Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Where To Park? The East Campus Dilemma, Matthew Lewis

James Madison Undergraduate Research Journal (JMURJ)

James Madison University's East Campus expansion has created parking problems. Student struggle to find a decent parking spot, sacrificing time to park and then perhaps more time to walk to class. This research project seeks answers to the parking problems on the east side of campus, specifically the Festival and Convocation lots. Should students spend time navigating the Festival lot looking for a spot or should they go directly to the Convocation lot? The data and research explain why the latter solution is much more efficient.

Development Of Bridge Girder Movement Criteria For Accelerated Bridge Construction, Genda Chen, Yi Bao

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

End diaphragms connect multiple girders to form a bridge superstructure system for effective resistance to earthquake loads. Concrete girder bridges that include end diaphragms consistently proved to perform well during previous earthquake events. However, whether concrete bridges without end diaphragms are definitively inadequate in seismic performance is yet to be answered. The 2010 Chile Earthquake indicated that properly designed bridge girders and their lateral movement stoppers (shear keys) may perform equally well with those with end diaphragms. In this report, a feasibility study on the design of girder bridges without end diaphragms is presented. This study is particularly significant in …

Usu Concrete Canoe, Promontory, Nathaniel Laurence Decker

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

In 1863, while the Civil War was dividing the East, a monumental project began in the West. Plans had been finalized for a railroad that would unify the country in commerce and migration. Two companies accepted the challenge of laying track across over 1700 miles of North American soil, from Sacramento, California to Omaha, Nebraska. The Union Pacific Railroad would come from the East and the Central Pacific Railroad from the West. Governor Leland Stanford of California broke ground for the project on January 8, 1863, and the line was finished at Promontory Summit, UT on May 10, 1869 (NPS, …

Labyrinth Weirs: A Look Into Geometric Variation And Its Effect On Efficiency And Design Method Predictions, Tyler Robert Seamons

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The rehabilitation of dams often requires spillway capacity upgrades. Replacing a less hydraulically efficient linear weir with a labyrinth weir can be an effective way to increase discharge efficiency (discharge at a given upstream head) for a fixed-width channel. Labyrinth weirs are linear weirs folded in plan view to increase total spillway crest length (which in turn increases discharge efficiency within a channel). Labyrinth weirs potentially have limitless geometric configurations. This study was performed to analyze the effects of varying certain geometric parameters on discharge efficiency and design method predictions.

Due to limited cross-sectional flow area near the upstream apex, …

Parametric Analysis Of Resilient Modulus Modeling For Recycled Asphalt Pavement In Base Layer, Ehab Noureldin, Magdy Abdelrahman

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The resilient modulus (M_R) has been found to be the most important parameter in the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG) for the base layer. A literature review showed that the use of recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) in the base layer had many economic and structural benefits. The prediction of M_R with the specific MEPDG model for the base layer mixed with RAP was found to be reliable for several field conditions. However, further studies of the MEPDG model are needed for an understanding of the physical meaning of each parameter in the model. The most important factor …

Transition Zone Design Final Report, Nikiforos Stamatiadis, Adam J. Kirk, Andrea Cull, Austin Dahlem

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The purpose of this report is to document the activities of the research effort and present the findings of the work accomplished. Transition zone is the area in which it is communicated to drivers that the roadway environment is changing (i.e., from rural to built-up) and that their speed should change as well. This study evaluated treatments that could advise drivers to this. Based on the study findings, it is recommended to add additional speed warning sites to such transition zones.

Tools For Applying Constructability Concepts To Project Development (Design), Nikiforos Stamatiadis, Paul Goodrum, Emily Shocklee, Roy Sturgill, Chen Wang

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The purpose of this report is to document the activities of Phases I and II of the research effort and present the findings of the work accomplished. Phase I developed the Constructability Review Database for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and Phase II conducted a benefit analysis of the constructability review process. The database provides the basis for entry and collection of constructability reviews and allows for the identification of trends leading to potential improvements of the process. The database can be used to summarize activities, generate reports for a project, and be capable of quantifying the benefits from the process. …

A Methodology For Designing Pervious Bicycle Lanes For Stormwater Management, Donald West Iii

All Theses

Bicycles have proven to be an efficient and reliable form of transportation in urban settings. Therefore, the addition of bicycle lanes into the transportation network could significantly impact and improve the sustainability of our infrastructure by reducing greenhouse emissions and improving the health of individuals who cycle on a regular basis. Pervious pavements are an approved (LID) strategy that could potentially be used to construct these new facilities thereby reducing the quantity of stormwater runoff and improving the water quality. Practicing engineers need both a design aid and research supported methods for designing these improvements before they can be fully …

Biodiesel Reactor Design With Glycerol Separation To Increase Biodiesel Production Yield, Budy Rahmat, Imas Siti Setiasih, Roni Kastaman

Makara Journal of Technology

The study consisted of reactor design used for transesterification process, effect of glycerol separation on transesterification reaction, determination of biodiesel quality, and mass balance analysis. The reactor was designed by integrating circulated pump/stirrer, static mixer, and sprayer that intensify the reaction in the outer tank reactor. The objective was to reduce the use of methanol in excess and to shorten the processing time. The results showed that the reactor that applied the glycerol separation was able to compensate for the decreased use of the reactant methanol from 6:1 to 5:1 molar ratio, and changed the mass balance in the product, …

Scale Of Fluctuation Of Geotechnical Parameters Estimated From Cptu And Laboratory Test Data, Site Onyejekwe, Louis Ge

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

For a complete probabilistic characterization of a geotechnical parameter, its mean, variance, and the scale of fluctuation have to be known. While the mean and variance can be easily determined, determination of the scale of fluctuation is a little more complex. Knowledge of the scale of fluctuation is important in reliability-based design as it is used in implementing spatial averaging and computing the variance-reduction factor. Published values of scale of fluctuation of geotechnical parameters are based on widely sourced data and hence may not be most appropriate for local situations. Based on 11 CPTu soundings and laboratory test results of …

Tools For Applying Constructability Concepts To Project Development (Design), Nikiforos Stamatiadis, Paul Goodrum, Emily Shocklee, Chen Wang

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The purpose of this report is to document the activities of Phase I of the research effort and present the development of the Constructability Review Database developed for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. The database provides the basis for entry and collection of constructability reviews and allows for the identification of trends leading to potential improvements of the process. The database can be used to summarize activities, generate reports for a project, and be capable of quantifying the benefits from the process.

Efficient Prestressed Concrete–Steel Composite Girder For Medium-Span Bridges, Yaohua Deng

Department of Construction Engineering and Management: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In this dissertation, a new Prestressed Concrete-Steel Composite (PCSC) girder system is introduced. The PCSC girder is composed of a lightweight W-shape steel section with shear studs on its top and bottom flanges to achieve composite action with the pretensioned concrete bottom flange and the cast-in-place concrete deck. The PCSC girder is lightweight, economical, durable and easy to fabricate. To prove its feasibility and potential, this study is to investigate design and fabrication issues associated with the PCSC girder. A service design procedure is proposed using Age-adjusted Elasticity Modulus Method (AEMM) to evaluate the time-dependent stresses and strains in the …

Implementation, Design, And Cost Analysis Of A Concrete Washout System, Omar Adina

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

With the increase of environmental pollution in today’s world, many strategies and regulations are being enforced. These enforcements come from the state and federal governments, but public awareness is often overlooked. Stormwater regulations here in California have dramatically changed over the last decade, as the topic is investigated more often.

This senior project encompassed the design prototype and cost analysis of a permanent concrete washout station for the BioResource and Agricultural Engineering Department at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. The design parameters given were to construct a steel bin for the excess concrete to be dumped into during …

Concrete Design For Traffic Application, Marc Shields

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Inductive charging of electronic devices is a newer technology that is capable of transferring electrical power without physical contact through wiring. Research is currently being done to find and improve ways to implement this technology on electric cars. If this type of technology pas implemented on a large scale throughout much of the country, electrical or hybrid cars could travel across counties and states without depleting their batteries.

The current problem with electric cars is that they have a limited range of travel. Even with larger batteries with much more capacitance, the range of pure electric cars usually does not …

Green Transportation For A Green Earth, Petros J. Katsioloudis, Mildred V. Jones

STEMPS Faculty Publications

Transportation is one of the biggest contributors to the destruction of the environment. Results from environmental research and pursuant governmental regulations are changing the way companies do business and how transportation systems address the future. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been at the forefront in leading environmental research and instituting policies and regulations to fight the issues impacting the environment. The transportation industry and consumers alike are concerned about the environment, energy resources, efficiencies, and economics. In this article, the authors suggest that it is vital that people promote the protection of the environment and strengthen the laws that …

Fourier Finite Element Analysis Of Laterally Loaded Piles In Elastic Media Internal Geotechnical Report 2011-1, William Higgins, Dipanjan Basu

Technical Reports

Laterally loaded piles are analyzed using the Fourier finite element method. Pile response was observed to be a function of the relative stiffness of pile and soil and of the pile slenderness ratio. The analysis is mostly performed for piles embedded in elastic soil with constant and linearly varying modulus although the pile response in two-layer soil profiles is also investigated. Equations describing pile head deflection, rotation and maximum bending moment are proposed for flexible long piles and stubby rigid piles. The design equations were developed after plotting the pile responses as functions of pile-soil stiffness ratio and pile slenderness …

A Case Study Analysis Of The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’S Design/Build Pilot Projects, Paul M. Goodrum, Mohammad Moin Uddin, Bradley J. Faulkenberg

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The current economic climate has forced transportation agencies to evaluate opportunities to save money. One possible opportunity lies in Design/Build (DB) delivery. In 2006, with the approval of the Kentucky General Assembly, The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet selected ten projects to be developed through the Design/Build method. DB delivery offers many attainable advantages, the most notable being expedited delivery. The research described herein presents a case study of these DB pilot projects in order to capture lessons learned on the use of the DB delivery method on future projects. In order to determine which projects are suitable for DB delivery, a …

Variability Analysis Of Undrained Shear Strength For Reliability-Based Design, Site Onyejekwe, Xin Kang, Louis Ge, Richard Wesley Stephenson

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Description of the Spatial Variation of Compositional and Mechanical Soil Parameters is Often Paramount in Site Characterization of Geotechnical Design and Analysis. the Values of the Parameters Themselves Largely Depend on In-Situ State Factors Which Are Related to Spatial Locations. Also, for Large-Scale Engineering Projects Such as Earth Dams or Highways, It is Generally Expected that Heterogeneous Site Characteristics Will Be Revealed by Investigations at Spatially Distant Locations. Currently, Most Reliability-Based Design Methods Are based on the Second-Moment Statistics (Mean and Variance). However, They Are Unable to Adequately Describe the Spatial Variation of Soil Properties. in This Paper, Spatial Correlation …

Design Mentoring Tool, Bob Mccullouch, Walter Land

JTRP Technical Reports

In 2004 a design engineer on-line mentoring tool was developed and implemented The purpose of the tool was to assist senior engineers mentoring new engineers to the INDOT design process and improve their technical competency. This approach saves senior engineers time while developing a consistent mentoring approach and standardizing technical knowledge in road and bridge design. It is a self-guided tool that utilizes multi-media and web-based technologies, trains engineers in the design process and provides resources to use for developing plans and specifications. Available resources include INDOT design practices, design standards, design memos, specification and construction standards, procedures, and check …

Optimal Design Of Work Zone Median Crossovers, Karen Schurr, Brian R. Garnder, Shashwat Rijal

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

No abstract provided.

Design Aids Of Nu I-Grinder Bridges, Kromel Hanna, George Morcous, Maher K. Tadros

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

No abstract provided.

Slides: Innovative Best Practices For The Western Slope: Stormwater Management Solutions And Philosophy For The Oil And Gas Industry, Kyle N. Schildt

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Kyle N. Schildt, P.E., LT Environmental, Inc.

12 slides

Design And Applications Of Drilled Displacement (Screw) Piles, Prasenjit Basu, Monica Prezzi

JTRP Technical Reports

Drilled displacement (DD) piles (commonly known as „screw piles‟ in Europe) are being increasingly used as foundation elements for structures, particularly in projects requiring accelerated construction or involving the rehabilitation of foundations of existing, overstressed structures. Different types of DD piles are available in practice; each type is classified according to the design of the drilling tool and associated installation method. Installation of DD piles causes substantial changes in the state of the soil surrounding the pile. These changes result from the complex loading imposed on the soil by expansion of a cylindrical cavity to make room for the specially …

Verification Of Lrfd Bridge Design And Analysis Software For Indot, Amit H. Varma, Jungil Seo

JTRP Technical Reports

NCHRP Process 12-50 was implemented to evaluate and verify composite steel I-girder bridge design software used commonly in Indiana. A test-bed of twenty one bridges was developed with the guidance from an Indiana Department of Transportation appointed research advisory panel (RAP). The test-bed included five simple-span and sixteen multi-span bridge superstructures. More than 80 parameters were required to define a bridge and they include bridge span, girder spacing, number of beams, section type, steel strength, girder sections, and other required bridge parameters. Some of these parameters were initially selected by INDOT and practitioners.

An indigenous computer program PURDUE CSBD was …

Embodied Energy Analysis: A Sustainable Construction Design Assessment Tool, Adolf Acquaye, Aidan Duffy, Biswajit Basu

Conference Papers

Embodied energy analysis can be used as a construction design assessment tool in a sustainable matrix for a building. Its implementation however remains challenging mainly because of data measurement errors. A comparison between the deterministic embodied energy (EE) of a building and the stochastic EE of the same building undertaken using Monte Carlo simulation showed a wide variation in results. It is recommended that the specification of EE intensity of building materials in the construction industry can assist in producing accurate and more credible EE values of building.

Mechanistic-Empirical Modeling In Network-Level Pavement Management, Scott Schram, Magdy Abdelrahman

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Researchers and practitioners have long recognized the advantages of mechanistic modeling. As agencies implement the Guide for Mechanistic-Empirical Design of New and Rehabilitated Pavement Structures [referred to as the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG)] in the local project-level pavement management system (PMS), its potential as a planning tool in network-level analyses remains unrecognized. A unique, large-scale application of MEPDG is presented. The Nebraska Department of Roads uses a decision tree that systematically screens and identifies candidates for entry into a multiyear optimization program. The process uses linear deterioration rates that have been shown to provide an R² value as …

Optimization Model For National Water Master Planning: Design And Documentation, Richard C. Peralta

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Physical distribution system and Balancing and Allocation and Transfer modules descriptors.

Greenometer-7: A Tool To Assess The Sustainability Of A Building's Life Cylce At The Conceptual Design Phase, Muhammad Musa Mer'eb

ETD Archive

This study presents a tool that has been developed to measure and subsequently improve the sustainability performance of a building over its entire life-cycle while still at the conceptual design stage. This forecasting tool is called GREENOMETER-7. GREENOMETER-7 is a LCA tool and it evaluates the projected building at two levels: micro- and macro-assessment. The micro-assessment level provides in-depth analysis of the building products, components, and operations however, the macro-assessment level measures the sustainability performance of the building as a whole and covers areas that are not applicable at the product or component level. Both levels consist of categories and …

Resilient Modulus Of Compacted Crushed Stone Aggregate Bases, Tommy C. Hopkins, Tony L. Beckham, Charlie Sun

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

In recent years, the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO) has recommended the use of resilient modulus for characterizing highway materials for pavement design. This recommendation evolved as result of a trend in pavement design of using mechanistic models. Although much progress has been made in recent years in developing mathematical, mechanistic pavement design models, results obtained from those models are only as good as the material parameters used in the models. Resilient modulus of aggregate bases is an important parameter in the mechanistic models. The main goal of this study was to establish a simple and efficient …

Buckling-Restrained Braced Frame Connection Design And Testing, Bradly B. Coy

Theses and Dissertations

As typically designed, the beam-column-brace connections of buckling-restrained braced steel frames have undesirable failure modes that compromise the integrity and performance of the frames and are costly to repair. To decrease the time and resources needed to repair the frames following an earthquake, a new connection design was developed that attempts to confine yielding to replaceable frame components. The design incorporates a gap in the beam beyond the edge of the beam-gusset weld that acts as a hinge and reduces moment forces transferred to the connection; it is bridged by splice plates that are bolted to the beam top flanges. …