Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Construction Management Outreach Event With The Pedrozzi Foundation, Jennifer Padilla

Construction Management

The construction industry today continues to be a male-dominated field, often lacking diversity. The lack of diversity and inclusion is attributed to the lack of equitable access to the industry. As a result of continued efforts promoting diversity and inclusion, in August 2022, the construction industry reached an all-time high, with 14% of all construction workers in the U.S. being women. This construction management outreach event, in partnership with the Pedrozzi Foundation, was created to expose young scholars to the topic of construction management. At the event, students and their parents were exposed to the topic of construction management, learning …

Shape Deformities In Recycled Concrete As A Substitute Aggregate In Concrete, Carson D. Timmerman

Construction Management

Concrete is a universal material that is used widely across the construction industry. Within a standard concrete mix, a fine aggregate and a coarse aggregate are added to the mix design to help with solidity and compressive strength in the mixture. The admixtures, additives, slump, and mix ratios will differ based on the compressive strength you're trying to attain. This paper directly reflects the results of the differences between shapes in recycled concrete used as a coarse aggregate substitute in concrete mixes. As the construction industry grows, so does outreach towards sustainability and reusing materials anywhere the industry can. Testing …

Technological Integration To Enhance Jobsite Safety, Luke Barragan

Construction Management

The content derived in this paper portrays the effect that technology has on safety and how it may be enhanced and altered in the built environment. Ensuring safety on the jobsite is the most important aspect of concluding a successful project. Alongside safety on the jobsite is technology, both of which work coherently together to ensure proper construction. Technology has advanced tremendously in the built environment and it is difficult for all aspects of the project to be up to date universally. Safety lacks the technological integration that is found in the design and preconstruction phases of a project. There …

Addition Of An Internship Prep Course To The Cm Curriculum, Zachary C. Boyle

Construction Management

The Cal Poly Construction Management program does an amazing job giving students opportunities to receive summer internships. Just about every student in the CM program will have some form of summer internship during their time at Cal Poly. All CM classes are designed to prepare students for internships. That being said, there is no specific class within the CM curriculum that is 100% Internship focused. Allowing students an opportunity to take a course that would focus on preparing them for their summer internships, students will be more confident and better equipped to take on the tasks of an intern at …

Risks Involved With Helicopter Operations On A Remote Jobsite, Noah Hohenester

Construction Management

Running a jobsite in a remote location adds unpredictable challenges and such experience is difficult to find. In mountainous terrain where road access is limited, the most efficient way to transport materials from the laydown yard to the jobsite is with a helicopter and a longline. Having an active helicopter on site comes with many detailed plans and preparations for safety risks, emergency evacuations, and lifting procedures. Many variables must be accounted for when getting a helicopter usage plan approved, and everyone in the field must be trained appropriately for any potential hazards. Projects like these are unique and many …

Hiinga Hospital Project - Uganda, Africa, Arley W. Landis

Construction Management

This paper outlines the role of a construction management student in the interdisciplinary development of an urgent care clinic and hospital in Kampala, Uganda. This interdisciplinary team was composed of five students all belonging to the College of Architecture and Environmental Design at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. The team was tasked by Hiinga Inc., a capital investment company, to provide a preliminary design and construction resources to aid with development of these facilities. Two construction management students worked on this project at different stages. The first student was tasked with constructability research and a preliminary estimate …

Comparison Between Shipping Container Homes And Regular Stick-Built Homes In California, Levi Robert Krull

Construction Management

The Research that was conducted was to examine the differences and similarities between shipping container construction and stick-built construction within residential homes in California. Shipping Container construction has grown in popularity and has continued to make its way into many different construction industries. I wanted to find the reasoning behind why this has continued to grow and if it could be a future way to construct Californian homes. This information could change how future homebuilders construct homes in California. This information could also provide a home that has a different cost, schedule, and features that could benefit the owner. After …

Rainwater Catchment System Designed For California Polytechnic State University Building 34, Jonah S. Aere

Construction Management

California Polytechnic State University currently receives its water supply from either Whale Rock Reservoir, for distilled water, or pumped from six ground wells, for agricultural use. Although the university’s Agricultural College requires a certain amount of water to grow crops, these demands are often not met due to the lack of water within these underground wells. A rainwater capture system could be constructed to ease the water supply burden which is already depleting, reduce wasted drainage, and maintain a sustainable agricultural water source without being dependent on other locations. This would benefit the institution by reducing imported water thereby saving …

Case Study On The Reduction Of Electrical Packaging To Help With Overall Construction Waste, Hailey Rodriguez

Construction Management

The construction industry has a significant amount of waste accumulated on every job site. This study utilizes research on the types of materials that make up waste and the waste management strategies behind it. Waste materials range from building materials, such as lumber and steel, to packaging materials, like plastic and cardboard. This paper concentrates on material packaging and discovering ways to eliminate some of the construction waste before materials even arrive on the job site. A case study was performed on electrical lighting fixture packaging to observe and analyze the different amounts of waste accumulated. This examination focused on …

Determining The Interest For A Drone Certification Course, Joel Alberto Ventura

Construction Management

The purpose of this study is to explore the interest of the Construction Management students at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo with drone usage and acquiring a drone license. This research paper analyzes students' prior skill sets that were gained from a past internship or class and if that exposure to drones is sufficient enough to apply those skills to the construction industry. Implementing a drone certification course will benefit both the students and companies in the construction industry. Within the construction industry there is a rise in popularity with using technology devices to track and collect data, …

Techniques Against Language Barriers: A Company Case Study, Bryan W. Cruz

Construction Management

The United States construction industry employed approximately 10.8 million people in 2020. Of these 10.8 million, an estimated 3.3 million, or 30%, were Hispanic workers. On construction job sites, workers are exposed to numerous safety risks, including falls, struck-by incidents, and electrocution. Unfortunately, some Hispanics or workers with limited English language skills encounter language barriers which cause additional safety concerns. Language barriers impact their communication and comprehension abilities and, consequently, their safety. For example, workers who do not speak English do not benefit from safety training conducted purely in English; they also cannot read operation manuals for machinery and equipment …

Use Of Gps And Smartgrade Technology In Heavy Civil Construction, Cristian Zarate-Ramirez

Construction Management

Heavy Civil is a sector in the construction industry involving a variety of different heavy machinery and construction practices. Technology has evolved as an important aspect in this sector striving to improve efficiency, productivity, and traditional construction methods. Global Positioning System (GPS) technology is one of the many technological advancements that benefit any size of contractor in the heavy civil industry. With the help of a 3D model, base station, and rover, contractors implement advanced building methods that provide excellent owner satisfaction. Similar to GPS, SmartGrade is a tool integrated into heavy machinery that enhances performance without the need of …

Researching The Demand Of A New App That Reinvents The Way General Contractors And Subcontractors Communicate, Biko Kavalam

Construction Management

This is a research study on the need for a new service that increases efficiency and profit for commercial construction companies. Contractors need an efficient way to hire subcontractors; through detailed and thorough research, we have found a way to make that possible. The research methodology used for the duration of the project is presented. This included contacting general contractors, subcontractors, and owners and discussing in detail the demand for a service like the one proposed. From these discussions, themes like credibility, understanding the market, and finding the right audience were recorded. The results that were obtained reassured us that …

The Price Of Longevity - Empirical Evidence From Road Pavements, Hanna Kemaw

Lyles School of Civil Engineering Graduate Student Reports

The vast network of county, city and town roads, represent a big part of public assets in most states and often account for a significant share of the public spending on roads. This spending on local road infrastructure help to build, operate, and preserve such infrastructure and therefore provide critical accessibility and mobility to the residents of counties, towns and cities. With the ever-growing volumes of personal and commercial traffic at local roads, the task of maintaining satisfactory levels of service at local roads has become more challenging, and this issue is exacerbated by limited resources, asset aging, and increasing …

Immobilized Algae For Produced Water Treatment And Desalination, Shibin Nadersha, Ashraf Aly Hassan

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Faculty Publications

Produced water (PW) is the effluent generated during oil mining and extraction. On average, for every barrel of oil, 4-5 barrels of PW are generated worldwide. The presence of various contaminants in PW makes it toxic. Disposal of untreated PW into oceans and water bodies can cause adverse effects on human health and the environment. Taking into account the large volumes of it being generated, and its effects on the environment, proper treatment is required before reuse or disposal. Microalgal treatment is an effective method for the bioremediation and biodesalination of produced water when acclimatized algal biomass is used for …

Precipitation Trends In North And South Carolina, Usa, Giacomo Moragila, Erika Brattich, Gregory J. Carbone

Faculty Publications

Study region

North and South Carolina, USA.

Study focus

Intense precipitation poses risks to life and property. Its frequency can change in response to global-scale drivers, but its spatial expression can vary seasonally and regionally, and be dependent on how it is measured and what analysis period is used. We investigate forty-four historical stations from the U.S. Historical Climatology Network (USHCN) across North and South Carolina to determine trends in the pluviometric regime defined by the Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices (ETCCDI). New hydrological insights for the region Most of the stations in this area do not …

Effects Of Fibers In Dense Graded And Gap Graded Asphalt Concrete, Franher Daniel Cantu

Theses and Dissertations

As a part of efforts to understand the interactions between fibers and particles in compliant binder such as asphalt. This investigated the compressive behaviors of fiber reinforced asphalt concrete with different aggregate gradation, such as gap graded and dense graded. There have been multiple studies attempting to understand the impact of fibers on particle reinforced composites, however, only few of those focused on the fiber-particle interactions. A comprehensive literature review on the current state of the art of fiber reinforced asphalt concrete and fiber-particle interactions was conducted. Then a series of compression tests were conducted using various size steel fibers …

A Study Of The Constitutive Models Used In Analyzing Dynamic Strain Aging In Austenitic Stainless Steel 304, Mohammad Mohiuddin

Theses and Dissertations

When triggered, dynamic strain aging has a significant impact on the microstructural mechanical behavior of austenitic stainless steel 304 high performance alloy. The dynamic strain aging phenomenon has been shown to cause significant additional hardening in several experimental studies. To effectively predict the behavior of the material, it is required to employ a constitutive model that includes dynamic strain aging. The extra hardness brought on by dynamic strain aging is captured in this study by the proposal of a novel constitutive model (VAS model) for Austenitic Stainless Steel (ASS) 304 high performance alloy. As part of this study, the developed …

Numerical Simulation Of Vibration - Based Piezoelectric Energy Harvester For Shape Comparison, Adriana Rosas

Theses and Dissertations

This work investigates the shape optimization of piezoelectric energy harvesters subjected to mechanical vibration using ABAQUS/Standard software. Three piezoelectric energy harvesters with different dimensions but the same areas were created to identify if model dimensions have an impact on the output voltage. The models were tested at different speeds to create an output voltage. Once the output voltages were obtained, the results were compared with each other to find if shape optimization on piezoelectric energy harvesters has an impact on scavenging energy from mechanical vibrations.

Water Hardness Removal By Electrochemical Precipitation In A Continuous Flow Condition Using Conductive Concrete As Cathode, Tahsin Tareque

Theses and Dissertations

This study focuses on the electrochemical precipitation (EP) process to reduce excess water hardness from the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) tap water using electrically conductive concrete as cathode in a continuous flow condition. LRGV tap water is extremely hard with hardness more than 350 mg/L as CaCO3. Humans can pleasantly consume water with hardness less than 150 mg/l as CaCO3 according to World Health Organization (WHO). Hard water is also known to cause mechanical problems to boilers and heat exchangers. In this process, electricity is passed through electrodes submerged in electrolyte, which causes an alkaline environment around the cathode …

Flexural Bond Strength Of Masonry Assemblies With Lightweight Grout, Benjamin L. Hiner

All Theses

Lightweight grout has many potential benefits in masonry construction, including minimizing mass, improving thermal performance, and potentially reducing shrinkage cracking via internal curing. However, insufficient testing of masonry assemblies with lightweight grout has been conducted to suggest appropriate design modification factors akin to the lambda factor in ACI 318-19. The objective of this paper is to study the tensile bond behavior of masonry assemblies grouted with lightweight grout and to suggest appropriate equations for predicting design capacity. A moment couple test is designed specifically for grouted masonry assemblies and has additional capacity compared to the traditional ASTM 1072 bond wrench …

Mango Surface Color Features Measurement Using Digital Image Processing, Md Towfiqur Rahman, Goutom Kumar, Md Abdul Momin

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Summary

Postharvest processing of agricultural produce is still done the conventional way in Bangladesh. Manual grading of agricultural produce, especially fruits and vegetables, is laborious and costly due to acute shortage of labor during the peak season, as well as difficulty maintaining the product quality. Machine vision system (MVS) applications are widely used nowadays as a non-destructive and cost-effective technology for automatically grading and sorting large volumes of produce in the packing house according to size, shape, color, texture, and surface defects. In this study, a simple MVS was constructed measuring different color features of mango fruit surface as a …

Framework For The Use Of Extended Reality Modalities In Aec Education, Barbara Oliveira Spitzer, Jae Hoon Ma, Ece Erdogmus, Ben Kreimer, Erica Ryherd, Heidi Diefes-Dux

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

The educational applications of extended reality (XR) modalities, including virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR), have increased significantly over the last ten years. Many educators within the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) related degree programs see student benefits that could be derived from bringing these modalities into classrooms, which include but are not limited to: a better understanding of each of the subdisciplines and the coordination necessary between them, visualizing oneself as a professional in AEC, and visualization of difficult concepts to increase engagement, self-efficacy, and learning. These benefits, in turn, help recruitment and retention efforts …

Using Food-Industry Byproduct To Treat Expansive Clay, Nicole L. Shaw

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Lime stabilization has proven to be a valuable method in improving the properties of expansive clays under light structures such as those in transportation projects where ground improvement methods are often necessary over a large area. Hydrous and quick lime products are also utilized in various types of food processing operations to remove impurities from agricultural products. During this purification, waste is produced consisting of precipitated calcium carbonate, organic debris, and trace amounts of soil and agricultural contaminants. This food-processing waste typically contains commercially available unspent lime products, which are still viable for construction applications. Hence, this type of waste …

Investigation Of Temperature, Solution Strength, And Applied Stress Effects On Cation Exchange Processes In Geosynthetic Clay Liners, Kurt Katzenberger

Master's Theses

A laboratory test program was conducted to investigate the effects of temperature, solution strength, and applied stress over increasing conditioning durations on cation exchange processes in sodium bentonite (Na-B) geosynthetic clay liners (GCLs). The test program was intended to determine if the variables of temperature, solution strength, and applied stress had beneficial or detrimental effects on the engineering behavior of Na-B GCLs in municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills and laboratory testing applications. Needlepunched-reinforced, double non-woven Na-B GCL specimens were conditioned in fluids of increasing ionic strength (DI water, 2 mM CaCl2, 50 mM CaCl2, and 200 mM CaCl2 representing control, …

Measurement And Evaluation Of Roadway Geometry For Safety Analyses And Pavement Material Volume Estimation For Resurfacing And Rehabilitation Using Mobile Lidar And Imagery-Based Point Clouds, Leonildo Nelson Cassule

All Dissertations

Roadway safety is a multifaceted issue affected by several variables including geometric design features of the roadway, weather conditions, sight distance issues, user behavior, and pavement surface condition. In recent years, transportation agencies have demonstrated a growing interest in utilizing Light Detecting and Ranging (LiDAR) and other remote sensing technologies to enhance data collection productivity, safety, and facilitate the development of strategies to maintain and improve existing roadway infrastructure. Studies have shown that three-dimensional (3D) point clouds acquired using mobile LiDAR systems are highly accurate, dense, and have numerous applications in transportation. Point cloud data applications include extraction of roadway …

Likeliness To Recommend: A Mixed Methods Analysis Of Consumer Perception Of Homebuilders, Todd Usher

All Dissertations

Measures of consumers’ likeliness to recommend a business or company have been shown to relate to business performance. Less is known about how such scores might operate in the homebuilding industry. This study examines the factors influencing consumers’ perceptions of homebuilders, an area with little published research. Using a sequential mixed-methods approach, the study analyzes survey data from consumers (N = 366) who had new homes built within the preceding 12 months. Quantitative analyses of the data reveal several aspects of consumers’ likeliness to recommend a homebuilder. One finding of great interest is that consumers of the survey were more …

Ligand-Promoted Dissolution Of Uranyl Phosphate Across Scales, Brennan Ferguson

All Dissertations

The formation of uranyl phosphate precipitate is a remediation strategy because the low solubility of uranyl phosphate minerals, like chernikovite, limits the mobility of uranium in contaminated soils. However, organic ligands can complex with aqueous metal cations to form more soluble species. For example, citrate is a commonly occurring organic ligand produced by plants and microbes that increases the solubility of uranium and therefore the dissolution of uranyl phosphate minerals in the uranyl phosphate-citrate system. This effect is an important control on the mobility of uranium in organic-rich, and near-surface vegetated environments. Nevertheless, key aspects of the citrate-uranyl phosphate system …

A Multi-Criteria Ranking System For Prioritizing Maintenance Of Levee Systems In Arkansas, Nguyen Danh Phan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There are 208,009 properties in Arkansas that have more than a 26% chance of being severely affected by flooding over the next 30 years, which represents 13% of all properties in the state. A levee system is designed to reduce the flooding risk for urban and rural communities; however, most of the state's levees have been significantly outdated or built with engineering standards less rigorous than current best practices. The Levee Safety Action Classification (LSAC), as recorded in the National Levee Database (NLD), communicates the risk associated with living behind a particular levee and assists local, state, and federal stakeholders …

Development Of Ultra-High Performance Engineered Geopolymer Composites (Uhp-Egcs), Hassan Noorvand, Miladin Radovic, Marwa Hassan, Svetlana Sukhishvili, Gabriel Arce, Ruwa Abufarsakh, Adriana A. Alvarado, Oscar Huang, Sang Zhen

Publications

This study investigated the possibility of developing novel UHP-EGC materials for the repair and new construction of transportation infrastructure in Region 6 by utilizing locally available resources. To this end, the geopolymers (GPs) in this study were synthesized by activating metakaolin (MK) with potassium silicate and sodium silicate solutions. The solutions were manufactured in the laboratory by dissolving silica fume and potassium hydroxide (KOH) or sodium hydroxide (NaOH) in deionized water. MK-based GP binders, mortars, and fiber-reinforced composites were manufactured and evaluated to determine their density, compressive strength, tensile properties, and slant shear bond strength to Portland cement concrete (PCC). …