Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Development Of Guidelines For Collecting Transit Ridership Data, Hong Yang, Kun Xie, Sherif Ishak, Qingyu Ma, Yang Liu

Computational Modeling & Simulation Engineering Faculty Publications

Transit ridership is a critical determinant for many transit applications such as operation optimizations and project prioritization under performance-based funding mechanisms. As a result, the quality of ridership data is of utmost importance to both transit administrative agencies and transit operators. Many transit operators in Virginia report their ridership data to the Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) and the National Transit Database (NTD). However, with no specific guidelines available to transit agencies in Virginia for collecting ridership data, the heterogeneous mixture of diverse data collection methods and technologies has often raised concerns about the consistency and quality of …

Recent Advances In Carbon Dioxide Geological Storage, Experimental Procedures, Influencing Parameters, And Future Outlook, Muhammad Ali, Nilesh Kumar Jha, Nilanjan Pal, Alireza Keshavarz, Hussein Hoteit, Mohammad Sarmadivaleh

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The oxidation of fossil fuels produces billions of tons of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from stationary and nonstationary sources per annum, contributing to global warming. The natural carbon cycle consumes a portion of CO₂ emissions from the atmosphere. In contrast, substantial CO₂ emissions accumulate, making it the largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and causing a rise in the planet's temperature. The Earth's temperature was estimated to be 1 °C higher in 2017 compared to the mid-twentieth century. A solution to this problem is CO₂ storage in underground formations, abundant throughout the world. Millions …

Developing Mix Proportions For Class C Fly Ash-Based Alkali-Activated 3d-Printed Concrete Mixtures, Fareh Abudawaba, Eslam Gomaa, Ahmed Gheni, Mohamed Elgawady

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This study investigated the use of class C fly ash (FA) as a precursor for alkali-activated mortar (AAM) for 3D-printed concrete (3DPC). AAMs with different water-to-FA (W/FA), alkaline activator-to-FA (Alk/FA), and sodium silicate-to-sodium hydroxide (SS/SH) ratios were examined to develop mixtures that can be tailored for different structural applications of 3DPC. The fresh properties, including extrudability and buildability, were evaluated through the open time (OT) and immediate deformation tests, respectively. Different cycle times (CTs) were applied to achieve a strain limit state necessary to maintain the printed shape. The strength of AAMs in different directions at different CTs was examined. …

Viscosity Modifying Agents: Key Components Of Advanced Cement-Based Materials With Adapted Rheology, Hela Bessaies-Bey, Kamal Khayat, Marta Palacios, Wolfram Schmidt, Nicolas Roussel

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Viscosity modifying agents (VMAs) are essential ingredients for the production of flowable cement-based materials. This paper presents an overview of commonly used VMAs and attempts to shed some light on the underlying physics at the origin of their mechanisms of action. The main molecular parameters of VMA controlling the rheological properties of the cement pore solution are highlighted. As the mechanisms of action of VMAs in cement-based materials are closely related to their affinity with the surface of cement particles, the adsorption of the main VMA types is discussed. The effect of VMAs on flow properties and stability of cement-based …

Management Of Change Orders In Infrastructure Transportation Projects, Rayan H. Assaad, Muaz O. Ahmed, Islam H. El-Adaway, Pramen P. Shrestha

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) will handle many upcoming projects due to the recent statewide infrastructure strategic plan and the fast-track efforts affecting many infrastructure projects amid COVID-19. Nevertheless, many change orders are anticipated to occur on IDOT's projects. Thus, this paper examines the proper contractual management of changes within IDOT infrastructure transportation projects by following a research method based on the integration between a desktop analysis and a focus group analysis. The desktop analysis involved collecting information and data from existing resources, case studies, and documents related to change orders. The focus group analysis involved consulting with change …

Blast Analysis Of Steel-Plate Composite Slabs: Sdof And Fem Analyses, Joshua R. Harmon, Amit H. Varma

Bowen Laboratory Research Reports

Steel-plate composite (SC) members have emerged as competitive construction methods for tall buildings and nuclear power plants. Detailed design guidance has been created for these functions and design of these members is now covered in AISC 341-16 and ASIC N690-18. However, SC members are emerging for use in protective structures to withstand blast and impact loads. Although experimental tests of SC members for blast resistant design have been conducted, design of SC members for blast loads has not been addressed in existing design references for blast loadings (UFC 3-340-02). This report details a general design philosophy for blast loaded SC …

Characteristics And Assessing Biological Risks Of Airborne Bacteria In Waste Sorting Plant, Abbas Norouzian Baghani, Somayeh Golbaz, Gholamreza Ebrahimzadeh, Marcelo I. Guzman, Mahdieh Delikhoon, Mehdi Jamshidi Rastani, Abdullah Barkhordari, Ramin Nabizadeh

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Examining the concentration and types of airborne bacteria in waste paper and cardboard sorting plants (WPCSP) is an urgent matter to inform policy makers about the health impacts on exposed workers. Herein, we collected 20 samples at 9 points of a WPCSP every 6 winter days, and found that the most abundant airborne bacteria were positively and negatively correlated to relative humidity and temperature, respectively. The most abundant airborne bacteria (in units of CFU m⁻³) were: Staphylococcus sp. (72.4) > Micrococcus sp. (52.2) > Bacillus sp. (30.3) > Enterococcus sp. (24.0) > Serratia marcescens (20.1) > E. coli (19.1) > Pseudomonas sp. (16.0) > Nocardia …

Essai Sur Le Terrain Du Mini Pipe Strain Meter Du Jniosh Comme Système D’Alerte De Sécurité Lors Des Travaux En Tranchée, André Lan, Bertrand Galy, Satoshi Tamate, Tomohito Hori, Nabutaka Hiraoka

Rapports de recherche scientifique

Les travaux en tranchée exposent les travailleurs à de nombreux risques. Le risque d'effondrement est le plus important et le plus fréquent lors de tels travaux, mais il est malheureusement très souvent sous-estimé, car même un effondrement mineur ou partiel de moins de 1 m3 de sol peut mortellement blesser un travailleur. L'analyse de 59 rapports de la Commission des normes, de l'équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST) concernant des accidents graves et mortels survenus lors de travaux d'excavation et en tranchée réalisés entre juin 1973 et mai 2015 montre qu'il y a eu 51 …

Field Test Of The Jniosh Mini Pipe Strain Meter As A Safety Alert System During Trench Work, André Lan, Bertrand Galy, Satoshi Tamate, Tomohito Hori, Nabutaka Hiraoka

Rapports de recherche scientifique

Les travaux en tranchée exposent les travailleurs à de nombreux risques. Le risque d'effondrement est le plus important et le plus fréquent lors de tels travaux, mais il est malheureusement très souvent sous-estimé, car même un effondrement mineur ou partiel de moins de 1 m3 de sol peut mortellement blesser un travailleur. L'analyse de 59 rapports de la Commission des normes, de l'équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST) concernant des accidents graves et mortels survenus lors de travaux d'excavation et en tranchée réalisés entre juin 1973 et mai 2015 montre qu'il y a eu 51 …

Flexural Strengthening Of Rc Slabs Using Near Surface Mounted Gfrp Bars, Sama Taha

Theses and Dissertations

Glass Fiber reinforced polymers (GFRPs) have been recently successfully used to increase reinforced concrete elements' strength. In general, FRPs have many advantages such as resistance to corrosion, and high strength-to-weight ratio. On the other hand, debonding from concrete may constitute a limitation to using GFRP bars; hence the increase in strength of RC elements strengthened using GFRP bars may be limited by this premature debonding failure mechanism.

This study aims to investigate the strengthening effect of GFRP bars on the capacity of RC slabs when subject to flexure loading. The work studies the use of different bonding lengths, diameters and …

Strengthening Of Long Rc Columns Using Near Surface Mounted Gfrp Bars, Ahmed Romaih

Theses and Dissertations

Many of the existing reinforced concrete (RC) columns are deficient because of numerous reasons such as increase in service loads, deterioration due to environmental attacks, errors in the design and/or construction phase or in the worst case, accidents. These elements require strengthening or repair. Different methods have been developed over the years for solving different rehabilitation problems. Recently, advanced composites used for external bonding in the form of fabrics or laminates have become an accepted method. The use of Fibre-Reinforced Polymers (FRPs) in this process is a promising technology, especially that these materials are corrosion-free. One of the new techniques …

Rework Prediction On A Construction Site Through Bim & Ann Integration, Raghda Attia

Theses and Dissertations

Construction Rework is a common and widespread issue in the construction industry that has a detrimental impact on the project performance, whether in terms of schedule delay or cost overrun. Developments in Building Information Modelling (BIM) have aided in the resolution of coordination issues, which are thought to be one of the leading sources of rework particularly during the construction stage. Nevertheless, the majority of research has focused on resolving coordination issues during the design stage with minimum regard to the coordination issues that occur during the construction stage. In a BIM environment, the goal of this research is to …

A Quality Management System Implementation Framework For Contracting Companies In Egypt, Noha Elsokhn

Theses and Dissertations

Customer dissatisfaction due to low quality and performance in developing countries is more notable than technical construction failures. In order to enhance the corporate-level quality, which is reflected later in project-level metrics, quality management systems (QMS) are developed and applied. A quality management system (QMS) defines the organization's structure, processes, procedures, and responsibilities to achieve quality policies and objectives. Successful implementation of a QMS improves service quality, organization performance, and customer satisfaction. Previous research widely explored QMS implementation in different industries; only a few studies focused on the implementation and its influential factors in the construction industry, especially in developing …

Project Leanness Score: A Machine Learning Approach, Julia Said

Theses and Dissertations

The construction industry is known to have several inadequacies in resource utilization leading to cost and schedule overruns. One of the popular recent methods that attempts to eliminate these inadequacies is lean construction principles, techniques and tools. Lean construction is a philosophy, backed with principles and tools, aiming at maximizing value, eliminating waste, optimizing efficiency, and seeking continuous improvement. Lean construction techniques (such as pull planning, just-in-time delivery, fail safe for quality, etc.) are widely researched and well developed. However, their implementation in construction sites is tricky as their success depends on several other factors such as the level of …

Mathematical Modeling And Optimization Of Water Efficiency In Residential Buildings, Mahmoud Amin

Theses and Dissertations

Water scarcity is a global issue that is rapidly worsening. The domestic sector is one of the fastest-growing segments of world water usage. Many researchers have explored various approaches to promote sustainable uses of water, with Greywater (GW) recycling and utilization of innovative plumbing fixtures among the methods presented to reduce freshwater consumption for domestic usage. Nonetheless, previous studies have dealt with both means independently, with limited analysis of the integrated effect of utilizing GW recycling with innovative plumbing fixtures, both on quality of supplied water, as well as on cost of the integrated system. Accordingly, this research aims at …

Final Bid Price Estimation For Negotiated Contracts: Bargaining Game Theory Approach, Amr El Mahallaoui

Theses and Dissertations

The wide use of the low bid method by employers for awarding construction contracts has created an aggressively competitive environment among contractors in the construction industry. As a result, a contractor may resort to use a low mark-up percentage for his bid to increase his chances of winning, which may lead to losses and conflicts in case he is awarded the project. Additionally, a contractor who reaches the final negotiations stage for a certain project is faced by the dilemma of the minimum discount percentage he may need to offer to the employer that maximizes his chance to win the …

Impact Of Rapid Urbanization, Climate Change, And Drainage Design On Urban Flash Floods In New Cairo, Egypt, Bassma Taher Hassan

Theses and Dissertations

Urban flooding is considered one of the most hazardous disasters in metropolitan areas, which causes growing risk on people’s lives, infrastructure and environment. Egypt witnessed an unprecedent extreme rainfall event in 2020 that caused more than four hundred injuries and major damage in properties and infrastructures affecting the economic and social aspects adversely. This was not the first extreme rainfall event causing catastrophic implications, over the past 5 years, New Cairo have been experiencing intense rainfall events almost every year that put the community in jeopardy. This research intends to investigate the main drivers prompting urban flash floods in New …

Long Short-Term Memory Based Subsurface Drainage Control For Rainfall-Induced Landslide Prevention, Aynaz Biniyaz, Behnam Azmoon, Ye Sun, Zhen Liu

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Subsurface drainage has been widely accepted to mitigate the hazard of landslides in areas prone to flooding. Specifically, the use of drainage wells with pumping systems has been recognized as an effective short-term solution to lower the groundwater table. However, this method has not been well considered for long-term purposes due to potentially high labor costs. This study aims to investigate the idea of an autonomous pumping system for subsurface drainage by leveraging con-ventional geotechnical engineering solutions and a deep learning technique—Long-Short Term Memory (LSTM)—to establish a geotechnical cyber-physical system for rainfall-induced landslide prevention. For this purpose, a typical soil …

A Global Survey Of Infection Control And Mitigation Measures For Combating The Transmission Of Covid-19 Pandemic In Buildings Under Facilities Management Services, Hadi Sarvari, Zhen Chen, Daniel W. M. Chan, Ellyn A. Lester, Nordin Yahaya, Hala Nassereddine, Aynaz Lotfata

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications

Facilities management along with health care are two important aspects in controlling the spread of infectious diseases with regard to controlling the outbreak of global COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, with the increasing outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, the importance of examining the relationship between the built environment and the outbreak of infectious diseases has become more significant. The aim of the research described in this article is to develop effective infection control and mitigation measures to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 pandemic in the built environment. This study seeks to answer the question of how the facilities management industry can help reduce …

A Global Survey Of Infection Control And Mitigation Measures For Combating The Transmission Of Covid-19 Pandemic In Buildings Under Facilities Management Services, Hadi Savari, Zhen Chen, Daniel W. M. Chan, Ellyn A. Lester, Nordin Bin Yahaya, Hala Nassereddine, Aynaz Lotfata

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications

Facilities management along with health care are two important aspects in controlling the spread of infectious diseases with regard to controlling the outbreak of global COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, with the increasing outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, the importance of examining the relationship between the built environment and the outbreak of infectious diseases has become more significant. The aim of the research described in this article is to develop effective infection control and mitigation measures to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 pandemic in the built environment. This study seeks to answer the question of how the facilities management industry can help reduce …

A Comprehensive Evaluation Of Wastewater Grit Characteristics And Its Application In The Design Of A Facility-Specific Grit Removal Solution, Tetiana Kolsovska

Theses and Dissertations

Tailored solutions for wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are becoming more prevalent for optimization of treatment process, based on the unique quality of the influent received by each facility. In-depth evaluation of the influent properties is necessary for design of the most appropriate treatment system. In this study, wastewater grit was evaluated in terms of its quantity, particle size distribution, total organic carbon (TOC) content, including fats, oils, and grease (FOG), and settling velocity of the particles, over the course of one year at the headworks, collection network, and through the treatment stages of the Atlantic County Utilities Authority (ACUA) WWTP, …

Kinetic Study Of The Anaerobic Digestion Of Recycled Paper Mill Effluent (Rpme) By Using A Novel Modified Anaerobic Hybrid Baffled (Mahb) Reactor, Siti Roshayu Hassan, Yung-Tse Hung, Irvan Dahlan, Hamidi Abdul Aziz

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

The process kinetics of an anaerobic digestion process for treating recycled paper mill effluent (RPME) was investigated. A laboratory-scale modified anaerobic hybrid baffled reactor (MAHB) was operated at hydraulic retention times of 1, 3, 5, and 7 days, and the results were analyzed for the kinetic models. A kinetic study was conducted by examining the phase kinetics of the anaerobic digestion process, which were divided into three main stages: hydrolysis kinetics, acetogenesis kinetics, and methane production kinetics. The study demonstrated that hydrolysis was the rate-limiting step. The applied Monod and Contois kinetic models showed satisfactory prediction with µmax values of …

Examining The Effect Of A Chitosan Biopolymer On Alkali-Activated Inorganic Material For Aqueous Pb(Ii) And Zn(Ii) Sorption, Sukanta K. Mondal, Chenglin Wu, Felix C. Nwadire, Ali A. Rownaghi, Aditya Kumar, Yusuf Adewuyi, Monday Uchenna Okoronkwo

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Biopolymers and alkali-activated materials have attracted a great deal of attention as adsorbents for the removal of heavy metal contaminants from aqueous solutions. Both materials are sustainable and feature unique properties, but biopolymers are relatively more expensive or difficult to prepare and exhibit low mechanical and surface properties, a narrow pH range, and thermal stability. In this study, hybrid adsorbents were prepared from both types of material, by alkali activation of low-cost fly ash precursors accompanied by incorporation of 0-2%mass chitosan biopolymer. Two types of alkaline activating solutions, NaOH and Na2SiO3, were employed to generate two sets of hybrid adsorbents …

Numerical Investigation On Blast Response Of Cold-Formed Steel Framing Protected With Functionally Graded Composite Material, Elias Ali

Faculty Scholarship

This paper presents a numerical simulation on the blast response of cold-formed steel (CFS) structural framing system protected with a functionally graded composite material (FGM) panel. The steel frame consists of four CFS studs, which were protected by 12.5 mm thick gypsum, aluminum composite, and FGM composite materials on both sides. The numerical simulation was performed using ABAQUS on a 1.8 m × 2.4 m, overall wall panel exposed to air blast on one side. A 1.0 kg TNT explosive charge placed at four standoff distances (R) of 1.0 m, 1.5 m, 2.0 m, and 2.5 m from the framing …

Strategic Energy Master Planning For Carbon Neutrality, Marie Patterson

CSU Journal of Sustainability and Climate Change

Universities across the United States are generating goals to be more sustainable and carbon neutral. The energy used in existing buildings on campuses amount to a large volume of greenhouse emissions and must be reduced to help achieve neutrality goals. Strategic Energy Master Plans are instrumental to support these goals through the development of recommendations to reduce energy. Calculating the energy use intensity for existing buildings, a main component of a Strategic Energy Master Plan, can help the campus understand where energy is being used the most. With this information the highest energy consuming buildings can be the focus of …

Modeling Vapor Transfer In Soil Water And Heat Simulations: A Modularized, Partially-Coupled Approach, Zhuangji Wang, Dennis Timlin, David Fleisher, Wenguang Sun, Sahila Beegum, Sanai Li, Ya Chen, Vandimalla R. Reddy, Katherine Tully, Robert Horton

Nebraska Water Center: Faculty Publications

Coupled water and heat transfer models are widely used to analyze soil water content and temperature dynamics, evaluate agricultural management systems, and support crop growth modelling. In relatively dry soils, vapor transfer, rather than liquid water flux, becomes the main pathway for water redistribution. However, in some modularized soil simulators, e.g., 2DSOIL (Timlin et al., 1996), vapor transfer is not included, which may induce errors in soil water and heat modelling. Directly embedding vapor transfer into existing water and heat transfer modules may violate the modularized architecture of those simulators. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to design a …

Generalized Cost-Effectiveness Of Residential Wind Mitigation Strategies For Wood-Frame, Single Family House In The Usa, Fatemeh Orooji, Carol J. Friedland, Rose Dominic Savio, Arash Taghinezhad, Carol C. Massarra, Nazla Bushra, Robert V. Rohli

Faculty Publications

Wind is one of the deadliest and most expensive hazards in the United States. Wind hazards cause significant damage to buildings and economic losses to homeowners. Economic losses average approximately $3.8 billion annually from hurricane winds and are not decreasing, even despite enhanced construction practices to reduce wind damage. Thus, the effectiveness of mitigation strategies should be evaluated in order to lower the cost incurred by this hazard. Several studies have suggested building code improvements to mitigate the wind hazard, this additional comprehensive research provides selecting economically beneficial mitigation strategies to consider in building code revisions. In a step toward …

Conceptual Framework To Integrate Economic Drivers Of Decision Making For Technology Adoption In Agriculture, Thiago L. Romanelli, Francisco Muñoz-Arriola, Andre F. Colaço

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

This study evaluates how much technology adoption could cost in a variety of crop-production scenarios. Cost-reduction simulations consider scenarios of higher input use efficiency such as reducing the usage of diesel, labor, irrigation, fertilizer, herbicide, and seed, among others. The scenarios aim to increase yields by integrating the effect of each input-reduction on the total operating costs. Agricultural production estimates for Nebraska in the US indicates that a technology that saves 1% of diesel is cost-effective, costing between USD 0.15/ha and USD 0.32/ha (for corn). Improvements on input use efficiency should be prioritized to incentivize technology development and adoption. This …

The Impact Of New Light Rail Service On Employment Growth In Portland, Oregon, Lahar Santra

Dissertations and Theses

This study quantitatively examines the impact of the new Light Rail Transit (LRT) service on employment growth in retail, knowledge, and service sectors before and after opening the LRT. At the corridor level, this study conducts a case study of Greenline in Southeast Portland, Oregon. The results of the corridor level study suggest that the new LRT service increased employment along the Greenline corridor among all the three sectors of interest- retail, knowledge, service in the long-term (ten years) while having slightly different results for the short-term (five years), likely due to the slow growth of LRT benefits. This study …

Collaborative Environmental Approach For Development Of The Lower Laguna Madre Estuary Program Strategic Plan In South Texas, Javier Guerrero, Ahmed Mahmoud, Taufiqul Alam, Augusto Sanchez, Kim D. Jones, Andrew Ernest

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications

The National Estuary Program (NEP) is a promising eco-system based approach to improve the water quality and ecological integrity of estuaries of national importance in the United States. Due to population growth and concomitant development pressure in South Texas, the future of the Lower Laguna Madre (LLM) without an estuary program is problematic. The development of a management plan for the LLM will enable the region to develop local solutions to local problems. The fundamental purpose of this research was to develop a strategic plan for the foundation of the Laguna Madre Estuary Program of the Gulf Coast of Texas. …