Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Testing Of Rainflow Histograms Of Strain For Implementation As A Bridge Weigh-In-Motion Technique, Nephi R. Johnson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The highways and bridges that make up the nation’s infrastructure are becoming older and need replacement or maintenance. In order to determine the best use of funds, bridges are being monitored and studied. This paper was part of a long term study with the goal of monitoring multiple bridges for several years in order to develop an extensive network of bridge information. This particular study was on a bridge in Utah that was instrumented with permanent measurement and monitoring devices. Monitoring of bridges provides information on how the temperature and weather cause the bridge to move, change and age. It …

Systems Optimization Models To Improve Water Management And Environmental Decision Making, Omar Alminagorta Cabezas

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The degradation of water quality and wetlands is one of the most challenging environmental problems around the world. In spite of the magnitude of these environmental problems, few efforts identify how scarce resources (e.g., water, budget) can be more efficiently used to solve these problems. This dissertation presents a set of tools to help solve environmental problems related to excess phosphorus levels in water bodies and wetland degradation caused by water shortages and invasive vegetation. These tools are presented in three studies. The first study presents a simple optimization model that identifies the cost-effective combination of management practices to reduce …

Arsenic Release From Dechlorination Remediation Processes Of Biostimulation And Bioaugmentation, Suzy Smith

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Arsenic (As), a known carcinogen, is a groundwater contaminant in many parts of the world. Arsenic contamination is enhanced through carbon addition, such as biostimulation, a remediation process, which has been used to remove trichloroethylene (TCE) from sediment and groundwater. Two studies were designed to evaluate the effect of different carbon sources on the removal of TCE through dechlorination and on As solubilization and mobilization in response to carbon addition.

The first set of columns (15.2 cm diameter, 183 cm long) used whey, Newman Zone® standard surfactant emulsified oil, Newman Zone® nonionic surfactant emulsified oil, and no carbon controls as …

Continuous Unbonded Post-Tensioned Members: Quantifying Strand Stress Increase, Philip D. Six

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Unbonded post-tensioning tendons are an efficient and cost effective method of reinforcing concrete floor slabs, slabs-on-grade, parking garages, and bridge structures. However, the behavior of these structures is not well understood. There is concern that due to the lack of a significant amount of reliable research data on specimens reinforced in this manner, the commonly used design methods tend to significantly under-predict the strength. Four large, scaled, floor slab sections were constructed and destructively tested with the intent of more accurately understanding the strength of specimens reinforced with this method. Four test specimens represent a significant percentage of the current …

Catalytic Pyrolysis Of Olive Mill Wastewater Sludge, Hamza Abdellaoui

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

From 2008 to 2013, an average of 2,821.4 kilotons/year of olive oil were produced around the world. The waste product of the olive mill industry consists of solid residue (pomace) and wastewater (OMW). Annually, around 30 million m³ of OMW are produced in the Mediterranean area, 700,000 m³ year⁻¹ in Tunisia alone. OMW is an aqueous effluent characterized by an offensive smell and high organic matter content, including high molecular weight phenolic compounds and long-chain fatty acids. These compounds are highly toxic to micro-organisms and plants, which makes the OMW a serious threat to the environment if …

The Effect Of Deposition From Static Rocket Tests On Immature Corn, Alfalfa, And Winter Wheat, Eric Curry

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

ATK tests the performance of large solid rocket motors (SRMs) at their facility located in Promontory Point, Utah, USA. During these tests, an estimated 1.5 million kg (~3.3 million lbs.) of entrained soil and rocket exhaust are sent skyward in a cloud that can travel as far as 10-12 miles from the test site. As the cloud cools deposition known as Test Fire Soil (TFS) can settle on local crops. Farmers in the area have voiced concerns about the effects of TFS on their crops.

To address the concerns, I looked at the effect of a typical TFS deposition loading …

The Influence Of A Fluctuating Water Table On Arsenic Mobility In A Western U.S. Aquifer, Allia Maher Abu-Ramaileh

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Significant amounts of Arsenic (As) are seen in groundwater used for drinking water in the United States, especially in the Southwest (SW). Long-term exposure to As concentrations over the drinking water limit of 10 μg/L can cause skin and lung cancer, along with several other adverse health effects. Previous studies have evaluated the hydro-biogeochemical processes leading to the exposure of millions of people in West Bengal, Bangladesh, and Southeast Asia to unsafe levels of As in drinking water. There are some similarities between Southeast Asia and the SW U.S., but only a few studies analyzing As have been performed in …

Stormwater Bioretention: Nitrogen, Phosphorous And Metal Removal By Plants, Malgorzata Rycewicz-Borecki

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Stormwater runoff is an environmental concern. It increases the volume and velocity of surface water flow and contains high pollutant concentrations. High flows erode stream channels. Nutrients in the runoff cause eutrophication. Some metals from stormwater runoff is regulated by the Federal National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES). Bioretention (BR) systems are often used in response to these regulations to retain and treat this stormwater runoff.

This study conducted greenhouse and field experiments, and evaluated differences in nutrient and metal removal among plant species that are typically found growing in BR systems but are not typically investigated in this detail. …

Modeling Transportation Planning Applications Via Path Flow Estimator, Seungkyu Ryu

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The current practice for modeling in the field of transportation planning is through a four-step travel demand forecasting procedure (i.e., trip generation, trip distribution, mode choice, and traffic assignment); the practice is commonly referred to as the four-step model. Although such a modeling approach has become standard practice, it is deficient in several areas. Specifically, (1) it lacks capability for modeling non-motorized modes such as bicycles, (2) it is inadequate for modeling multiple vehicle types sharing the same roadway space, and (3) it is difficult to apply to small communities with limited resources. This dissertation recognizes these deficiencies and responds …

Risk Characterization From Multipathway Exposure Associated With Land Applying Biosolids By Accounting For Multimedia Mass Loss, Karthik Kumarasamy

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

There continues to be concern among communities living in the vicinity of biosolids land application sites about potential adverse health effects from the chemical contaminants present in biosolids. This study describes a procedure that will help answer questions about the risks involved in biosolids land application at the site level, thus, this study will provide a crucial communication tool for wastewater treatment facilities and biosolids land appliers to address the concerns of the public. Specifically, the study quantifies the exposure concentrations that a human being can become exposed to during their lifetime from the practice. Crucially, it takes a quantitate …

An Analysis Of Sensitivity In Economic Forecasting For Pavement Management Systems, Antonio Fuentes

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In the scope of transportation asset management, the maintenance and rehabilitation (M&R) performed on asphalt roads at the local government level requires careful planning and intelligent use of limited funding. For this reason, a Pavement Management System (PMS) is incorporated and used as a tool for local government leaders to make the best decision given their annual budget. The PMS process is a repeatable process which consists of determining present day pavement condition, evaluating future deterioration, performing an economic analysis of possible M&R treatments and finally implementing a proper M&R plan to keep the asphalt pavement network in good condition. …

Redox-Controlled Biogeochemical Processes Affecting Arsenic Solubility In Sediments From A Basin-Fill Aquifer In Northern Utah, Xianyu Meng

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The basin-fill aquifers of the American Southwest host elevated concentrations of arsenic in groundwater due to the local geology. Limited information is available on arsenic dynamics in semi-arid and arid regions of the world. This study describes arsenic biogeochemistry and mechanisms of arsenic solubilization for a soil profile collected from the surface to the depth of groundwater in the Cache Valley Basin, Northern Utah.

The first objective was to delineate mechanisms of arsenic solubilization from sediments collected at the study site. Microcosms containing site groundwater and siteoxidized and site-reduced sediments, were monitored over time to observe changes in the solubilization …

Modeling Force Main Systems For Surge Analysis And Studying Dynamic Response Due To Water Hammer, Wissam Al-Taliby

Theses and Dissertations

The major impact of water hammer on force mains integrity include excessive pressure oscillation that is usually accompanied by pipe vibrations. Models for simulating force main water hammer response have been developed. All of these models were based on the method of characteristics (MOC) and most of them were not calibrated for the lack of efficient field data. Although predicting maximum pressure during the first wave cycle is sufficient in most applications, some applications require precise prediction of pressure damping. One-dimensional models usually over predict pressure oscillation beyond the first cycle since they are based on steady friction expressions. It …

Engineering Properties Of Pile Rebound Soils Based On Cone Penetration Testing, Hadeel Dekhn

Theses and Dissertations

High pile rebound (HPR) has been identified by Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to occur during the installation of square prestressed concrete piles at many sites in Florida. Significant pile rebound values of up to 1.5 inch/blow were measured resulting in increased blow counts. Pile refusal is a common occurrence when blow count exceeds 240 blow/ft; leading to pile redesign and economic consequences. The overall objective of this research is to identify the engineering properties of soil deposits which may cause HPR and develop improved correlations that may be used to predict HPR during the design process. Seven sites were …

Potential Of Greywater Reuse And Its Effects On Potable Water Demand Management And Downstream Sewer Network, Muhammad Ashfaque Rajput Abdul Hameed

Theses

The UAE’s water demand is rapidly increasing because of population growth, infrastructure development, expansion of agricultural practices, and desert greening policies. These circumstances force the country to depend on expansive desalinated water and made the country the second-largest desalination water producer in the world. It is essential to reduce the current water consumption rates by using efficient methods and conservation techniques. Greywater reuse is an effective and promising alternative to cope with this challenge. The study aimed to reduce water consumption in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi by investigating the potential of greywater reuse. A field survey was carried out …

Potential Of Greywater Reuse And Its Effects On Potable Water Demand Management And Downstream Sewer Network, Muhammad Ashfaque Rajput Abdul Hameed

Theses

The UAE’s water demand is rapidly increasing because of population growth, infrastructure development, expansion of agricultural practices and for the desert greening policies. These circumstances force the country to depend on expansive desalinated water and made the country second largest desalination water producer in the world. It is essential to reduce the current water consumption rates by using efficient methods and conservation techniques. Greywater reuse is an effective and promising alternate to cope with this challenge. The study aimed to reduce the water consumption in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi by investigating the potential of greywater reuse. A field survey …

Structural Response Of Flexure-Deficient Reinforced Concrete Continuous Slabs Strengthened With Composites, Jwan Ahmad Al Khalil

Theses

Accidental reduction in the amount of steel in continuous reinforced concrete (RC) floor slabs is a typical problem that might occur due to an error in design, unclear drawings, or overlooked verification of reinforcement prior to concrete casting. Existence of such deficiencies would compromise the load capacity and serviceability of RC floor slabs. This research examines the effectiveness of using fiber-reinforced polymers (FRP) to improve the structural response of flexure-deficient continuous RC slab strips. The study comprised experimental testing and finite element (FE) modeling. Sixteen two-span RC slab strips, 400 x 125 x 3800 mm each, were tested. Test parameters …

Capacity Models For Multilane Roundabouts And Their Evaluation Using Microscopic Simulation Models, Mohamad A. Shrayteh

Theses

Compared to previous versions of the manual, the Highway Capacity Manual 2010 has provided more comprehensive capacity models for single and multilane roundabouts. The Highway Capacity Manual 2010 multilane roundabout capacity models are limited to two-by-two lanes, that is, two entry lanes and two circulating lanes. These capacity models are not valid for the three-by-three–lane roundabouts (three entry lanes and three circulating lanes) due to different traffic flow characteristics and features. This limitation of the Highway Capacity Manual 2010 model is also clearly mentioned in the manual. In this research, capacity models and curves were developed for three-by-three–lane roundabouts. More …

Sensitivity Analysis Of Stress State And Bond Strength Of Fiber-Reinforced Polymer/Concrete Interface To Boundary Conditions In Single Shear Pull-Out Test, Tayyebeh Mohammadi, Baolin Wan

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

The bond between fiber-reinforced polymer and concrete substrate plays a key role in the performance of concrete structures after strengthened by externally bonded fiber-reinforced polymer composite materials. The single shear pull-out test is generally used to determine the interface characteristics, and various bond–slip models have been proposed based on the results of this test. However, the sensitivity of the bond strength to the boundary conditions has not yet been considered in the available models in the literatures. This article presents an experimental and numerical study targeted at understanding the influence of the boundary conditions on the bond strength of the …

Odu Students Work On Nation's First Climate Change Adapted Neighborhood, Jugal Patel

News Items

No abstract provided.

Probabilistic Precipitation Estimation With A Satellite Product, Nir Y. Krakauer, Soni M. Pradhanang, Jeeban Panthi, Tarendra Lakhankar, Ajay K. Jha

Publications and Research

Satellite-based precipitation products have been shown to represent precipitation well over Nepal at monthly resolution, compared to ground-based stations. Here, we extend our analysis to the daily and subdaily timescales, which are relevant for mapping the hazards caused by storms as well as drought. We compared the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA) 3B42RT product with individual stations and with the gridded APHRODITE product to evaluate its ability to retrieve different precipitation intensities. We find that 3B42RT, which is freely available in near real time, has reasonable correspondence with ground-based precipitation products on a daily timescale; rank …

Best Practices For Winter Maintenance Roadway Deicer Applications In The State Of Nebraska, Tregan P. D. Albers Ii

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The cost of deicing chemicals is a significant part of the Nebraska Department of Road’s winter maintenance budget. The objectives of this research are to review literature to determine current winter maintenance practices, analyze and present information gathered in a survey of winter maintenance professionals across Nebraska, and correlate this information with data obtained via MDSS (Maintenance Decision Support System) software to determine current practices being used in the state of Nebraska. Best practices for winter maintenance deicer applications for rural city and county officials in Nebraska are recommended. An explanation of the development of the survey that winter maintenance …

The Development Of Key Performance Indicators To Monitor Early Facilities Management Performance Through The Use Of Bim Technologies In Public Sector Projects, Barry Mcauley, Alan Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

One of the biggest threats faced by governments in delivering greater efficiency on public works is the need for the public sector to have an enhanced physical environment to operate from. The physical environment can either enhance or impede worker productivity, therefore contributing to its bottom line profits and success of the organisation. This has now resulted in the AEC sector witnessing the development and adoption of Building Information Modelling (BIM), so as to ensure a new level of functionality for the management of buildings. Despite enhanced Facilities Management (FM) being the goal of BIM, there is still reluctance and …

Conceptual Development Of An Impact-Attenuation System For Intersecting Roadways, Joseph G. Putjenter

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Longitudinal barriers are commonly used to shield hazards, including stiff bridge rail ends and slopes. In some locations, a secondary roadway intersects the primary roadway within the guardrail’s length-of-need (LON). Some intersections have as little as 15 ft (4.6 m) between the intersection and beginning of the bridge railing, which require short-radius guardrail systems. No short-radius systems have been tested and approved to current impact safety standards for shielding hazards with these conditions.

Site conditions provided by the Nebraska Department of Roads were used to determine the constraints for a new safety treatment for intersecting roadways and include intersection radii, …

Evaluating The Air Emissions From Solid Waste Refuse Trucks, Lauren D. Hauser

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The air emissions from solid waste refuse trucks is an issue that has not been widely studied, but is becoming an ever increasing issue. In the United States alone they have generated around 251 million tons of waste in 2012. This study in particular will collect data on 24 different refuse trucks (front-load, side-load, and roll-off, and diesel and compressed natural gas fuel) while on real-life routes in the Raleigh, North Carolina area. The collected data will then be aggregated and summarized based on the type of trucks. A regression analysis will also be done to determine the relationship between …

Webinar: Impacts Of Roadway And Traffic Characteristics On Air Pollution Risks For Bicyclists, Alexander Y. Bigazzi

TREC Webinar Series

Active travel such as walking and bicycling can lead to health benefits through an increase in physical activity. At the same time, more active travelers breath more and so can experience high pollution inhalation rates during travel. This webinar will review the state of knowledge about how roadway and traffic characteristics impact air pollution risks for bicyclists, including the latest PSU research quantifying bicyclists' uptake of traffic-related air pollution using on-road measurements in Portland. The PSU research team including Alex Bigazzi, Jim Pankow, and Miguel Figliozzi quantified bicyclist exposure concentrations on different types of roadways, respiration responses to exertion level, …

Descriptive Statistical Analysis Of Oshpd Quality Inspections On California Hospital Projects, Philip L. Barlow

Construction Management

California hospital construction projects are large, complex, and extremely difficult projects to execute and navigate successfully. One of the primary reasons for this is the OSHPD permit, review, and inspection process. The quality control rigor imposed by this third party inspection procedure has caused great angst amongst most general contractors and subcontractors. This study examined over 60,000 OSHPD inspections, spanning six California hospital projects and forty-one separate subcontractors. Specifically, this paper conducts descriptive statistical analysis on the total number of inspections conducted and the percentage of failed inspections (or re-inspections) that occurred. The analysis, conducted on major subcontractors working on …

Learning From Cinara: Exploring The Depths Of Participatory Water Engagement In Cali, Colombia, Zachary T. Strickland

Honors College Theses

Located within the Universidad del Valle in Cali, Colombia, CINARA is an academic institution, comprised of both engineers and social scientists, that has almost three decades of experience regarding participatory approaches to water supply and environmental sanitation. In this paper, I argue that CINARA’s work is important due to its emphasis on meaningful community participation that significantly involves communities in decisions on technical matters that are usually allocated exclusively to “experts.” Furthermore, the valuation of social considerations and non-technical knowledge found amongst CINARA’s engineers stands in distinct contrast to traditional development practices and engineering mindsets. This paper will go on …

State Of Accelerated Bridge Construction (Abc) In The United States, Mike Ofili

Honors College Theses

The purpose of this project is to develop a toolkit for the design and construction of bridges using prefabricated materials primarily to reduce the closure time and on-site construction time of newly constructed bridges or bridges undergoing renovation. The research focuses specifically on short span bridges in Georgia (40,60,80, and 120ft spans).

Areas of primary concern for this project were design, constructability, structural analysis, the use of concrete and steel girders, cost efficiency, and industry surveys. In this particular portion of the study, the surveys proved to be most effective when combined with information obtained existing research as well as …

On Turbulent Mixing In Stably Stratified Wall-Bounded Flows, Farid Karimpour, Subhas Karan Venayagamoorthy

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In this paper, we provide an analysis of turbulent mixing in stably stratified wall-bounded flows to highlight a number of important issues such as prediction of the turbulent viscosity, the turbulent diffusivity, and the irreversible flux Richardson number. By invoking the equilibrium assumption between the production rate of the turbulent kinetic energy (P), the dissipation rate of the turbulent kinetic energy (P), and the turbulent potential energy dissipation rate (εPE) as P ≈ ε + εPE and also assuming equilibrium between the buoyancy flux (B) and εPE as -B ≈ εPE, we first propose that the irreversible flux Richardson number …