Mass Conservation Analysis For The Lower St. Johns River Using Continuous And Discontinuous Galerkin Finite Element Methods, Lillie E. Thomas Jan 2011

Mass Conservation Analysis For The Lower St. Johns River Using Continuous And Discontinuous Galerkin Finite Element Methods, Lillie E. Thomas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis provides a mass conservation analysis of the Lower St. Johns River for the purpose of providing basis for future salinity transport modeling. The analysis provides an assessment of the continuous (CG) and discontinuous (DG) Galerkin finite element methods with respect to their mass conservation properties. The following thesis also presents a rigorous literature review pertaining to salinity transport in the Lower St. Johns River, from which this effort generates the data used to initialize and validate numerical simulations. Two research questions are posed and studied in this thesis: can a DG-based modeling approach produce mass conservative numerical solutions; …


A 2009 Mobile Source Emissions Inventory Of The University Of Central Florida, Johanna Marie Clifford Jan 2011

A 2009 Mobile Source Emissions Inventory Of The University Of Central Florida, Johanna Marie Clifford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis reports on the results of a mobile source emissions inventory for the University of Central Florida (UCF). For a large urban university, the majority of volatile organic compounds (VOC), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions come from onroad sources: personal vehicles and campus shuttles carrying students, faculty, staff, and administrators to and from the university, as well as university business trips. In addition to emissions from daily commutes, non-road equipment such as lawnmowers, leaf blowers, small maintenance vehicles, and other such equipment utilized on campus contributes to a significant portion to the total emissions from …


Innovative Pollutant Load Monitoring, Eric Gurr Jan 2011

Innovative Pollutant Load Monitoring, Eric Gurr

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Modern streamflow measuring equipment, water quality sampling techniques and a better understanding of pollutant washoff are continuously being developed as today's society is in critical need of improving water management, minimizing developmental impacts and preventing environmental hazards. In particular, the study of the spatial, temporal and volumetric characteristics of annual pollutant loading caused by variations in precipitation, land use and other anthropogenic factors is of great significance due to their relation to future global water demands. The research presented here falls in three parts. In the first part of the dissertation, an acoustical Doppler velocity profiler installed in a submerged …


Viability Study Of A Residential Integrated Stormwater, Graywater, And Wastewater Treatment System At Florida's Showcase Green Envirohome, Matthew Allen Goolsby Jan 2011

Viability Study Of A Residential Integrated Stormwater, Graywater, And Wastewater Treatment System At Florida's Showcase Green Envirohome, Matthew Allen Goolsby

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The subject of water scarcity and the rate of water consumption has become popular topics over the last few decades. It is possible that society may consume or contaminate much of the remaining readily available water if there is not a paradigm shift. This deep rooted concern has prompted investigations to identify alternative water use and treatment methods. Within this report, information is presented from the use of innovative water harvesting and on-site sewage treatment and disposal systems (OSTDS) at Florida’s Showcase Green Envirohome (FSGE.net), while also addressing low impact development (LID) practices. FSGE is a residential home that demonstrates …


2008 Emissions Inventory Of Central Florida, Jessica Leigh Ross Jan 2011

2008 Emissions Inventory Of Central Florida, Jessica Leigh Ross

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An emissions inventory of VOCs, NOx, and CO2 was conducted for three central Florida counties – Orange, Seminole, and Osceola (OSO) – for calendar year 2008. The inventory utilized three programs: MOBILE6, NONROAD2005, and EDMS (Emissions and Dispersion Modeling System) to model on‐road mobile, non‐road mobile, and airport emissions, respectively. Remaining point and area source data was estimated from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (U.S. EPA) 2008 emissions inventory. The previous OSO emissions inventory was done in 2002 and in the six years between inventories, there have been changes in population, commerce, …


Developing A Retrofitting System To Mitigate Floodwall Failures Of New Orleans, James Tyler Kidd Jan 2011

Developing A Retrofitting System To Mitigate Floodwall Failures Of New Orleans, James Tyler Kidd

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.


Seismic Tomography For The Integrity Assessment Of Earthen Dams And Levees., Leti Teklu Wodajo Jan 2011

Seismic Tomography For The Integrity Assessment Of Earthen Dams And Levees., Leti Teklu Wodajo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Dams are a vital part of a nation's infrastructure. Considering the fact that many of the dams in the United States have approached or are approaching their projected life expectancy of 50 years, these critical infrastructures represent a risk to public safety. Minimizing this risk requires an ongoing safety inspection, monitoring, maintenance and rehabilitation program. This research examines the use of a non-invasive geophysical seismic method to provide additional information where the usual visual inspection is insufficient and the comboring investigation is not an option. Even though seismic techniques provide valuable information of the subsurface strata, the interpretation is not …


Evaluation And Modeling Of The Safety Of Open Road Tolling System, Muamer Ali Abuzwidah Jan 2011

Evaluation And Modeling Of The Safety Of Open Road Tolling System, Muamer Ali Abuzwidah

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this thesis is to examine the traffic safety impact of upgrading Toll Plazas (TP) to Open Road Tolling (ORT). The ORT could enhance safety but could also pose some traffic safety concerns at Toll plazas. Crashes from eight years were investigated by evaluating the crash data before and after the implementation of the ORT. The study was conducted by using two approaches: 1) a simple before and after study and with a comparison group; 2) a modeling effort to help understand the relationship between the crash frequency and several important factors and circumstances such as injury severity, …


Experimental Damage Diagnosis Of A Model Three-Story Spatial Frame, Samantha Sabatino Jan 2011

Experimental Damage Diagnosis Of A Model Three-Story Spatial Frame, Samantha Sabatino

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Structural damage can be induced by a variety of events from short-term abnormal stresses to long-term natural aging. Detection of changes in a structure's ability to withstand subsequent loads can aid decisions on safety, repair, rehabilitation, and demolition. Dynamic property shifts can show internal cracks and minor damage before propagation or failure occurs, but only if a proper indicator is selected. In order to evaluate potential damage indices, a three-story metal frame building was constructed. Using Star Modal software, dynamic structural properties were obtained from modal decomposition on experimental tap test responses. The natural frequencies and mode shapes of the …


Column Capacity Evaluation For Low-Rise Moment Frame Steel Buildings In Mississippi Subject To Wind And Seismic Hazards, Yihong Shi Jan 2011

Column Capacity Evaluation For Low-Rise Moment Frame Steel Buildings In Mississippi Subject To Wind And Seismic Hazards, Yihong Shi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For the design of steel frame structures, AISC outlines approaches of second-order analysis. In this study, two of these approaches are considered: Amplified First-Order Analysis Method and Direct Analysis Method. The methods were studied using SAP2000. Amplification of moments in a two-story plane frame subject to a wind load case is computed using both methods and shown to be of comparable magnitude for small deformations. ASCE/SEI 7 and IBC provisions were used to develop lateral design load conditions for the frames. In this study, a hypothetical building was assumed to be constructed in four different locations (Southaven, Batesville, Jackson and …


Mobility And Safety Evaluation Of Integrated Dynamic Merge And Speed Control Strategies In Work Zones, Syed Muhammad Zaidi Jan 2010

Mobility And Safety Evaluation Of Integrated Dynamic Merge And Speed Control Strategies In Work Zones, Syed Muhammad Zaidi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, there has been a considerable increase in the amount of construction work on the U.S. national highways. Most of the work undertaken is the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the existing transportation networks. Work zones in the United States are likely to increase in number, duration and length due to emphasis on repair and highway reconstruction as a significant portion of all federal-aid highway funds are now geared toward highway rehabilitation. The challenge of mobility is particularly acute in work zone areas as road repair and construction intensifies traffic issues and concentrates them in specific locations and at …


Impact Of Hurricanes On Structures - A Performance Based Engineering View, Vijay Mishra Jan 2010

Impact Of Hurricanes On Structures - A Performance Based Engineering View, Vijay Mishra

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The magnitude of damage caused to the United States (US) coast due to hurricanes has increased significantly in the last decade. During the period 2004-2005, the US experienced seven of the costliest hurricanes in the country's history (NWS TPC-5, 2007) leading to an estimated loss of ~ $158 billion. The present method for predicting hurricane losses, HAZUS (HAZard US), is solely based on hurricane hazard and damage caused to building envelopes only and not to structural systems (Vickery et al., 2006). This method does not take into account an intermediate step that allows for better damage estimates, which is structural …


On The Use Of Polyurethane Matrix Carbon Fiber Composites For Strengthening Concrete Structures, Zachary Haber Jan 2010

On The Use Of Polyurethane Matrix Carbon Fiber Composites For Strengthening Concrete Structures, Zachary Haber

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composite materials have effectively been used in numerous reinforced concrete civil infrastructure strengthening projects. Although a significant body of knowledge has been established for epoxy matrix carbon FRPs and epoxy adhesives, there is still a need to investigate other matrices and adhesive types. One such matrix/adhesive type yet to be heavily researched for infrastructure application is polyurethane. This thesis investigates use of polyurethane matrix carbon fiber composites for strengthening reinforced concrete civil infrastructure. Investigations on mirco- and macro-mechanical composite performance, strengthened member flexural performance, and bond durability under environmental conditioning will be presented. Results indicate that polyurethane …


Transfer And Development Length Of Strands In Post-Tensioned Members After Anchor Head Failure, Elie El Zghayar Jan 2010

Transfer And Development Length Of Strands In Post-Tensioned Members After Anchor Head Failure, Elie El Zghayar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Post-tensioning tendons in segmental bridge construction are often only anchored within the deviator and pier segments. The effectiveness of the post-tensioning (PT) system is therefore dependent on proper functioning of the anchorages. On August 28, 2000 a routine inspection of the Mid-Bay Bridge (Okaloosa County, Florida) revealed corrosion in numerous PT tendons. Moreover, one of the 19-strand tendons was completely slacked, with later inspection revealing a corrosion-induced failure at the pier anchor location. Anchorage failure caused all PT force to transfer to the steel duct located within the pier segment that in turn slipped and caused the tendon to go …


Comparison Of Traditional Standard Drainfield With Innovative B&G Treatment Bed For Nutrient Removal From Septic Tank Wastewater, Fahim Hossain Jan 2010

Comparison Of Traditional Standard Drainfield With Innovative B&G Treatment Bed For Nutrient Removal From Septic Tank Wastewater, Fahim Hossain

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Nowadays people are more alert about conservation of water and water scarcity. The amount of usable water is decreasing due to unavailability of pure water for day to day use. Both surface and groundwater is contaminated by untreated wastewater discharged from improper onsite wastewater treatment system, nutrient laden agricultural runoff and increasing use of fertilizer in fields. This elevated nutrient level is increasing the maintenance and operation cost of water treatment plant. So it is an important task to remove those nutrients from wastewater and other water bodies by applying environmental friendly process. In the USA, about 25% homes are …


Control Of Hydrogen Sulfide Emissionsusing Autotrophic Denitrificationlandfill Biocovers, Daoroong Sungthong Jan 2010

Control Of Hydrogen Sulfide Emissionsusing Autotrophic Denitrificationlandfill Biocovers, Daoroong Sungthong

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S), a major odorous component emitted from construction and demolition debris landfills, has received increasing attention. Besides its unpleasant odor, long-term exposure to a very low concentration of H2S can cause a public health issue. Although cover materials such as soil and compost are recommended to be used routinely to control an odor problem from the landfills, the problem still remains. Autotrophic denitrification may have environmental applications including treatment of water, groundwater, wastewater or gaseous streams contaminated with sulfur and/or nitrogen compounds. However, there have been no studies reported in the literature on H2S removal using autotrophic denitrification …


Assessment Of Aquifer Storage And Recovery Impact On Phosphorus Stability In Lake Sediment, Sha Liu Jan 2010

Assessment Of Aquifer Storage And Recovery Impact On Phosphorus Stability In Lake Sediment, Sha Liu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lake Okeechobee, the second largest natural freshwater lake in the United States, had experienced a historical drought in 2007-2008 and the inflow to Lake Okeechobee has been reduced by 40% of the average daily mean between warm phase and cold phase due to the impact of Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation in the past six decades. To cope with this water resources management problem, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) proposed the largest national implementation plan of aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) project in the Kissimmee River Basin. Routine operation of ASR will deliver recovered water from ASR wells into the …


Evaluation Of Oxidized Media Filtration Processes For The Treatment Of Hydrogen Sulfide In Groundwater, Vito Trupiano Jan 2010

Evaluation Of Oxidized Media Filtration Processes For The Treatment Of Hydrogen Sulfide In Groundwater, Vito Trupiano

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study evaluated alternative sulfide treatment processes for potable water systems that rely on groundwater supplies. Research for this study was conducted at the Imperial Lakes (IL) and Turner Road (TR) water treatment plants (WTPs) in Polk County, Florida. These WTPs are in the process of refurbishment and expansion, and will require the installation of a new groundwater well. The IL and TR WTPs both rely upon groundwater sources that contain total sulfide at concentrations ranging from 1.4 to 2.6 mg/L. Sulfide is a concern because if left untreated it can impact finished water quality, corrosivity, create undesirable taste and …


A Study Of The Strength Of Pervious Pavement Systems, Ikenna Uju Jan 2010

A Study Of The Strength Of Pervious Pavement Systems, Ikenna Uju

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents a study on the strength properties of the different pervious pavement systems installed at the Stormwater Management Academy field laboratory at University of Central Florida (UCF), Orlando. The strength tests were performed both in the laboratory and in the field. Laboratory testing was conducted to determine the compressive strength and flexural strength of the various pavement surfaces. Evaluation of field pavement performance was performed by comparing the deflection basins using the Falling Weight Deflectometer test on pervious concrete and porous asphalt with conventional impervious concrete and asphalt pavements of similar layer profile and thickness, respectively. From literature …


Feasibility Study Of Lightweight High-Strength Hollow Core Balsa-Frp Composite Beams Under Flexure, Kevin O'Neill Jan 2010

Feasibility Study Of Lightweight High-Strength Hollow Core Balsa-Frp Composite Beams Under Flexure, Kevin O'Neill

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The United States of America's Military, more specifically the Army, has since the late 1990's had a vested interest in the development of super-lightweight, portable, short-span composite bridge and decking components to replace aging heavy metal-alloy machine driven modular systems. The following study looks at the feasibility of using balsa wood as the structural core material in fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) wrapped hollow-core composites in short-span bridge applications. The balsa provides shear resistance and the FRP the flexural resistance, resulting in extremely high strength-to-weight and strength-to-depth ratios. Several scaled short span specimens were constructed and tested using a variety of …


Analysis Of The Florida's Showcase Green Envirohome Water/Wastewater Systems And Development Of A Cost-Benefit Green Roof Optimization Model, Brian Rivera Jan 2010

Analysis Of The Florida's Showcase Green Envirohome Water/Wastewater Systems And Development Of A Cost-Benefit Green Roof Optimization Model, Brian Rivera

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Florida Showcase Green Envirohome (FSGE) incorporates many green technologies. FSGE is built to meet or exceed 12 green building guidelines and obtain 8 green building certificates. The two-story 3292 ft2 home is a "Near Zero-Loss Home", "Near Zero-Energy Home", "Near Zero-Runoff Home", and "Near Zero-Maintenance Home". It is spawned from the consumer-driven necessity to build a home resistant to hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, fire, mold, termites, impacts, and even earthquakes given up to 500% increase in insurance premiums in natural disaster zones, the dwindling flexibility and coverage of insurance policies, and rising energy, water and maintenance costs (FSGE 2008). The …


A Field Investigation For The Wind Load Performance Of Vegetated Greenroofs Using Monitoring Systems, Melike Minareci Jan 2010

A Field Investigation For The Wind Load Performance Of Vegetated Greenroofs Using Monitoring Systems, Melike Minareci

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Greenroof systems have been shown to be an environmentally friendly alternative based on various factors; such as, reduced lifecycle cost, improved air quality, ambient temperature reduction, stormwater management credit, sustainability and preservation of the environment. Recent research studies attempt to determine the construction methods of an ideal greenroof for environmental purposes, yet there is an absence of standards for the best design required to achieve acceptable structural performance and sustainability under wind loads. As a result, there is a need to document the effectiveness of greenroofs under high wind events by addressing the following questions: Do winds have an effect …


Modeling Of Transient Response Of An Elastic Beam With Flexible Supports And Variable-Location Impact, Weiping Xu Jan 2010

Modeling Of Transient Response Of An Elastic Beam With Flexible Supports And Variable-Location Impact, Weiping Xu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research is prerequisite to determining structural health and estimating wear-limited life of contact/impact machinery components. Prevention, or at least early notification, of impact-induced wear is essential for preventing economic loss and enhancing personnel safety. Thus, an efficient model which is discrete in time and continuous in space was undertaken; an euler-bernoulli beam with adjustable boundary conditions and variable impact is numerically studied under a pulse loading. Structural stiffness, material modulus, contact stiffness, contact location, damping ratio, pulse duration, clearance and boundary conditions are investigated. A reference system is used as the basis for parameter studies and solution convergence is …


Post Treatment Alternatives For Stabilizing Desalinated Water, Susaye Douglas Jan 2009

Post Treatment Alternatives For Stabilizing Desalinated Water, Susaye Douglas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The use of brackish water and seawater desalination for augmenting potable water supplies has focused primarily on pre-treatment, process optimization, energy efficiency, and concentrate management. Much less has been documented regarding the impact of post-treatment requirements with respect to distribution system. The goals of this study were to review current literature on post-treatment of permeate water, use survey questionnaires to gather information on post-treatment water quality characteristics, gather operation information, review general capital and maintenance cost, and identify appropriate "lessons learned" with regards to post-treatment from water purveyors participating in the Project. A workshop was organized where experts from across …


Level-Of-Service And Traffic Safety Relationship: An Exploratory Analysis Of Signalized Intersections And Multiland High-Speed Arterial Corridors, Ana Almonte-Valdivia Jan 2009

Level-Of-Service And Traffic Safety Relationship: An Exploratory Analysis Of Signalized Intersections And Multiland High-Speed Arterial Corridors, Ana Almonte-Valdivia

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Since its inception in 1965, the Level-of-Service (LOS) has proved to be an important and practical "quality of service" indicator for transportation facilities around the world, widely used in the transportation and planning fields. The LOS rates these facilities' traffic operating conditions through the following delay-based indicators (ordered from best to worst conditions): A, B, C, D, E and F. This LOS rating has its foundation on quantifiable measures of effectiveness (MOEs) and on road users' perceptions; altogether, these measures define a LOS based on acceptable traffic operating conditions for the road user, implying that traffic safety is inherent to …


Investigation Of Damage Detection Methodologies For Structural Health Monitoring, Mustafa Gul Jan 2009

Investigation Of Damage Detection Methodologies For Structural Health Monitoring, Mustafa Gul

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) is employed to track and evaluate damage and deterioration during regular operation as well as after extreme events for aerospace, mechanical and civil structures. A complete SHM system incorporates performance metrics, sensing, signal processing, data analysis, transmission and management for decision-making purposes. Damage detection in the context of SHM can be successful by employing a collection of robust and practical damage detection methodologies that can be used to identify, locate and quantify damage or, in general terms, changes in observable behavior. In this study, different damage detection methods are investigated for global condition assessment of structures. …


Reduced Visibility Related Crashes In Florida: Crash Characteristics, Spatial Analysis And Injury Severity, Al-Ahad Ekram Jan 2009

Reduced Visibility Related Crashes In Florida: Crash Characteristics, Spatial Analysis And Injury Severity, Al-Ahad Ekram

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Roadway crashes related to vision obstruction due to fog/smoke (FS) conditions constitute a challenge for traffic engineers. Previous research efforts mostly concentrated on the snow and rain related crashes. Statistics show that Florida is among the top three states in terms of crashes due to vision obstruction by FS. This research culminated in a comprehensive study of fog and smoke related crashes in the state of Florida. The analysis took into account the crashes that occurred between 2003 and 2007 on Florida state roads. Spatial analysis and injury severity analysis have been conducted and significant results have been identified. The …


The Calibration, Validation, And Comparison Of Vissim Simulations Using The Two-Fluid Model, Jeremy Crowe Jan 2009

The Calibration, Validation, And Comparison Of Vissim Simulations Using The Two-Fluid Model, Jeremy Crowe

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The microscopic traffic simulation program VISSIM is a powerful tool that has been used by transportation engineers and urban planners around the world. A VISSIM simulation is meant to depict the performance of the physical road network through the use of modeling tools and behavioral parameters. The process which gets the model to the point of matching real world conditions is called calibration and requires a means of relating the real world to the simulated world. The topic of this thesis discusses a new means of calibration using the two-fluid model. The two-fluid model is a macroscopic modeling technique which …


Work Zone Effects On Performance Of A Toll Plaza, Jingyu Liu Jan 2009

Work Zone Effects On Performance Of A Toll Plaza, Jingyu Liu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No-lane closure workzone is typical during the construction of open road tolling lanes of a toll plaza. The influence of no-lane closure on toll plazas' performance is unknown because very few studies have been conducted to address this topic. The open road tolling (ORT) has become the new trend of operating an efficient toll plaza. So, the upgrading of a toll plaza from gated E-pass to open road E-pass has become common. The better the toll plaza authority knows about the influence of this construction and congestion effects, the better it can serve the costumers. This project mainly deals with …


A Gis Safety Study And A County-Level Spatial Analysis Of Crashes In The State Of Florida, Ali Darwiche Jan 2009

A Gis Safety Study And A County-Level Spatial Analysis Of Crashes In The State Of Florida, Ali Darwiche

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The research conducted in this thesis consists of a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) based safety study and a spatial analysis of vehicle crashes in the State of Florida. The GIS safety study is comprised of a County and Roadway Level GIS analysis of multilane corridors. The spatial analysis investigated the use of county-level vehicle crash models, taking spatial effects into account. The GIS safety study examines the locations of high trends of severe crashes (includes incapacitating and fatal crashes) on multilane corridors in the State of Florida at two levels, county level and roadway level. The GIS tool, which is …