Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Mechanical And Deformation Behavior Of Silt Reinforced With Wicking Geotextile: An Experimental Study, Yipeng Guo, Yiyong Xue, Yongjie Zhang, Wei Ruan, Yafeng Li, Xiong Zhang, Zhili Han

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Silt is widely utilized as a filling material in transportation construction, However, it frequently suffers from problems, such as excess pore water pressure buildup, settlement, and mud pumping. Wicking geotextiles have emerged as a sustainable solution by improving both drainage and reinforcement capacities, yet their optimal design parameters remain unclear. To address this gap, a series of tests were performed to investigate the effects of compaction degree, reinforcement configuration (number, spacing, position), and specimen geometry on the mechanical and consolidation of silt reinforced with wicking geotextiles. The results reveal that the failure mechanism of reinforced silt progresses through four distinct …

Technological Schemes For Recycling Used Mineral Oils Carbon-Based Adsorbents Derived From Petroleum Coke, Jaloliddin Sharafiddinovich Bakhtiyorov, Vais Narzullaevich Juraev, Mirzhalol Nuriddinovich Norpulatov

Technical science and innovation

Currently, the demand for mineral oils used in engine vehicles and transformers is increasing year by year worldwide. Additionally, a significant portion of used oils is burned as fuel. At present, the contact method is widely used for oil regeneration with the help of adsorbents such as aluminosilicates, zeolites, silica gels, bleaching clays, and others. The existing industrial reprocessing technologies are of great importance in the recycling of used engine and transformer oils. Furthermore, scientists worldwide are conducting research to create long-lasting carbon-based adsorbents for the regeneration of used engine and transformer mineral oils. In this regard, special attention is …

Reduction-Driven Mobilization Of Structural Fe In Clay Minerals With High Fe Content, Anke Neumann, Luiza Notini, W. A.P.Jeewantha Premaratne, Drew E. Latta, Michelle M. Scherer

Michigan Tech Publications

Clay minerals contain significant amounts of Fe in their alumosilicate framework, and this structural Fe can be reduced and re-oxidized, constituting a potentially renewable source of reduction equivalents in sedimentary environments. However, dissolution and/or clay mineral transformations during microbial Fe reduction contradict this concept. Here, we investigate how Fe reduction and re-oxidation affect the propensity of Fe to be released from the clay mineral structure and use selective sequential extractions in combination with Mössbauer spectroscopy. Negligible amounts of Fe were released in the sequential extraction of high Fe content clay minerals NAu-1 and NAu-2. Once aqueous Fe(II) was added as …

Summary Of: Immersive Modeling Of Water Banking Elicits Local Knowledge And Strategies To Get More Water To Great Salt Lake, Hadia Akbar, David E. Rosenberg

Civil and Environmental Engineering Student Research

Getting more water to the declining Great Salt Lake (GSL) is difficult. Strategies must address complex water rights, competing water needs, differing stakeholder priorities, historical legacies, lack of trust, and more arid and variable hydrology. Here we used immersive online collaborative modeling to explore water banking strategies to get more water to GSL. This 2-page brief describes the immersive modeling method, a Win-Win outcome, key results, new insights collaborators took from a model session, 2 new strategies to deliver water to GSL, and 3 next steps.

Dice Math And Probability, Warren Campbell

SEAS Faculty Publications

The manufacture of dice for tabletop games is a billion-dollar industry. In gaming circles and online forums, the concept of “cursed dice” is a popular topic. Dice are inherently unfair due to the difficulty of manufacturing them with perfect geometric tolerances and uniform material densities. A common method for testing dice fairness is the chi-square statistic, which is typically assumed to follow the chi-square distribution. However, this assumption is only asymptotically valid.

Exact distributions of the statistic can be computed for dice with few sides and a limited number of rolls—such as 2-sided (D2) and 4-sided (D4) dice—but the computational …

Modeling Framework To Quantify And Gauge Project Cost Risks Due To Construction Material Price Volatilities Using Predictive Probabilistic Deep-Learning Algorithms And Stochastic Risk Modeling, Yasser Jezzini, Rayan H. Assaad, Islam H. El-Adaway

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Material price fluctuations pose significant challenges for executing construction projects and adhering to budgetary estimates. Existing research studies focused on forecasting construction material prices rather than quantifying and gauging overall project cost risks related to price volatilities, and they relied on traditional time-series forecasting methods that are incapable of offering full probabilistic distributions of price fluctuations and of providing a comprehensive assessment of risk uncertainties associated with material price fluctuations. This paper addresses these gaps by developing an integrated framework to quantify and gauge project risks due to construction material price volatilities. The framework's validity and practicality were demonstrated using …

Groundwater Flooding On Highways In The Nebraska Sandhills: Applying Remote Sensing, Precipitation And Groundwater Modeling To Determine Depth, Cause And Frequency, Aaron R. Mittelstet

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

Climate change significantly impacts infrastructure sustainability, particularly through shifts in precipitation patterns, intensity, and duration. These precipitation dynamics may increase the occurrence of surface water and groundwater flooding. Groundwater in the Nebraska Sand Hills (NSH), including the thickest portions of the High Plains Aquifer, extends close to the land surface in interdunal areas, making the NSH vulnerable to groundwater flooding. Recent events involving heavy precipitation, snow melt, and rising groundwater levels have caused prolonged highway flooding, disrupting transportation networks. This study estimates groundwater flood inundation depth, duration and frequency in the highways of NSH using remote sensing techniques and groundwater …

Ftir Characterization Of Asphalt Sara Fractions In Response To Rubber Modification, Mohyeldin Ragab, Eslam Deef-Allah, Magdy Abdelrahman

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Asphalt–rubber binders (A-RBs) have a long and deep history of use; however, little is known regarding the interrelated chemical behaviors and miscibility of rubber with the asphalt fractions [saturates, aromatics, resins, and asphaltenes (SARA)]. This study comprehensively attempted to address this knowledge deficiency by employing Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) to investigate the chemical evolution of A-RBs. A-RB interacted at 190 °C and 3000 min⁻¹ for 8 h was deemed to have the optimal rheological performance. FTIR of the liquid fractions of A-RB 190–3000 showed a prominent chemical shift in the SARA fractions, with new peaks that showed rubber …

Characterization Of The Effects Of Waste Mullite Powder On Seawater Sea Sand Cementitious Materials, Xiao Sun, Zehui Zhou, Wenjie He, Yudong Bi, Yao Wang, Hengrui Liu, Rui Zhong, Hongyan Ma

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Maintaining the durability of coastal concrete structures while reducing construction costs remains a formidable challenge. Drawing inspiration from the volcanic concrete used by ancient Greeks and Romans, this study explores the feasibility of using waste mullite powder (WMP) with a high alumina content in seawater sea sand concrete to conserve natural resources and enhance durability. The experimental results demonstrate that the incorporation of seawater and WMP exerts detrimental impacts on the flow characteristics and workability of cementitious composites. While the sulfate content in seawater and sea sand can bolster the early strength of sea sand seawater concrete, sulfate attack compromises …

Geopolymer Clsm With Off-Specification Fly Ash And Bottom Ash: A Sustainable Approach To Hazardous Waste Utilization, Alexis K. Vandomelen, Ahmed A. Gheni, Eslam Gomaa, Mohamed A. Elgawady

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Conventional controlled low-strength material (CLSM) is a self-consolidating cementitious material with high flowability and low strength, traditionally composed of cement, sand, and water. This study explores the sustainable utilization of off-specification fly ash (OSFA) and bottom ash (BA), classified as industrial by-products with potential environmental hazards, to develop eco-friendly geopolymer CLSM as an alternative to conventional CLSM. Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) was used as an alkali activator to stabilize and solidify both two-part (liquid NaOH) and one-part (solid NaOH pellets) geopolymer CLSM mixtures. These mixtures were evaluated based on flowability (ASTM D6103-17) and compressive strength (< 300 psi per ACI Committee 229 guidelines for excavatability). A cost analysis was also conducted. The results demonstrated that incorporating OSFA as a cement replacement increased water demand by 15% to meet flowability requirements, while BA substitution for sand led to segregation challenges requiring mixture adjustments. For two-part mixtures, higher carbon content in OSFA necessitated an increased water-to-fly ash ratio. All self-consolidating mixtures exhibited 1-day compressive strengths ranging from 5 psi (0.03 MPa) to 87 psi (0.6 MPa). One-part mixtures showed a 1% to 34% reduction in 7-day compressive strength compared to two-part mixtures, improving excavatability. Increasing the BA-to-OSFA ratio from 1:1 to 3:1 reduced water demand due to lower surface area but increased the NaOH/OSFA ratio. This study highlights the potential of geopolymer CLSM to reduce costs by up to 94% at current NaOH prices (USD 6 per cubic yard) while repurposing hazardous industrial by-products, offering a cost-efficient, sustainable, and environmentally responsible solution for CLSM production.

Retraction: A Database Of Teleseismic Shear-Wave Splitting Measurements For The Ordos Block And Adjacent Areas(Seismological Research Letters (2022), 93, 5, (2731–2739), 10.1785/0220210310), Lin Liu, Stephen S. Gao, Kelly H. Liu, Tu Xue, Yan Jia, Sanzhong Li

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

An earlier version of this article (Liu et al., 2022) included private data from the Himalayan-III program which should not have been made public. The authors acknowledge and regret their negligence during the selection of the measurements. The impacted data represent only 2.7% of the total data published in this article, and after review, the authors and the editors agree that this unintentional error has no bearing on the work's scientific conclusions. Therefore, we are retracting the impacted data and have made corrections to remove any Himalayan-III program data from the article's text, figures, and supplemental tables.

Investigating The Thixotropy Of Fresh Struvite Cement-Based Composite: Insights On Mechanisms Of The Pastes’ Thixotropic Behavior, Ugochukwu Ewuzie, Abdulkareem O. Yusuf, Damilola Daramola, Monday Uchenna Okoronkwo

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Struvite (ST) recovered during wastewater treatment has been sparsely applied in cement-based composites. This study systematically evaluated the thixotropic behavior of cement-struvite (CST) pastes, a mix of 5–20 % ST by mass of cement, and proposed the interaction mechanisms leading to the pastes' thixotropy. The hysteresis loop area was used to establish the pastes' thixotropy and investigate its relationship with increased ST content, temperature, and yield stress. In the thixotropic behavior model used, the equilibrium shear stress was employed to examine the CST pastes' irreversible change; the characteristic time of deflocculation was used to study the flocs destruction process; and …

Performance Characterization And Mechanistic Study Of Dry Process Wr/Sbs Composite Modified Asphalt Mixture, Hongfu Liu, Xiangyang Ren, Wenwen Ge, Zhengwei Yi, Dongzhao Jin, Xinghai Peng, Songtao Lv

Michigan Tech Publications

The dry process modification is characterized by simplicity, flexibility, low energy consumption, and low pollution, making it an ideal choice in pavement repair engineering. This study aims to optimize the use of waste rubber powder and SBS modifiers in dry process composite modification by preparing dry process WR/SBS composite modified particles (WR/SBS CMP) using a twin-screw extruder. The optimum mixing content of modified particles was determined through comparative analysis of pavement performance of dry process WR/SBS composite modified, wet-process SBS-modified, and matrix asphalt mixtures. The rheological properties and modification mechanism of the asphalt binder extracted from these mixtures were tested …

Balancing Infrastructure Demands: Analysis Of Materials Pricing And Supply, Bethany Paris, Ying Li, Steve Waddle, Bryan Gibson

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) lets around 700 contracts year valued at over $1 billion. One of KYTC’s foremost goals is to deliver projects on time and on budget. However, over the past five years achieving these twin goals has grown in difficulty due to material shortages, widespread inflation, supply chain disruptions, and the tight labor market triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although material shortages have abated and supply chain disruptions have eased, instability is seemingly a permanent feature of the national and global economies. As such, Cabinet decision makers need reliable tools that can be used to understand historical …

Enhanced Pavement Project Prioritization, Bryan Gibson, Jon Wilcoxson, Gayle Marks

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) is responsible for inspecting, maintaining, and improving 27,000 centerline miles of pavement. Given the vastness of the state’s transportation network, KYTC needs a robust method for prioritizing pavement preservation projects. The Cabinet has relied on pavement condition ratings, data collected using Laser Crack Measurement Systems, and input from district-level staff to prioritize these types of projects. But this approach overlooks information that should be considered, such as factors related to safety, mobility, and geographic context. To resolve these shortcomings, Kentucky Transportation Center (KTC) researchers worked with KYTC subject-matter experts to develop the Enhanced Pavement Prioritization …

Data-Driven Prediction Of Binder Rheological Performance In Rap/Ras-Containing Asphalt Mixtures, Eslam Deef-Allah, Magdy Abdelrahman

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Asphalt recycling technologies have advanced considerably over the last few decades with the utilization of reclaimed asphalt pavements (RAP) and recycled asphalt shingles (RAS). Characterizing aged and heterogeneous binders in these mixtures is challenging, particularly with limited extracted binders. This study suggests a data-driven framework that considers the rheological, chemical, and thermal characteristics to predict the binders' performance. Ninety-seven mixtures with 0–35% of the asphalt binder replaced with RAP/RAS binders were included as cores from the field, plant-produced mixtures, and laboratory-fabricated mixtures. The binders were chemically quantified using aging, aromatic, and aliphatic indices. Thermal analyses of the binders involved the …

Stabilizing Embankments Using Geosynthetic Reinforcement, Daryl Greer, Charlie Sun

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Reinforced soil slopes (RSSs) can be a feasible solution for embankments where there exist right of way re-strictions, environmental issues, rolling or mountainous topography, unfavorable geology, and other limiting fac-tors. They can be an alternative to retaining walls or importing select fills to construct steeper, stable embankment slopes where flatter embankment slopes may result in unwanted impacts, costs, and maintenance issues. Thisreport discusses the advantages and limitations of using geosynthetic reinforcement to construct RSSs. Researchers investigated current design, specification, and construction practices to determine which practices can be adopted by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC). Specifications were developed for using …

Investing Hysteresis In Floodplain Dynamics Of Lakes In The Middle St. Johns River Using Sentinel-1 Sar Imagery, Keenan Hubbard

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Floodplain dynamics are often complex, with hysteresis potentially affecting the temporal relationship between flood stage and flood extent during subsequent inundation phases. This study leverages Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery to map flood extent in the Middle St. Johns River Lake floodplains and examine the presence of hysteresis during flood events. SAR scenes corresponding to river gauge readings were analyzed from the rising and falling limbs of a flood hydrograph. By comparing these flood maps, we assess differences in inundated areas at equivalent water levels during each stage of the flood event. The findings aim to enhance flood monitoring …

Effect Of Vehicular Electrification On Transportation Emissions In Florida, Shreya Sapkota Dhakal

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Vehicular emissions from fuel-based passenger cars emit an array of gases and particles that are detrimental for human health and the environment. In that regard, electric vehicles (EVs) present a viable, sustainable solution. This study investigated the impact of electrification of passenger cars on air quality in Florida, in five major urban counties namely Miami-Dade, Duval, Hillsborough, Orange, and Leon. Between 2018 and 2022, these counties experienced a significant increase of 219.50 ± 52.32% in EV adoption, coupled with a 11.55 ± 6.13% decrease in fuel-based vehicle usage. Herein, we characterize five pollutants primarily generated from fuel-based passenger vehicles- carbon …

Elucidating The Impact Of Common Stormwater Pollutants On Antibiotic Resistance: The Role Of Heavy Metals, Nutrients, And Salts, Kassidy N. O'Malley, Patrick J. Mcnamara, Walter M. Mcdonald

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Antibiotic resistance poses a significant global health threat, and the urban water cycle presents an opportunity to augment or limit the spread of antibiotic resistance. In particular, stormwater runoff has recently been revealed as a key conduit for antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB). The specific role of stormwater pollutants, however, on antibiotic resistance has not been isolated. Understanding the impact of specific pollutants common to stormwater could help optimize design and operation of stormwater systems for management of antibiotic resistance. The objective of this research was to establish the potential contributions of common stormwater pollutants to antibiotic resistance proliferation. Lab-scale stormwater microcosms …

Development And Implementation Of A Vector-Quantized Transformer Autoencoder For Monitoring Bicycle Road Conditions, Kewei Ren

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

Adviser: Chun-Hsing Ho

The long-term, sustainable assessment of bicycle road conditions is essential for ensuring cyclist safety and promoting equitable infrastructure management. While traditional detection methods based on manual thresholds have demonstrated some effectiveness, they carry limitations due to the diversity of pavement materials, cyclist behaviors, and sensor platforms. Although recent advances in deep learning offer promising alternatives, established techniques are primarily applied to highway anomaly detection and are rarely adapted for bicycle roads. Furthermore, most related studies lack clear definitions for anomalies and transparent annotation procedures, resulting in a shortage of effective datasets and detection methods specifically for bicycle …

Feasibility Of Using Recycled Waste Plastic In Concrete Pavements In Nebraska, Amasi Hajahja

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

Waste plastic (WP) is a growing environmental concern due to its non-biodegradable nature, large-scale production, and harmful impact on natural resources. With nearly 75% of WP in the United States ending up in landfills, effective recycling strategies are urgently needed. In parallel, the limited availability of natural aggregates highlights the need for alternative materials in concrete construction. This study investigates the feasibility of using recycled waste plastic (RWP) in concrete mixtures, both as aggregates and fibers for rigid pavement applications in Nebraska. Concrete mixtures were prepared by partially replacing natural fine aggregates with recycled plastic aggregates (RPA) at replacement levels …

Ultra-Low Dosages Of Novel Graphene Types Enhance The Rheological Properties And Buildability Of 3d Printed Binders, Sahil Surehali, Akshay Venkatachalam, Ranjith Divigalpitiya, Aditya Kumar, Narayanan Neithalath

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The use of graphene as a high-performance concrete additive is attractive; but, its cost and concerns about production scalability and dispersion efficiency in concrete are impediments to widespread use. This study explores the impact of ultra-low dosages (≤0.02 % by mass of binder) of two novel graphene types—fractal graphene (FG) and reactive graphene (RG)—produced through a cost-effective, environmentally friendly, and scalable process, on the rheological properties of 3D-printable concrete. Both FG and RG significantly enhance the dynamic and static yield stresses and viscoelastic properties of the binder, with RG-modified mixtures exhibiting slightly more pronounced enhancements due to the presence of …

Integrating Ensemble Hydrologic Forecasts With Policy Optimization Models For Forecast-Informed Reservoir Operations (Firo), Alessandra Estefania Perez Salas

Theses and Dissertations

Effective reservoir management in hydrologically variable regions such as California’s Central Valley faces increasing pressure to balance flood control, water supply reliability, hydropower generation, and ecosystem health. Traditional rule-based operations, while operationally simple, often lack the adaptability required to respond to real-time hydrologic conditions and forecast uncertainty. This study presents an integration of a policy tree optimization model with ensemble streamflow forecasts to enhance Forecast-Informed Reservoir Operations (FIRO) at Folsom Reservoir. Building on historical data for inflow, storage, and release, an interpretable, threshold-based decision framework was developed and coupled with 14-day ensemble inflow forecasts from the California-Nevada River Forecast Center’s …

Legacy Nutrient Transport By Overland Sheet Flow, John E. Gilley, Ryan P. Mcgehee, Kenneth M. Wacha

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

The transport of phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) from sites containing varying quantities of legacy nutrients was evaluated in this investigation. The data that were examined were collected during four previously reported field hydrologic studies performed in eastern Nebraska. Additional flow was introduced to the top of the rainfall simulation plots to replicate runoff conditions occurring along a hillslope. It was observed that both P and N delivery were influenced by runoff rate on sites where beef cattle manure or inorganic fertilizer had been applied. Legacy nutrient delivery appeared to have been influenced by the quantity of nutrients released at …

Novel Respirometry Measurement And Comparison Of Monod Kinetic Constants And Methanogen Concentrations For 27 Full-Scale Anaerobic Bioreactors, Nicholas Benn, Antonio Martins, Daniel H. Zitomer

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Monod kinetic coefficient values (km and Ks) as well as methanogen concentrations (Xac and Xh2) for various anaerobic bioreactors are required to gain a deeper understanding of anaerobic biotechnology. However, there are no existing, practical methods to measure or estimate these parameters or variables in typical anaerobic digester biomass that contains mixed cultures with inert organic solids. Current measurement methods rely on pure cultures developed in the laboratory. In this work, a novel respirometric method was developed and used to determine methanogen Monod parameters and active biomass concentration for samples from 27 full-scale anaerobic reactors. Differences (one to three orders …

Evaluation Of Waste Plastic Addition Via Dry Method On Asphalt Mixture Performance, Isabella Madeira Bueno

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

Incorporating waste plastic (WP) into hot mix asphalt (HMA) offers a promising approach to enhance recycling rates and improve asphalt concrete (AC) performance, particularly in moisture damage resistance. However, results vary widely due to differences in WP types, sizes, and mixing methods. The lack of standardized procedures, especially for the dry process, has led to inconsistent integration and unclear roles of WP in AC mixtures. Studies suggest that introducing WP to pre-heated aggregates at temperatures exceeding its melting point can enhance mixture resistance to rutting, cracking, and moisture damage. In this context, this study was conducted in two phases to …

Incorporating Waste Plastics Into Pavement Materials: A Review Of Opportunities, Risks, Environmental Implications, And Monitoring Strategies, Ali Ghodrati, Nuha S. Mashaan, Themelina Paraskeva

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The integration of waste plastics into pavement materials offers a dual benefit of enhancing road performance and mitigating the environmental burden of plastic waste. This review critically examines the opportunities and challenges associated with incorporating waste plastics in pavement construction, with an emphasis on their impact on the mechanical properties, durability, and life cycle performance of pavements. Special attention is given to the environmental implications, particularly the potential generation and release of micro- and nano-plastics during the pavement life cycle. This paper further evaluates current monitoring and analytical methodologies for detecting plastic emissions from road surfaces and explores emerging approaches …

Satellite Radar Imagery Analysis For Ground Hazard Risk Monitoring In Railway Tracks And Slopes, Sumanth Varma Byrraju

Theses and Dissertations

Railway transportation is essential to national economies globally, and disruptions from geohazards can result in significant operational delays and considerable economic consequences. Satellite radar technologies, including Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR), offer an effective means to monitor geohazard risks across extensive railway networks. This thesis employs Multi-Temporal InSAR (MTInSAR) techniques, including Persistent Scatterer InSAR (PSInSAR) and Small Baseline Subset (SBAS), to identify high-risk areas along railway rights of way (ROW) prior to geohazard occurrences. However, the efficiency of these MT-InSAR and, consequently, the caliber of the data generated may be restricted by elements like topographical profile, vegetation, and surface soil …

A Comparative Study Of The Pullout Strength Of Geostraps And Geogrids In Reinforced Soil, Kshitij Gaur, Ashutosh Trivedi, Sanjay Kumar Shukla

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The sustainable development of geotechnical infrastructure necessitates using durable, efficient, and environmentally resilient reinforcement materials. This study investigates the pullout performance of geostraps to assess their potential as a sustainable alternative to conventional geosynthetics. This study focuses on the pullout performance of geostraps, flexible, polymeric reinforcement materials. There has not been a thorough study of their pullout resistance, which directly affects the stability and durability of reinforced soil structures. Pullout tests were conducted on sandy soil in a controlled environment. The experimental findings from the pullout test were then validated in a numerical model. The model was used to determine …