Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Use Of Innovative Computer Technology And Optical Texture Properties In The Analysis Of Pavement Digital Images, Saumya Priyadari Amarasiri

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Digital image based automated pavement crack detection and classification technology has seen vast improvements in the recent years. In spite of these developments, although pavement crack lengths and widths can be evaluated using state-of-the-art software with a reasonable accuracy, no reported evidence is found in extending this technology to evaluate crack depths. Hence a preliminary study was carried out to model the digital image formation of cracked concrete pavements based on the Bidirectional Reflection Distribution Function. It was revealed that a definitive theoretical relationship exists among the crack widths and depths and the maximum pixel intensity contrasts in the images …

Thermal Integrity Profiling Instrumentation Development, Byron Keith Anderson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis has shown that the development of the instrumentation necessary to provide in-situ thermal imaging for the determination of homogeneity of concrete is theoretically sound.

Drilled shafts are large diameter underground cast-in-place columns that necessarily rely on sound integrity to properly withstand imposed loadings. As a by-product of the most common construction techniques, the entire process is often completely blind whereby the excavation and concreting processes are conducted beneath the surface of the water table (or slurry level). This results in an inability to inspect the final product and in many cases allows anomalous inclusions (soil cave-ins, slurry pockets, …

Modeling Roadside Safety Hazards To Predict Annual Crash Cost To Encroaching Vehicles In Rural Road Networks, Isidro Delgado

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Roadside crashes account for a large portion of total fatal crashes that occur annually in the United States. About 30% of those fatalities are the result of single vehicle run-off-road crashes. A large proportion of these fatal crashes occur in rural roads when vehicles depart from the travel lane and collide with trees or other roadside safety hazards. Many of these run-off-road accidents occur in local roads that carry traffic volumes between 1,000 and 20,000 vehicles per day. Many of these roads are part of the jurisdiction of county authorities faced with the dilemma of having too many "potentially dangerous" …

Restoration Of Displaced Cast-In-Place Concrete Slabs On Grade With The Use Of The Isb-07 Subsurface Support Bracket, Jose Carlos Busquets

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The restoration of foundations of residential and light commercial structures that have been affected by differential displacement resulting from problematic soil conditions has been an ongoing issue since early times. In Florida, the issue of structures being affected by subsidence of soils related to sinkhole activity has been a problem that has gained more interest and exposure within the last 20 years. Structures affected by sinkholes have been historically addressed by remediating the soil mechanism which caused the structure to displace and then structurally addressing the portions of the structure that have displaced with steel underpins installed on the foundation. …

Mechanistic Modeling Of Photocatalytic Water Disinfection, Omatoyo Kofi Dalrymple

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The main goal of this research was to develop a mechanism-based model for photocatalytic disinfection of bacteria in water using suspended catalyst pthesiss in batch reactors. The photocatalytic disinfection process occurs as a semiconductor photocatalyst, most commonly titanium dioxide (TiO₂), is irradiated with light of wavelength less than 380 nm to produce hydroxyl radicals and other highly reactive oxidants which can inactivate microorganisms. Photocatalytic disinfection involves a complex interaction of many fundamental mechanisms such as light absorption and scattering by semiconductor pthesiss, electrochemical surface reactions, and heterogeneous colloidal stability. Current models, based largely on chemical reacting systems, do …

Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor (Anmbr) For Treatment Of Landfill Leachate And Removal Of Micropollutants, Anh Tien Do

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

To date, most studies on the fate and removal of endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) and pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) in wastewater focus on their fate in municipal wastewater treatment plants, and mostly under aerobic condition. There are limited studies related to anaerobic condition and (to our knowledge) no study on the removal of EDCs in landfill leachate by AnMBR. Moreover, for most studies under anaerobic condition, the removal of EDCs was only reported in the liquid phase; solid phase extraction was not reported, thereby preventing mass balance in the studies.

This research was conducted to investigate the potential …

Physically Meaningful Harmonization Of Tire/Pavement Friction Measurement Devices, Madhura Priyanga Nishshanke Rajapakshe

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Accurate characterization and evaluation of tire/pavement friction is critical in assuring runway and highway safety. Historically, Pavement Friction Measurement Devices (PFMDs) employing different measuring mechanisms have been used to evaluate tire/pavement friction. They yield significantly disparate friction coefficients under the same contact conditions. Currently, an empirically developed data harmonization method based on a reference device (Dynamic Friction Tester (DFT)) is used in an attempt to overcome the disparities between the measurements using various different PFMDs. However, this method, which has been standardized by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM E1960), has been criticized for its inconsistency by researchers …

Sequential Anaerobic And Algal Membrane Bioreactor (A2mbr) System For Sustainable Sanitation And Resource Recovery From Domestic Wastewater, Ana Lucia Prieto

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An innovative wastewater treatment technology was developed to recover renewable resources, such as water, energy and nutrients, from sewage. First, a novel synthetic sewage was evaluated for its suitability to serve as an alternative substrate for lab-scale wastewater treatment (WWT) research. Based on granular dried cat food, Complex Organic Particulate Artificial Sewage (COPAS) is a commercially-available, flexible, and easy to preserve feed. Characteristics of COPAS, namely chemical composition, disintegration/dissolution kinetics, and anaerobic biodegradability, were determined. Anaerobic bioassays indicate that COPAS is highly biodegradable at the concentration used to simulate household sewage (1000 mg/L), with more than 72% of the theoretical …

Computational Discovery Of Phenotype Related Biochemical Processes For Engineering, Andrea M. Rocha

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Application of bioengineering technologies for enhanced biological hydrogen production is a promising approach that may play a vital role in sustainable energy. Due to the ability of several naturally occurring microorganisms to generate hydrogen through varying metabolic processes, biological hydrogen has become an attractive alternative energy and fuel source.

One area of particular interest is the production of biological hydrogen in organically-rich engineered systems, such as those associated with waste treatment. Despite the potential for high energy yields, hydrogen yields generated by bacteria in waste systems are often limited due to a focus on microbial utilization of organic material towards …

Discrete Element Modeling Of Cone Penetration In Jsc-1a Lunar Regolith Simulant, Mehmet Burak Cil

LSU Master's Theses

NASA plans to return back to the Moon for a long term presence and use of the Moon as a launch station for further space exploration to other planets. This scenario increases the importance of determining the geotechnical properties of the lunar surface. However, due to the limited availability of lunar regolith and its high scientific value, a simulant material which closely matches the composition and grain size distribution and other characteristics of the lunar regolith has become an indispensable need to benefit in hardware development as well as estimating lunar regolith properties. Therefore, JSC-1A lunar regolith simulant, which was …

Fragility Analysis Of Building Envelope Components Subject To Windborne Debris Impact Hazard, Alexander Henry Herbin

LSU Master's Theses

This thesis presents a methodology for developing windborne debris (WBD) impact fragility curves for building envelope components (BECs) by using stochastic finite element (FE) models. These fragility curves provide the probabilistic description of the impact resistance of BECs subject to an impact event described by an appropriate intensity measure (IM). Accurate fragility curves are essential in the development of a general probabilistic performance-based engineering framework for mitigation of WBD impact hazard. Monte Carlo simulation is used in combination with the FE method to propagate uncertainties in the BEC’s model parameters and WBD impact location. As an application example, the fragility …

Investigations Of Wave-Induced Turbulent Structures In Vegetated Flows, Agnimitro Chakrabarti

LSU Master's Theses

The role of coastal vegetation in mitigating shoreline erosion by damping of incoming waves and the resultant effect on sediment transport is a critical area of coastal management research. However our understanding of the underlying hydrodynamic processes is limited. Laboratory flume experiments were conducted where a naturally grown emergent vegetation channel and a vegetation-less sand channel were exposed to regular waves. Wave height data was collected using wave gauges located at various points along the channel in the direction of oncoming waves. Acoustic Doppler Velocimeters (ADVs) placed at various depths in the water column measured wave orbital velocity signatures. This …

3d Quantification Of Particle Interaction Of Compacted Powders Using Synchrotron Micro Tomography (Smt), Md. Nafiul Haque

LSU Master's Theses

Synchrotron Micro Tomography (SMT) is a powerful, non-destructive scanning technique for studying the internal structure of materials. SMT was utilized for two applications in this thesis. The first application involves tracking particle rotation of aluminum powder under different compaction strains. The experiments were conducted on two geometrical configurations by applying axial load to compact the powder in the die and acquiring SMT scans at different strain levels. The SMT scans were processed using AVIZO visualization software for further analyses. The analyses included tracking the same particle at different compaction strain levels, analyzing their volume compressibility, and then quantifying their rotational …

Leveraging Weigh-In-Motion (Wim) Data To Estimate Link-Based Heavy-Duty Vehicle Emissions, Heba Naguib Alwakiel

Dissertations and Theses

This research examines the use of archived weigh-in-motion (WIM) data to estimate link-based heavy-vehicle emissions for Oregon highways. This research combined data on vehicle speed, highway grade, and gross vehicle weight and relationship between these elements in published research to estimate the carbon dioxide (CO₂) and nitrogen oxide (NO_x) emissions from trucks. Sensitivity analysis was conducted on the impact of uphill grade and gross vehicle weight on truck speed and emissions. The results suggest that with the data available in the weigh-in-motion archive and with a reasonable set of assumptions, link-based emissions for heavy-duty vehicles can …

Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks, Syed R. Rizvi, Stephan Olariu, Christina M. Oinotti, Shaharuddin Salleh, Mona E. Rizvi, Zainab Zaidi

Computer Science Faculty Publications

(First paragraph) Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) have recently been proposed as one of the promising ad hoc networking techniques that can provide both drivers and passengers with a safe and enjoyable driving experience. VANETs can be used for many applications with vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications. In the United States, motor vehicle traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for all motorists between two and thirty-four years of age. In 2009, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported that 33,808 people were killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes. The US Department of Transportation (US-DOT) estimates that …

Development Of A Time-Dependent, Audio-Visual, Stated Choice Method Of Data Collection For Hurricane Evacuation Behavior, Ravindra Gudishala

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Revealed preference is the traditional method to collect hurricane evacuation behavior data. However, revealed preference surveys, as they are currently administered, have the disadvantage that they are unable to collect time-sensitive and policy-sensitive data needed to test evacuation policies. In contrast, data collected from a time-dependent, stated-choice survey will allow researchers to collect not only time-sensitive and policy-sensitive data but also information that will allow testing potential new evacuation policies. However, no research has been conducted to establish the methodology of such a survey. To fill the gap, this study was conducted to develop a new time-dependent, audio-visual, stated-choice method …

Replenishment Policies For A Tree-Type Three Echelon Supply Chain System, Ratkrit Rochanaluk

LSU Master's Theses

One of the common goals which most companies have is to maximize profits. There are two way to increase profit: increasing revenue or reducing cost. Lacking of ability to keep the cost down could potentially drive the companies out of the business. In recent years, many researchers have been paying more attention on improving supply chain system due to high potential of creating cost savings. The supply chain network considered in this research is a tree-type, three-echelon single producer, multiple distributors, and multiple retailers system. The goal of this research is to develop a replenishment policy which satisfies customers’ demand …

Wave Forces On Bridge Decks And Damping Techniques To Reduce Damages, Aaron Michael Henry

LSU Master's Theses

The population of the Gulf Coast has grown immensely since 1960. Bridges along the coast are a vital part of this area’s infrastructure. They impact the transportation of goods and services, as well as the tourism in these areas. Many of these coastal bridges are at risk of being damaged or even destroyed during extreme weather events. This can cause not only short and long-term monetary problems, but the damage also can exacerbate the issues in getting people out of dangerous areas and getting help into areas in need, after an event. Damages during extreme weather events are the result …

Pavement Structural Evaluation Using The Rolling Wheel Deflectometer, Ahmed Moustafa Abdel-Khalek

LSU Master's Theses

The Rolling Wheel Deflectometer (RWD) offers the benefit to measure pavement deflection without causing any traffic interruption or compromising safety along the tested road segments. This study describes a detailed field evaluation of the RWD system in Louisiana in which 16 different test sites representing a wide array of pavement conditions were tested. Measurements were used to assess the repeatability of RWD measurements, to examine the effect of truck speeds, and to study the relationship between RWD and FWD deflection measurements and pavement conditions. Based on the results of the experimental program, it was determined that the repeatability of RWD …

Development And Implementation Of A Dual-Porosity Pore Network Structure Using X-Ray Computed Tomography For Pore Network Modeling Purposes, Samuel Taylor Best

LSU Master's Theses

3-D pore network modeling based on high-resolution X-ray computed tomography (XCT) is a useful tool for simulating pore-scale processes and phenomena within porous media in fields such as chemical and petroleum engineering and groundwater hydrology. XCT images provide the opportunity to capture the true topology of the porous system, retaining important characteristics such as pore geometry, location, and connectivity. However, a major limitation of XCT is its inability to resolve features smaller than the image resolution such as intraparticle porosity and void-space within secondary phases such as clay and micrite, here called microporosity. Identifying this microporosity is important for modeling …

Analysis Of Static Lateral Load Test Of Battered Pile Group At I-10 Twin Span Bridge, Binay Pathak

LSU Master's Theses

In offshore structures, battered piles have been used as an alternative to vertical piles because of their capability in resisting higher lateral loads. The foundations of the newly built I-10 Twin Span Bridge over Lake Pontchartrain, LA, mostly consist of battered piles group. Understanding the behavior of these batter pile group foundations under lateral loading is very important to the design of highway bridge foundations. This study focuses on the evaluation of the lateral responses of battered pile group subjected to lateral loading and assessment of the current design methodology used for the design of I-10 Twin Span Bridge over …

Performance Assessment Of Innovative Framing Systems Through Building Information Modeling Based Energy Simulation, Santhosh Reddy Chinnayeluka

LSU Master's Theses

While many residential contractors, architects, and home-buyers today are concerned about the environment and interested in sustainable construction technologies, the perceived higher initial costs of innovative materials and methodologies and a lack of life-cycle cost and performance data present significant barriers in the implementation of such techniques. Research regarding an integrated design process has suggested that performance based decision making is key to the successful implementation of sustainable building practices. Therefore, a need exists for the development of whole building design and evaluation models to allow decision making in all phases of a building project. This research seeks information regarding …

Leaching Characteristics Of Inorganic Contaminants From Coal Fly Ash, Tingzhi Su

Doctoral Dissertations

"Leaching of trace elements raises environmental concerns in coal fly ash disposal and reuse. US EPA is in the process of creating the first national rule on coal ash management. However, due to the complexity of coal fly ash composition, the leaching characteristics of trace elements are not well understood. Meanwhile, driven by the tightening emission regulations, new types of coal fly ashes are continuously generated as a result of the technological evolution at coal energy industry. The changing landscape highlights the needs for a comprehensive database to assess the leaching characteristics of different types of coal fly ashes, evaluation …

The Effect Of Exopolymers On The Compressibility And Shear Strength Of Kaolinite, Rick Alton Nugent

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Erosion and subsidence threaten coastal infrastructure and natural habitats throughout the coastal United States, and this threat is especially significant along the Louisiana coastline since wetland clays are generally weak and highly compressible. Hydraulic pumping of dredged sediment is a common method for combating damage caused by erosion and subsidence, but the high water content slurry deposited is very compressible with low shear strength. Although conventional soil amendments are effective for reducing compressibility and increasing shear strength, these stabilizers are often caustic or toxic, making them too risky to use. Exopolymers, however, have the potential to improve sediment stability without …

Computational Modeling Of Geogrid Reinforced Soil Foundation And Geogrid Reinforced Base In Flexible Pavement, Jie Gu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The objectives of this study are to investigate and evaluate the benefits of inclusion of geogrids in two types of geosynthetic reinforced soil/aggregate structures—e.g. reinforced soil foundations (RSF) and reinforced base aggregate in flexible pavements, thus shedding the light on the design of these reinforced structures. Two different finite element models were developed using ABAQUS software. The first model was used to investigate the bearing capacity and settlement of RSF and to perform parametric study on the effect of different design parameters on the performance of RSF. The second model was used to analyze the performance of geogrid reinforced bases …

Biodegradation Kinetics For 1,2-Dichloroethane And Ethylene Dibromide In Anaerobic Enrichment Cultures Grown On Each Compound, Rong Yu

All Theses

1,2-Dichloroethane (DCA) and ethylene dibromide (EDB) are among the top 15 chlorinated aliphatic compounds on the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry's Priority List of Hazardous Substances. Co-contamination of groundwater with EDB and 1,2-DCA resulted mainly from environmental releases of leaded gasoline; these compounds were added as lead scavengers. A microcosm study by Henderson et al. with soil and groundwater from a site contaminated with leaded gasoline demonstrated anaerobic biodegradation of EDB at a higher rate, and to a greater extent, than 1,2-DCA. Both compounds were transformed mainly by dihaloelimination to ethene. The objectives of this study were to …

Damage Detection And Identification In Fiber Reinforced Plastic Structural Members And Field Bridges Using Acoustic Emission Technique, Archana Nair

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

With the increased use of fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) based structural systems for rehabilitation of existing and construction of new bridges there is a requirement for identification of critical components of these structural systems and the determination of critical damage thresholds in them. Of the many available non-destructive techniques (NDT), acoustic emission (AE) monitoring had been identified as one of the most popular techniques applicable for damage discrimination in composites. The current study aimed at using patterns in AE data for the identification of damage modes exhibited by composite structural systems. The extensive experimental program involved testing of two structural …

"Long" Carbon Fiber Reinforced Concrete For Impact And Blast Resistance, Benjamin Paul Gliha

Masters Theses

"One of the most commonly used materials for protective structures and construction is traditional reinforced concrete. However, in a blast, conventional reinforced concrete (RC) is susceptible to significant spalling (small to medium size chunks of concrete detaching from the original member). The force of the blast turns spalled concrete into projectiles, resulting in secondary fragmentation and the majority of loss of life. Furthermore, the concrete debris makes for difficult and uncertain footing. Both phenomena endanger personnel and complicate post-blast recovery efforts. A very promising but barely explored change to conventional RC construction is the addition of "long" carbon fibers (fibers …

A Statewide Analysis Of Highway Safety In Arkansas, Uday R. R. Manepalli

Masters Theses

"This research concentrated on two major aspects of highway safety analysis, hotspot identification and identification of crash contributing factors on highways. The objective of the first part of this thesis is to evaluate two crash frequency, three crash severity and two composite hotspot ranking methods. Based on the limitations of the existing hotspot identification methods (HSID), crash factor method (CFM), a crash severity based HSID method is proposed. A composite rank method (F 1) based on principal component analysis is also proposed. These methods are evaluated using three tests, the site consistency test, the method consistency test, and the total …

Ozone And Terpene Reactions On Indoor Surfaces: Reaction Rates And Implications For Indoor Air Quality, Shi Shu

Doctoral Dissertations

No abstract provided.