Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

The Use Of Cod As An Indicator For Evaluation Of Pretreatment Of Nitrocellulose With Acid Hydrolysis, Han-Chung Lee

Theses

Nitrocellulose is a toxic waste by definition. It is widely used in military and commercial industries. Nitrocellulose fines escaped from the manufacture's process has created problems in receiving water. However, little information is available for the treatment of nitrocellulose. Nitrocellulose is difficult to treat by microorganisms without any pretreatment. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to use acid hydrolysis to break down this material before biological treatment, and find the optimal operation conditions in this process.

In this work, the results indicate that percentage of nitrocellulose decomposing in hydrolysis depends on types of acid, acid concentration, reaction temperature, …

Design, Construction, And Operation Of Water Treatment Plant Residual Monofills, Haitao Bian

Theses

Due to the stringent environmental regulations, landfilling becomes the most viable option for ultimate disposal of water treatment plant (WTP) residues. At present, most states apply the regulations for municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills to the landfilling of WTP residues. This is too stringent since the WTP residues are not hazardous. Therefore, development of suitable criteria for WTP residual monofills is necessary and urgent.

A set of environmental and geotechnical experiments was conducted to characterize WTP residues. It can be concluded that very little leachate will be produced and migration of leachate is unlikely. Also it was noted that insignificant …

Sulfuric Acid Resistance Of Fly Ash Mortar, Walairat Bumrongjaroen

Theses

Crown corrosion of concrete pipe and its subsequent repair is a topic much discussed in recent years. Present protective methods have not worked effectively. Due to its properties and its low cost, fly ash was used as a cement replacement of mortar to investigate its sulfuric acid resistance.

Different types and different percentages of fly ashes were mixed with and without admixtures including microsilica, and superplasticizer. The main parameters investigated included the chemical compounds, the fineness and the volume of fly ash. 2"x2" cubes were immersed in a 10% sulfuric acid pond. The weight of each cube was determined continuously …

Geotechnical Characterization Of Water Treatment Plant Residuals, Zhengyuan Xia

Theses

Evaluation of engineering properties of water treatment plant (WTP) residuals is a critical part in predicting their behaviors in monofills. In this study, ten WTP residual samples were collected from ten water treatment plants across the United States. Their general chemical/physical and geotechnical properties including liquid and plastic limits, compaction) shear strength, permeability and durability characteristics were determined.

It was observed that the geotechnical properties of WTP residuals are influenced by various factors such as mineral particle composition, organic content, type and amount of chemical additives) and time of aging, etc. Based on this study, the behavior of WTP residual …

Introduction Of An Information Feedback Loop To Enhance The Urban Transportation Modeling System, Kyle B. Winslow

Theses

The Urban Transportation Modeling System (UTMS) is a methodology used to estimate urban travel demand. This demand is measured as the volume of traffic that flows through a system of streets and highways. Through the use of traffic assignment software, parts of UTMS have become automated. One of the newest automated processes is the extraction of a subarea from a larger model. This extraction process is important to the local planner because it maintains a linkage from the regional model to the local model and it allows the user to extract an already distributed trip table rather than building one …

Attachment Systems For Curtain Wall Construction And Maintenance Requirements, Peter S. Donaghy

Theses

Curtain Wall construction has become a familiar and widely used method for enclosing structures. Since the 1950's this type of enclosure has become increasingly the most popular choice of Designers and Builders. During this period of development, however, acceptable and uniform building standards have not evolved to create adequate quality control.

This thesis investigates some of the design requirements of Curtain Walls, in particular the attachment system, and the maintenance costs that are directly related to the attachment system and the consequences of such failures.

Integration Of Pneumatic Fracturing To Enhance In Situ Bioremediation, Conan Dante Fitzgerald

Theses

The purpose of this thesis was to study the anticipated benefits of integrating pneumatic fracturing with in situ bioremediation. Since pneumatic fracturing increases subsurface air flow in low permeability formations, it has the potential to overcome many of the major limiting factors of microbial growth and activity. A new innovation called pneumatic bio-injection can further enhance in situ bioremediation by efficiently dispersing biological solutions, including microorganisms, into a formation.

Bench scale experiments were conducted to examine the ability of microorganisms to survive the pressures and stresses associated with pneumatic injection. Tests conducted at pressures ranging from 60 to 500 psi …

Power Consumption In Single-Phase Agitated Vessels Provided With Multiple Impellers, Gwo-Ming Chang

Theses

A significant amount of data can be found in the literature on power consumption of single-impeller agitation systems. However, little and incomplete information is available for power consumption in multiple-impeller systems. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to experimentally determine the power consumed by multiple impellers in mixing vessels as a function of impeller type, impeller off-bottom clearance, impeller spacing, and agitation speed.

In this work, the power dissipated by combinations of one, two or three impellers of either identical types or different types was studied. The power drawn by each individual impeller was measured by means of …

Mechanism Of Pneumatic Fracturing, Trevor Compton King

Theses

This thesis investigates the mechanism of pneumatic fracturing in geologic materials such as soil and rock. Pneumatic fracturing is a recently developed technique for increasing the permeability of geologic formations by the controlled injection of high pressure air. Present applications are focusing on the in situ remediation of contaminated soil and ground water, although pneumatic fracturing has other geotechnical uses such as pumping well enhancement.

A comprehensive literature review of a related technology known as hydraulic fracturing is presented, which serves as background for development of a pneumatic fracturing model. Pressure-time histories from actual pneumatic injections are analyzed in detail …

Fracture Of Cementitious Composites, Sira Tindukasiri

Theses

Studies in fracture mechanics of concrete use a testing setup which tends to include unacceptably large errors in deflection measurements. Recent work reported by Kim [3] has proposed a new testing setup to eliminate these errors and consequently produce better determinations of fracture parameters.

The error which occurs most frequently is in the measurement of the load-line deflection. Until recently, the way this measurement has been made, using a dial gauge or LVDT (Linear Variable Differential Transformer) to measure the deformation between the center of the specimen and the frame, includes the crushing of the concrete surface at the supports …

The Permeability Of Hot Mix Asphalt Concrete With Petroleum Contaminated Soils, Kuen-Yuan Chuang

Theses

It is estimated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) that there are 2 to 3.5 million underground storage tanks (USTs) throughout the nation and about 25% of these tanks are leaking. The leakage of petroleum or other organic material presents serious environmental problem due to the uncontrolled release of petroleum products to ground water. Many new techniques have developed to reuse these petroleum contaminated soils generated from sites containing leaking USTs. One such soil reuse method available since 1985 is the use of petroleum contaminated soils in the production of hot mix asphalt.

The stability, durability, and hydraulic …

A Planning Model For Intermodal Auto-Rail Transportation Assignment, Daniel Disario

Theses

This thesis presents a planning model for assigning trips in a corridor served by highways and commuter rail. The underlying assumption is that commuters will choose a mode (or a combination of modes) connecting the origin and destination in a way that will either minimize their individual travel times and costs (the user equilibrium principle) or minimize total system travel time and cost (system optimal principle). The model is structured as a mathematical program with a non-linear objective function and linear constraints.

The model was applied to a case study of the Raritan Valley Corridor located in Northern New Jersey. …

Evaluation Of Truck Restrictions Using Simulation, Shaikh Mohamed Arif

Theses

Traffic congestion is a major problem in many central business districts. Many strategies have been proposed and implemented to solve or alleviate this problem. One of the most common strategies is to impose travel restrictions on the movement of trucks, without reviewing the economic consequences of goods movement restrictions on shippers, customers and on the overall business activity of the area.

This research examines the effect of various truck restrictive policies on the cost of urban goods movement, using the central business district of Manhattan as a case study. Computer simulation techniques are used to evaluate several scenarios under different …

Behavior Of R/C Columns Under Nonproportional Variations In Axial And Lateral Loads, Kaniz Fatema Ahsan

Theses

The study on the behavior of reinforced concrete columns subjected to the motion of earthquake suggests that the structure may experience nonproportional variations in axial and lateral forces. In order to assess the capacity of a reinforced concrete structure under nonproportional loadings, an analytical model is developed using the fiber modeling technique.

The method is based on detailed analytical description of the geometry and material properties used in evaluating the behavior of the critical regions rather than a simplified and predefined set of hysteresis rules. The present study has two principal components of investigation. First, the analyses are done at …

Development Of A Composite User Equilibrium And System Optimization Assignment Model, Kimberly M. Stump

Theses

The Urban Transportation Modeling System (UTMS) is a set of procedures used by transportation planners to predict the volume of traffic that will flow through a network, and how the traffic is routed. This paper will focus on the final component of UTMS, traffic assignment, which assigns the traffic flows to actual routes in the network.

In this paper, two composite models which model both User Equilibrium and System Optimal assignments are presented. The composite models are solved using the GAMS (General Algebraic Modeling System) software, a powerful mathematical programming tool. The first model was based on Beckman's Formulation, (Beckman, …

Planning Of Optimal Transit System Design, Yongning Liu

Theses

This study presents a methodological approach for finding an optimal design of bus transit service in an urban transportation corridor with elastic demand and under various objective functions. Service design decision variables to be optimized include the route length, route density, headway, number of stops and stop spacing pattern. The objective functions that optimize the transit system design include: minimizing operator cost, maximizing profit, minimizing sum of operator and user costs and maximizing the users' net benefits.

The analysis uses an elastic demand function wherein the number of trips are sensitive to the quality of service provided and price charged …

The Collapse Of The Cypress Viaduct During The Loma Prieta Earthquake Of October 17, 1989, Mohamed M. Eid

Theses

The Loma Prieta earthquake of October 17, 1989 in California was one of the most disastrous earthquakes in U.S history. It caused damage to commercial, residential, and industrial structures, transportation and utilities.

This study includes investigations about the Cypress Viaduct collapse re?ported by:

1. California Governor's Board of Inquiry [4].
2. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NEL) W.
3. 3The Author.

Investigators in the first report concluded that the collapse was due to horizontal ground motion. In the second one, it was due to the vertical ground motion.

In the author's investigation, a detailed static and dynamic analyses are performed to determine …

Three-Dimensional Beam-Columns, Mohammad Hassan Shams

Theses

This thesis explores several special cases of three-dimensional beam-columns and suggests that the method of finite differences can be used when a solution of general case is required. The thesis begins with a review of the three-dimensional beam-column equations and then shows how these equations can be used to generate the member stiffness matrix for the nonlinear analysis of three-dimensional frames. Examples are included which discuss the differences between the analytical and numerical solutions.

Catalytic Ozone/Ultraviolet Light Oxidation Of Organics In Water : Integrated Charcoal/Ozonation/Uv Radiation, Dawei Wang

Theses

A novel heterogeneous catalytic-oxidation technology where activated carbon is used as a catalyst-adsorbent, ozone serves as the oxidant and UV light as activation agent, is developed in a lab scale study. We demonstrate this process for destruction of recalcitrant organics in water i.e: combined oxidation by ozone, UV light plus activated carbon. The investigation includes evalution of various operating conditions: ozone levels, activated carbon levels; time for complete destruction of the individual target pollutants, plus evalution of activity of the continuously recativated carbon surface in-situ. All experiments were performed at room temperature in a semi-batch reactor. Seven representative chemicals was …

The Durability Of Hot Mix Asphalt With Petroleum Contaminated Soils, Bonnie H. Dubose

Theses

Petroleum contaminated soils are considered solid waste They must be taken to solid waste facilities such as landfills or some other method must be found to deal with them. Landfills are becoming limited and is looked upon by the government as the least attractive option. One method that looks promising is to use petroleum contaminated soils in Hot Mix Asphalt Concrete.

In the research program the following are examined: 1) Investigation of material properties of the petroleum contaminated soil and aggregates 2) The proper procedure to produce a design blend of asphalt concrete. 3) Establishing the test procedure protocol to …

The Study Of Activated Sludge Settleability Using The Solids-Flux Analysis, Churng-Cherng Lin

Theses

The activated sludge was cultivated in two pilot-scale activated sludge systems under three ratios of BOD to N, equal to 20:1, 70:1 and 300:1 in the influent wastewater. The aeration tank of the activated sludge system was constructed in two different configurations: one without compartments in the tank, the other consisting of six compartments. The activated sludge withdrawn from the last compartment of each system was tested in a one-liter graduate cylinder to measure its zone settling velocity. The solids-flux method was employed to analyze the sludge settling characteristic as a function of solids concentration. The results show that the …

Evaluation Of Homogeneity For Hazardous Waste Solidification By Video Imaging Technique, Yi-Min Gao

Theses

The field of chemical solidification has just begun to mature into an accepted environmental technology for hazardous waste disposal. From the engineering point of view, some key issues still dominate the feasibility and effectiveness of hazardous waste solidification process. "Mixing" is essentially regarded as the most critical element but unfortunately, no evidence has been proposed to prove the homogeneity of the large monolith produced by solidification in order that the effectiveness of the solidification process can be evaluated in satisfactorily short time. The Homogeneity Evaluation by Video Imaging System (HEVIS) proposed in this study is to solve this problem with …

Kinetic Measuremenmt Of Decomposition Of Aniline, 2,4-Dichlorophenol And 1,2,4-Trichlorophenol Using A Calorimetric Method, Ming-Chin Chang

Theses

Biological treatment techniques for detoxification of toxic organic compounds have been studied and applied for many years. There are many research and commercial applications proving that the biological method is more economic and efficient than the other treatment methods.

The traditional biomass measurements are time-consuming tasks. Researchers have intended to develop a simpler, faster, and also accurate method for determining the bioactivity. This study has tried to use the microcalorimetric method to monitor the energy productions from the degradation of aniline, 2,4-Dichlorophenol and 1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene. Thereafter, by utilizing the data obtained from the present study, it was possible to compute kinetic …

Disinfection Of Wastewater Using Ultraviolet Radiation, David L. Klemm

Theses

The disadvantages associated with the use of chlorine for disinfection, in conjunction with improvements in ultraviolet radiation disinfection technologies have led to the recent increased use of ultraviolet radiation to provide disinfection of effluents from wastewater treatment plants. The theory of ultraviolet radiation and the engineering design of the ultraviolet disinfection system are discussed in depth.

The operational history and records of two wastewater treatment plants that use ultraviolet radiation for disinfection were analyzed in an attempt to develop correlations on the factors that affect ultraviolet radiation disinfection efficiency and to investigate as to whether disinfection with ultraviolet radiation is …

Mathematic Models On Leaching Behavior Of Chemical Solidification And Stabilization Process For Heavy Metal Sludges, Sz-Hung Chen

Theses

Chemical Solidification and Stabilization of toxic metal-containing sludges is one of the most important problems for environmental protection. Although Chemical Solidification and Stabilization of hazardous wastes prior to disposal is increasing in importance, very little work has been done concerning the leaching mechanisms and kinetic models.

In this study, we apply Freundlich & Langmuir isotherms on Chemical Solidification and Stabilization process, and the theoretical results match with experimental data very well. In the same time, we develop a simple methematical kinetic model which relates leaching concentration of heavy metal to curing time. In this study kinetic model, what you need …

Influence Of Heavy Metal Concentration On Rotating Biological Contrator Performance, Huei-Sheng Cheng

Theses

Seven heavy metals ( Fe⁺², Mn⁺², Zn⁺², Ag⁺, Pb⁺², Cu⁺², Cd⁺² ) at various concentrations were investigated in a Rotating Biological Contactor (RBC) system. The experimental data indicated that the degree of heavy metal toxicity in the biological system mainly depended on the ratio of inflow heavy metal concentration to organic loading. The optimal ratio of heavy metal to organic loading was determined on the basis of the maximum removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD) under different operating conditions. In addition, the effect of heavy metal on …

Bridge Deterioration Models, Christopher R.H. Howard

Theses

The deteriorated condition of America's bridges raises the need for a proper and optimal method of bridge management, from the conceptual stage through the construction stage, and throughout the useful life of our bridges. State agencies need to expand their data collection process so as to include additional information pertinent to the formulation of a credible system. This is critical in order to accommodate increased research efforts to investigate the behavioral pattern/s of the nations bridges and to eventually optimize bridge management systems. This thesis looks at the bridge deterioration model as a vital tool in realizing more effective bridge …

Response Characteristics Of Inelastic Single Degree Of Freedom Systems Subjected To Intraplate Earthquakes, Linda C. Jones

Theses

Within recorded, although not recent, history, there have been several large magnitude earthquakes in the Eastern and Central United States and the need to provide measures to protect from potential damage is recognized by the engineering community. Since there are inherent differences between earthquakes that occur along tectonic plate boundaries, interplate, and those that occur within the plate boundaries, intraplate, it is important to understand how these differences impact structural design. A parametric study of single degree of freedom systems subjected to various recorded and artificial ground motions was performed to identify the variations in response characteristics.

It was found …

A Study Of The Potential Funding Mechanism For Surface Transportation In The New York Metropolitan Region, Krishnaveni Venkataswami

Theses

The present network of highways, soaring bridges, airports, seaports, and transit systems that serve the New York Metropolitan region are part of this region's inheritance from the generation of Americans who built them before us. These massive and sometimes daring achievements supported the economic growth of the region. Now that inheritance is in danger. The quality of the region's transportation infrastructure is barely adequate to fulfill current requirements, and insufficient to meet the demands of future economic growth and development. We are spending our inheritance.

A major problem is financial. Overall investment in transportation has slowed down in the last …

Biodegradation Of Tnt (2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene), Jin Lou

Theses

This study summaries the results of various methods treating 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT). Review of available literatures revealed that the most commonly used techniques in full-scale plant for TNT removal are chemical oxidation and carbon adsorption.

From economic point of view, the biological treatment system will be much more cost-effective. Various methods for improving the efficiency of biological system treating TNT wastewater were developed in the laboratory. Current laboratory results show that by isolating appropriate microorganisms under adequate conditions, TNT wastes can be degraded successfully.

At the some time, some pretreatment technologies are recommended in this study for improving the performance of …