Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

An Evaluation Of The Groundwater Microbial Community's Toluene Biogenesis Potential At A Site In Southeast Louisiana, Michael A. Griffin Jr.

LSU Master's Theses

The broad goal of the research described in this thesis was to better understand the potential for biological toluene production to occur in groundwater at a Superfund Site located in southeast Louisiana. Previous literature reported that bacterial isolates under laboratory test conditions and undefined microbial communities in anaerobic sludge digesters and seasonally stratified lakes can produce toluene biogenically. Most of the research reported on this subject previously, however, has been on systems in Europe and little research has been reported previously on such phenomena in North America.

In the research described here, studies were conducted utilizing groundwater from a Superfund …

Evaluation Of Well Designs To Improve Access To Safe And Clean Water In Rural Tanzania, Aminata Kilungo, Linda Powers, Nathan B. Arnold, Kelli Marie Whelan, Kurt Paterson, Dale Young

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

The objective of this study was to examine three well designs: drilled wells (20–30 m deep), closed dug wells (>5 m deep), and hand-dug open wells (<5 m deep), to determine the water quality for improving access to safe and clean water in rural communities. Heterotrophic plate count (HPC), total coliforms (TC), Escherichia coli (E. coli) and turbidity, were used to assess the water quality of 97 wells. Additionally, the study looked at the microflora diversity of the water, focusing on potential pathogens using outgrowth, PCR, and genome sequencing for 10 wells. Concentrations of TC for the open dug wells (4 × 10⁴ CFU/100 mL) were higher than the drilled (2 × 10³ CFU/100 mL) and closed dug wells (3 × 10³ CFU/100 mL). E. coli concentration for drilled and closed dug wells was <22 MPN (most probable number)/100 mL, but higher for open wells (>154 MPN/100 mL). The drilled well turbidity (11 NTU) was within the standard deviation of the closed well (28 NTU) compared to open dug wells (49 NTU). Drilled and closed wells had similar microbial diversity. There were no …

Diversionary Behavior During Congestion, Venkata Vamsikrishna Peddisetty

LSU Master's Theses

Most people in the US prefer to travel on freeways, but when there is congestion they divert onto local routes to avoid travel delay. This study measures the traffic diversion induced by an increase in congestion on I-10 freeway in Baton Rouge during congestion, using a Bluetooth Detection System. The main objective of the study was to identify the difference in the level of congestion on the I-10 between the Mississippi River Bridge and the I-10/I-12 split and the level of congestion on local roads that triggers traffic to divert from the freeway to parallel arterials. Other objectives include measuring …

2018 Civil And Environmental Engineering Department News, Department Of Civil And Environmental Engineering, Michigan Technological University

Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geospatial Engineering Newsletters

Table of Contents

• External Awards
• Faculty Feature
• Student Features
• Outreach
• Alumni Feature
• CEE Academy
• Internal Awards
• Donors

Riverbank Filtration Impacts On Post Disinfection Water Quality In Small Systems—A Case Study From Auburn And Nebraska City, Nebraska, Matteo D'Alessio, Bruce Dvorak, Chittaranjan Ray

Nebraska Water Center: Faculty Publications

Small water systems can experience a fluctuating quality of water in the distribution system after disinfection. As chlorine is the most common disinfectant for small systems, the occurrence of disinfection byproducts (DBPs) represents a common problem for these systems. Riverbank filtration (RBF) can be a valuable solution for small communities located on riverbanks. The objectives of this study were to evaluate (i) the improvements in water quality at two selected RBF systems, and (ii) the potential lower concentrations of DBPs, in particular, trihalomethanes (THMs), in small systems that use RBF. Two small communities in Nebraska, Auburn and Nebraska City, using …

Flow Analysis Through Collector Well Laterals: A Case Study From Sonoma County Water Agency, California, Matteo D'Alessio, John Lucio, Ernest Williams, James Warner, Donald Seymour, Jay Jasperse, Chittaranjan Ray

Nebraska Water Center: Faculty Publications

The Sonoma County Water Agency (SWCA) uses six radial collector wells along the Russian River west of Santa Rosa, to provide water for several municipalities and water districts in north-western California. Three collector wells (1, 2, and 6) are located in the Wohler area, and three collector wells (3, 4, and 5) are located in the Mirabel area. The objective of this paper is to highlight the performance of the three collector wells located in the Mirabel area since their construction. The 2015 investigation showed a lower performance of Collectors 3 and 4 compared to their original performances after construction …

Structural Cyber-Physical Systems: A Confluence Of Structural Health Monitoring And Control Technologies, Rosana E. Martínez-Castro, Shinae Jang

CEE Articles

Many bridges in the nation’s transportation infrastructure network have been found to be structurally deficient. In face of a natural or man-made disaster, this poses a serious threat to the execution of emergency respondent logistics, as the failure of such structures could disconnect communities from the necessary provisions and services that must remain accessible after a disaster. To predict such an eventuality, dependable information on structural status for decision-making can be obtained from structural health monitoring (SHM) systems. However, the avoidance of such a situation is preferred. Structural control systems offer an option to improve structural response during extreme loading …

The Future Of Groundwater In California: Lessons In Sustainable Management From Across The West, Christina Hoffman Babbitt, Katherine E. B. Gibson, Scott Sellers, Nicholas Brozovic, Anthony Saracino, Ann Hayden, Maurice Hall, Sandi Zellmer

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

The 2014 Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) created, for the first time and on an unprecedented scale, a mandate to change how groundwater is managed statewide in California. While enacting SGMA was a tremendous step forward, communities and water districts now face the considerable challenge of creating successful groundwater management programs. This report is aimed at helping California’s water managers, public water agencies, county commissioners, city planners, and others better understand the suite of tools and approaches that can be used to enhance the sustainable management of groundwater. Specifically, we consider four categories of management tools—regulatory, incentive-based, agency supply augmentation …

Color Removal Of Dye And Milk Wastewater Using Peanut Hull By The Process Of Adsorption, Venkatesh Kummarakuntla

ETD Archive

Dairy industry is one of the major industries from which organic wastewater is produced and released into the water bodies. Textile industries also generate considerable amount of dye wastewater that effect the water quality standards. Various treatment techniques are adopted to treat the wastewater. Adsorption is one of the low-cost treatment processes to treat the textile and milk wastewater. This thesis focuses on the treatment of combined dye and milk wastewater using the process of adsorption. The treatment process is carried out by using three different types of low cost adsorbents Peanut-hull, Banana peel and Activated carbon. The effectiveness of …

Treatment Of Dye Wastewater Using Dehydrated Peanut Hull, Nikitha Shamirpet

ETD Archive

The release of dye waste water into environment causes harm to aquatic life when they reach drains or other water sources. They pollute the soil and causes change in cycles of plant and animal life through bio-accumulation and nutrient cycle. Dyes which form residue or precipitate causes mutations or changes in the DNA of living organisms in and around the area of release of the dye into atmosphere. In this thesis, several runs were attempted to treat the synthetically prepared dye waste water using dehydrated peanut hull. The initial dye waste water samples were all collected and checked for absorbance, …

Where There Is No Engineer Chapter 06, Liam Mccarton, Sean O'Hogain

Books/Book Chapters

This chapter summarises the learning outcomes from the design program.

Position Paper: Collaborative Research, Caitriona Quinn

Other resources

This position paper is written on the topic of collaborative learning and how it might improve the ability of students, specifically third level students, to achieve learning outcomes within the construct of a project-based module. It is the author’s position that this statement is true. The topic is be discussed in relation to two specific aspects within the topic, student motivation and achievement of learning outcomes. Collaborative learning is based in social constructivism learning theory, which says that learning is co-created in a social context by learners. This is in contrast to the transmission method of learning, typified by traditional-style …

A Comprehensive Method Of Calculating Maximum Bridge Scour Depth, Rupayan Saha, Seung Oh Lee, Seung Ho Hong

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Recently, the issues of scour around a bridge have become prominent because of the recurrent occurrence of extreme weather events. Thus, a bridge must be designed with the appropriate protection measures to prevent failure due to scour for the high flows to which it may be subjected during such extreme weather events. However, the current scour depth estimation by several recommended equations shows inaccurate results in high flow. One possible reason is that the current scour equations are based on experiments using free-surface flow even though extreme flood events can cause bridge overtopping flow in combination with submerged orifice flow. …

Numerical Analysis And Case Study On The Mitigation Of Mining Damage To The Floor Of No. 5 Coal Seam Of Taiyuan Group By Grouting, A. Li, Y. Liu, L. Mou, K. Li

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Based on the geological condition of panel 22507 of the no. 5 coal seam at Dongjiahe coal mine, numerical analysis of the stability and water permeability of the floor aquiclude before and after grouting was conducted using Rock Failure Process Analysis (F-RFPA2D). The dynamic development, extension, and distribution of the cracks in the aquiclude are discussed. It is shown that grouting can increase the effective thickness of the aquiclude, reduce the floor damage depth, and control the floor water inrush path, thus effectively improving the overall strength and water blocking capability of the aquiclude. These numerical study results were applied …

Reproducing Field Measurements Using Scaled-Down Hydraulic Model Studies In A Laboratory, Seung Oh Lee, Seung Ho Hong

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Little efforts have been made to the value of laboratory model study in closing the gap between results from idealized laboratory experiments and those from field data. Thus, at first, three bridge sites were selected and equipped with fathometers to find the bed elevation change in the vicinity of bridge pier over time. After and during the flooding, the stream flow variables and their bathymetry were measured using current viable technologies at the field. Then, to develop and suggest a laboratory modeling techniques, full three-dimensional physical models including measured river bathymetry and bridge geometry were designed and fabricated in a …

Value Of Water - Economic And Full Value - Michigan Tech University, Rabi Gyawali, Ali Mirchi, David Watkins

All ECSTATIC Materials

Lecture module on Economic and Full Value of water developed by Michigan Tech University (slides).

Lecture draws on two readings:

1. Brett Walton. (2010). The Price of Water: A Comparison of Water Rates, Usage in 30 U.S. Cities. April 26. Circle of Blue WaterNews. Available at: https://www.circleofblue.org/2010/world/the-price-of-water-a-comparison-of-water-rates-usage-in-30-u-s-cities/.
2. Peter Rogers, Radhika de Silva, Ramesh Bhatia. (2002) Water is an economic good: How to use prices to promote equity, efficiency, and sustainability, Water Policy, Volume 4, Issue 1, 2002, Pages 1-17, https://doi.org/10.1016/S1366-7017(02)00004-1.

Find a companion Jeopardy game -- test your knowledge about the readings, prices, economic values, full values, and more -- under …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Soil-Native Bacteria In Precipitating Calcite To Stabilize Expansive Soils, Bhaskar C. S. Chittoori, Malcolm Burbank, Md Touhidul Islam

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The use of chemical additives to stabilize expansive soils is a common practice. However, the environmental concerns associated with the greenhouse gas generation during the production of these chemicals have launched engineers in search of sustainable stabilization alternatives. Microbial induced calcite precipitation (MICP) is a bio-cementation technique that could be a potential solution to this problem. Typically, MICP is achieved via bio-augmentation; however, bio-stimulation was argued to be a more realistic alternative due to its field implementation potential. Hence, in this research study, two expansive soils with varying plasticity characteristics were examined to understand the potential of MICP in treating …

2018 Scholarly Productivity Report, Missouri University Of Science And Technology

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Scholarly Productivity Reports

No abstract provided.

Vertical Stress And Stability Of Interburden Over An Abandoned Pillar Working Before Upward Mining: A Case Study, Jinwen Bai, Guorui Feng, Shanyong Wang, Tingye Qi, Jian Yang, Jun Guo, Zhen Li, Xianjie Du, Zehua Wang, Yunlou Du, Yujiang Zhang

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Upward mining of the residual coal seam over an abandoned pillar working is one of the effective measures to alleviate the contradiction between limited resources and increased consumption. Interburden stability over an abandoned pillar working plays a significant role in guaranteeing the safety of upward mining; however, it has not yet been extensively studied and understood. In this study, the vertical stress of the interburden over an abandoned pillar working was first investigated. The mechanical model of the interburden was established and the damage conditions were analysed. Then, the stability of the interburden over 38502 abandoned workings in Baijiazhuang coal …

Hurricane Evacuation Modeling Using Behavior Models And Scenario-Driven Agent-Based Simulations, Yuan Zhu, Kun Xie, Kaan Ozbay, Hong Yang

Computational Modeling & Simulation Engineering Faculty Publications

Transportation modeling and simulation play an important role in the planning and management of emergency evacuation. It is often indispensable for the preparedness and timely response to extreme events occurring in highly populated areas. Reliable and robust agent-based evacuation models are of great importance to support evacuation decision making. Nevertheless, these models rely on numerous hypothetical causal relationships between the evacuation behavior and a variety of factors including socio-economic characteristics and storm intensity. Understanding the impacts of these factors on evacuation behaviors (e.g., destination and route choices) is crucial in preparing optimal evacuation plans. This paper aims to contribute to …

Revitalizing The Moment Distribution Method: A Fast And Exact Analysis Of Multibay, Multi-Story Frames., Jackson Kong, Simon Ho Fai Wong

Faculty of Science & Technology (THEi)

The conventional moment distribution method is revitalized with a new approach which requires only one-cycle of balance and carry-over and no iteration. For a continuous beam, the method begins by assuming the value of the balancing moment, say x, at the first joint. By invoking the moment equilibrium condition successively from the first towards the last joints, balancing and carry-over moments at other joints can be determined in terms of the unknown x without iteration. By means of moment equilibrium of the last joint, the unknown x can be solved exactly, regardless of the number of spans, and the final …

Enhancing The Crumb Rubber Modified Asphalt's Storage Stability Through The Control Of Its Internal Network Structure, Mohyeldin Ragab, Magdy Abdelrahman

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The current research investigated the effect of the internal network structure developed in the crumb rubber modified asphalt (CRMA) on its storage stability. The authors investigated the influence of asphalt-crumb rubber modifier (CRM) interaction parameters (interaction time, interaction speed, and interaction temperature) on the development of the internal network structure in CRMA. The authors found that the existence of three dimensional (3D) network structures in the CRMA enhanced its storage stability. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy was utilized to determine the nature of CRM components responsible for the development of 3D network structure in the liquid phase of CRMA. This …

Inspire Newsletter Spring 2018, Missouri University Of Science And Technology. Inspire - University Transportation Center

INSPIRE Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Evaluating The Application Of Microbial Induced Calcite Precipitation Technique To Stabilize Expansive Soils, Bhaskar Chittoori, Sikha Neupane

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Expansive soils, also known as swell-shrink soils have been a problem for civil infrastructures including roads and foundations from ancient times. The use of chemical additives such as cement and lime to stabilize expansive soils is a common practice among geotechnical engineers, especially for lightly loaded structures. However, several occurrences of subgrade failures have been observed after stabilizing with chemical additives. Hence, engineers are in search of sustainable stabilization alternatives. Microbial Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) is gaining attention as an environmentally friendly soil improvement technique. Several researchers have successfully tested its feasibility in mitigating liquefaction-induced problems in sandy soils. In …

Integrated Analysis Of The Value Of Wetland Services In Coastal Adaptation; Methodology And Case Study Of Hampton-Seabrook Estuary, New Hampshire, Paul Kirshen, Semra Aytur, David M. Burdick, Diane Foster, Tom Lippmann, Ellen Douglas, Sydney Nick, Chris Watson

Jackson Estuarine Laboratory

The present impacts from coastal storms and high tides grow significantly over time due to SLR even over the relatively short period to 2060. Hydrodynamic model simulations of storm surge with and without sea level rise scenarios show that although flooding and inundation increases with increasing subtidal forcing and higher sea level, dissipation of the tide and storm surge in the estuary channel somewhat limits the maximum inundation that might otherwise be expected in the back marsh areas. The estuary is dominated by high marsh, which lies high in the intertidal zone and by 2060 it will convert to mostly …

Mechanistic Insight Into The Degradation Of Nitrosamines Via Aqueous-Phase Uv Photolysis Or A Uv-Based Advanced Oxidation Process: Quantum Mechanical Calculations, Daisuke Minakata, Erica Coscarelli

Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geospatial Engineering Publications

Nitrosamines are a group of carcinogenic chemicals that are present in aquatic environments that result from byproducts of industrial processes and disinfection products. As indirect and direct potable reuse increase, the presence of trace nitrosamines presents challenges to water infrastructures that incorporate effluent from wastewater treatment. Ultraviolet (UV) photolysis or UV-based advanced oxidation processes that produce highly reactive hydroxyl radicals are promising technologies to remove nitrosamines from water. However, complex reaction mechanisms involving radicals limit our understandings of the elementary reaction pathways embedded in the overall reactions identified experimentally. In this study, we perform quantum mechanical calculations to identify the …

Effect Of Polypropylene Fiber Reinforcement On The Consolidation, Swell And Shrinkage Behavior Of Lime Blended Expansive Soil, Arif Ali Baig Moghal, Bhaskar C.S. Chittoori, B. Munwar Basha

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this article, synthetic fibers in the presence of lime stabilization are proposed as an alternative to overcome the issues related to shrink-swell distress in expansive soils. Two types of synthetic fibers, Fiber Cast® (FC) and Fiber Mesh® (FM), were studied by conducting one dimensional fixed ring Oedometer swell-consolidation and bar linear shrinkage tests. Three dosages (0.2, 0.4 and 0.6% percent by weight of soil) and two lengths of the fibers (6 and 12 mm) were evaluated with and without lime treatments. The results indicated that FC fibers had better swell restricting performance in the absence of lime treatment, while …

Rethinking Zoning For People: Utilizing The Concept Of The Village, Kevin Leyden, Lorraine D'Arcy

Other

In this chapter, we propose it is time to re-think and re-imagine how we approach zoning. This is especially true for suburban developments. Today, especially in the United States, zoning in suburban areas is being used to segregate and separate the component parts of our communities into distinct zones which are spread out geographically and in most cases require the daily use of an automobile. The negative consequences of this form of development for health, community and the environment are discussed. Using a study of neighborhoods in Dublin, Ireland and its suburbs we examine how professionals and the public view …

A Bioreactor For Conditioning Tissue Engineered Heart Valves, Claire Brougham, Francisco Almeida, Fergal J O'Brien

Other resources

No abstract provided.

Introducing A New Cement Hydration And Microstructure Model, Niall Holmes

Articles

This paper presents a new cement hydration model (HYDCEM) to predict the microstructure evolution of hydrating tricalcium silicate (C3S). The model is written in MATLAB and employs the continuum approach and integrated particle kinetics relationships to show the change in C3S and the growth of Calcium Silicate Hydrate (C-S-H) and Calcium Hydroxide (CH) in the pore space over time. Cement hydration is a highly complex process. While hydration models should never completely remove experimental analysis, they are an aid to better understand cement hydration and microstructure development by providing a method to analyse a large number of pastes with different …