Civil Engineering Commons^™

Enhancing Effectiveness Of Aashto Type Prestressed Concrete Bridge Girder Through Fiber Reinforced Polymer Strengthening, Farzia Haque

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

Fiber-reinforced polymers (FRP) are newly used materials by structuralengineers compared to concrete, steel, and wood. One area in which FRP is being used more and more is the strengthening of structurally deficient concrete bridges. FRP strengthening of the bridge girder improves flexural, shear, corrosion, seismic, and impact resistance. ACI 440 committee report outlined design procedure for flexure, shear, axial force, and combined axial and bending forces based on the available research, which are considered to be conservative and also pointed out the areas that still require research. Besides experimental, analytical, and field tests finite element analysis of FRP strengthened structural …

Pavement Performance Monitoring Using Dynamic Cone Penetrometer And Geogauge During Construction, Ahmed Nawal Ahsan

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

Proper design life of road network system requires adequate quality control measures during the construction process to ensure proper material quality and sufficient strength in between the materials. Laboratory tests are often time consuming and sometimes, are not practical while the construction work is going on, in-situ techniques can efficiently evaluate the material properties through simple and less time consuming procedures. Dynamic Cone Penetrometer and Geogauge can play a vital role as an in-situ testing equipment because both have the potential to measure the change in material properties through field tests being performed in the field. Both in-situ techniques was …

Development And Validation Of The Structural Health Evaluation (SheTm) Program, Steven Worley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Public Private Partnership Pitfalls In Toll Roads, Mahran Maher Zatar

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

Public-Private Partnership (PPP) has been one of the most effective concepts in developing infrastructure projects. By bringing in creative skills and management efficiency from business practice, private companies can potentially improve efficiency and productivity in implementation of major capital projects and provide an effective approach to meet project objectives. The main idea behind the partnership in toll roads delivery is putting together the strengths of both public and private sectors in order to provide services in the most cost-effective manner, on time, and with the highest quality. However, the criteria on which governments judge the "success" of PPP projects is …

Development Of Linear Regression Model For Predicting Water Quality Parameters From Anaerobic Treatment Of Vinasse, Shammi Rahman

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

One of the most prominent biofuels today is ethanol. The production of ethanol from biomass, whether from sugar crops, starch crops, dairy products, or cellulosic materials, results in the production of a high-strength liquid waste called vinasse. Approximately 12 liters of vinasse are produced for every 1 liter of ethanol. Vinasse is high in solids and organic content, with biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) ranging from 30 to 40 g/L, and a low pH, typically from 3-5. Traditionally, in countries such as India, Brazil, and other Latin American countries, vinasse has been disposed of by applying it as a fertilizer on …

An Investigation Of Durability And Reliability Of Hdpe Pipe For Large Diameter Water Transmission Applications, Divyashree

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

The drinking water infrastructure in the North America requires a durable and reliable water transmission pipe material. Thus, it is important to study pipe performance, so that water utilities can benefit from cost-effective and efficient pipe installations and longer design life. All pipe materials deteriorate overtime and every pipe has unique properties with advantages and limitations. During a pipe's life cycle, failures occur due to numerous factors such as age, loading conditions, environmental conditions, installation quality, manufacturing procedures, operation and maintenance strategies and so on. The fatigue performance under cyclic loading in conducted, since very limited information is available on …

Comparison Of Deflection Measurement Methods Of Large Diameter Steel Pipes With Control Low Strength Material, Saman Farrokhi Gozarchi

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

This study investigates the structural integrity of large diameter (108 inch) steel pipes with mortar lining embedded with Controlled Low Strength Material (CLSM) during installation. Field tests were carried out in the prove-out section of line J which is a 2 mile (3.21 km) section of an Integrated Pipeline network (IPL) that will ultimately run a length of 150 mile (241.4 km) from Lake Palestine to Lake Benbrook. The prove-out is a section of line J that was used for experimental research for the use of CLSM as an embedment material and calibrate Finite Element Method (FEM) model for the …

Comparative Analysis Of Flood Frequency Based On Radar-Based Precipitation Data And Precipitation Trends, Simeon Andrew Benson

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

This study utilizes radar-based precipitation data from the National Weather Service West Gulf River Forecast Center to extract the depth-area-duration relationships via the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' software HEC-MetVue. Extreme storms from 1997-2013 were analyzed to determine the characteristics for synthetic design storms. Design storms of 10, 25, 50 and 100 year return periods were developed and simulated using the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' hydrologic modeling tool, HEC-HMS. Finally, flood frequency analysis using the existing method was carried out for comparison and hydrologic impact assessment. The depth-area-duration curves produced were converted to areal-reduction factors for comparison with Technical …

Strength And Stiffness Characteristics Of Lime Stabilized Soil In A Flexible Pavement Design, Andrew James Domke

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

Lime treatment has proven to be a useful tool for stabilizing expansive soils. Expansive soils cause major damage to flexible and rigid pavements every year, since seasonal changes in soil moisture creates cyclical changes in the forces acting on a pavement. The use of lime to stabilize soil can reduce the soil's swell potential and add strength and stiffness to a pavement's subgrade. Due to the improved physical properties, lime stabilized soil (LSS) can be considered as part of the structural pavement layers. Utilizing LSS as a subbase in the pavement structure can reduce the thickness of the more expensive …

Long-Term Effects Of Synthetic Fibers On Concrete Pipes, Sasan Farrokhi Gozarchi

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

The studies undertaken by this research were to evaluate the long-term performance and durability of synthetic fiber-reinforced concrete pipes. The target long-term performance is for 9000 hours. Two sets of pipes 8 ft. (2400 mm) long with inside diameters of 24 in. (600 mm) and 36 in. (1200 mm) were manufactured, with a wall thickness of 3 and 4 in., respectively. The pipes were produced based on ASTM C76, for a Class III type with a Wall B. The two set of pipes included RCP's (as control) and SYN-FRCP's. The SYN-FRCP's had several fiber dosages ranging from 6 lb/yd3 (3.5 …

Context-Aware Mobile Augmented Reality Visualization In Construction Engineering Education, Arezoo Shirazi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Recent studies suggest that the number of students pursuing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees has been generally decreasing. An extensive body of research cites the lack of motivation and engagement in the learning process as a major underlying reason of this decline. It has been discussed that if properly implemented, instructional technology can enhance student engagement and the quality of learning. Therefore, the main goal of this research is to implement and assess effectiveness of augmented reality (AR)-based pedagogical tools on student learning. For this purpose, two sets of experiments were designed and implemented in two different construction …

Characterization Of Dynamic Structures Using Parametric And Non-Parametric System Identification Methods, Ayad Al Rumaithi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The effects of soil-foundation-structure (SFS) interaction and extreme loading on structural behaviors are important issues in structural dynamics. System identification is an important technique to characterize linear and nonlinear dynamic structures. The identification methods are usually classified into the parametric and non-parametric approaches based on how to model dynamic systems. The objective of this study is to characterize the dynamic behaviors of two realistic civil engineering structures in SFS configuration and subjected to impact loading by comparing different parametric and non-parametric identification results. First, SFS building models were studied to investigate the effects of the foundation types on the structural …

Structural Health Monitoring Using Novel Sensing Technologies And Data Analysis Methods, Seyedmasoud Malekzadeh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The main objective of this research is to explore, investigate and develop the new data analysis techniques along with novel sensing technologies for structural health monitoring applications. The study has three main parts. First, a systematic comparative evaluation of some of the most common and promising methods is carried out along with a combined method proposed in this study for mitigating drawbacks of some of the techniques. Secondly, nonparametric methods are evaluated on a real life movable bridge. Finally, a hybrid approach for non-parametric and parametric method is proposed and demonstrated for more in depth understanding of the structural performance. …

Equity And Fairness In Transport Planning: The State Of Play, Sarah Rock, Aoife Ahern Prof., Brian Caulfield Dr.

Conference Papers

This paper explores the concept of equity, or fairness, in transport. As a pillar of sustainable development, social equity is an important objective of transport planning. The provision of transport infrastructure can have significant equity impacts on society through the distribution of costs and benefits. In recent years, there has been an increase in research interest in transportation related equity issues. The paper outlines the primary theoretical traditions that relate to equity and transport equity, and how equity concerns are currently addressed and evaluated in academia and in practice. Recent research has attempted to establish stronger principles from which to …

Alternative Funding Mechanisms For State Transportation Systems In Predominantly Rural States, John E. Anderson, Eric Thompson

Bureau of Business Research Publications

The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies has identified a number of research needs related to alternative transportation finance systems. Alternatives are needed because motor fuels taxes are proving to be insufficient to fund operation and maintenance costs of the transportation system. The long-term trend is likely to be continuing use of motor fuel taxes, supplemented by, or transitioning to, use-based fees. Current research in progress in this area is focused on designing variable fees that will internalize congestion externalities in urban areas. These approaches are particularly well suited to highly urbanized areas, but other approaches may be required …

Sustainable Public Transportation In Large Cities: Demand Estimation, Tadeas Umlauf

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Public transportation helps to decrease the negative externalities caused by people's mobility. In many countries, the total number of vehicles and traffic has risen many times in the last decades but there is limited space to improve infrastructure in the cities. Large cities all over the world have a lot of issues with congestion, traffic noise, emission of greenhouse gases, and accidents. According to many international examples, sustainable public transportation in combination with synergistic projects (park & ride, kiss & ride, bike & ride) can help to overcome these issues. Therefore new transit modes and routes have been implemented in …

Water Recovery From Silica Saturated Ro Concentrate By The Concentrate Enhanced Reverse Osmosis Process, Gautam Patwardhan

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Membrane fouling due to silica precipitation during reverse osmosis (RO) continues to be documented as the most common challenge in attaining stable continuous operation of RO systems across water treatment plants (1). Silica scale precipitation is time dependent and involves multiple steps leading to aqueous polymerization, condensation of polymers to form colloids, and deposition onto a solid surface (2). Exceeding the solubility of silica, widely considered to be in the range of 100-140 ppm, under a pH of 8 at 25 °C by various researchers, results in the precipitation of silica on the membranes, thereby limiting water recovery. Once the …

Transformation Of, In, And By Learning In A Service-Learning Faculty Fellows Program, Mary Cazzell, Shirley Theriot, Joan M. Blakey, Melanie L. Sattler

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications - Archive

Transformative learning is the most desired core outcome in adult education. The qualitative study examined critical reflections for professional transformation related to development and implementation of service-learning courses or projects from four university faculty members during enrollment in a Service-Learning Faculty Fellows program and post-servicelearning implementation. Reflective questions related to faculty perceptions of student learning, service-learning as pedagogy, and their own learning— transformation of, in, and by learning, respectively. Content analyses of faculty reflections resulted in three categories of transformation based on three preservice-learning and three post-servicelearning descriptive themes: (1) transformation of student learning from anticipatory integration to conflicts between …

Investigation Of An Association Between Childhood Leukemia Incidences And Airports In Texas, Sala. Nanyanzi Senkayi, Melanie L. Sattler, Nancy Rowe, Victoria Chen

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications - Archive

As worldwide demand for air travel increases, emissions from airports will likely also increase. Airport emissions pose a concern due to lack of information about their quantity and impacts on human health and the environment. This research aimed to address the question of whether there is an association between childhood leukemia cases and airport emissions in Texas. Rather than looking at the impacts of a single airport on the surrounding community, this study looks at all airports in the state of Texas, and 2 134 incidences of childhood leukemia (children age 9 and under) state–wide over a 10–year period. The …

Effect Of Enhanced Leachate Recirculated (Elr) Landfill Operation And Gas Extraction On Greenhouse Gas Emission, Sonia Samir

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

The bioreactor/ enhanced leachate recirculated (ELR) landfill operation with the addition of moisture/ leachate to the landfill, accelerate the process of landfill waste decomposition; and increase the generation of LFG over a shorter period of time. Since emissions from the landfills are directly related to the gas generation, the increase in gas generation might also increase the emission from the landfill. On the contrary, the presence of gas extraction is suggested to mitigate the fugitive emissions from the landfills. Therefore, the motivation of the current study was to evaluate the effect of ELR operation as well as the gas extraction …

Estimation Of Optimum Compaction Level For Bioreactor Landfill Operation, Dipak Tiwari

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

The effect of compaction on the degradation of MSW is important for the successful operation of bioreactor landfill. It has been a general tendency to compact working face solid waste as much as possible to gain more space. Previous studies has shown moisture content, moisture recirculation and ambient temperature were important components for degradation. There was a limitation on the compaction effect on degradation. Although several studies were conducted in the past to find the hydraulic conductivity of the waste, there was lack of work to find the optimum compaction to achieve sufficient flow inside the landfill and thus to …

Spatial Variability Models And Prediction Analysis Of Soil Properties Using Geostatistics, Tejo Vikash Bheemasetti

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Soils are composed of solid, water and air phases whose characteristics are highly variable. The interactions of these phases in the soil matrix can lead to different types of topographical formations and characteristics. Due to the uncertainty and complex interactions among these phases, studies on soils have always been a challenging problem for engineers. These variations and uncertainties make it necessary for engineers to adopt new techniques and methods to analyze soil properties in order to determine or interpret their generalized behaviors and patterns. Existing research in variability analysis tends to focus on the distribution of the soil properties, reliability-based …

Evaluation Of Lightweight Geofoam For Mitigating Bridge Approach Slab Settlements, Pinit Ruttanaporamakul

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

The bump at the end of a bridge infrastructure is one of the frequent problems found in Texas and other states. Transportation agencies spend millions of dollars annually to repair the bump problem. The major cause of the problem is the settlement of backfill materials and foundation soils, as well as the erosion of backfill. Research was undertaken at the University of Texas at Arlington to study the embankment located on US 67 over SH 174 in Johnson County, Cleburne, Texas. The embankment was reconstructed, replacing the top of existing fill soil with lightweight EPS 22 geofoam blocks to reduce …

Response Of Unsaturated Silty Sand Over A Wider Range Of Suction States Using A Novel Double-Walled Triaxial Testing System, Ujwalkumar Dashrath Patil

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

In recent decades, the state-of-the-art of our understanding of unsaturated soil performance has been considerably enhanced by incorporating novel and advanced features to the conventional testing devices such as direct shear device, ring shear device, triaxial device and true triaxial device. The novel suction-controlled triaxial system used in this research is fully automated and has enhanced features such as volume change device and double-walled cell to monitor the volume change accurately during all the stages of unsaturated triaxial test. Despite the sophistication, such devices can help in testing mechanical behavior of unsaturated soils only up to matric suction (s) value …

Numerical Modeling Of Ground Movements Associated With Trenchless Box Jacking Technique, Babak Haji Mohammad Hasan Mamaqani

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

The Trenchless Technology (TT) is defined as a family of methods used to install, renew, replace or renovate new pipe/box or existing pipe/box underground with little or no surface disruption. TT is divided into two main categories including Trenchless Construction Methods (TCMs) and Trenchless Renewal Methods (TRMs). TCMs are used to install new utilities and pipes underground while TRMs are used to renew, renovate and replace an existing utility or pipe. Box jacking (BJ) is a TCM used to install rectangular box culverts under existing facilities such as highways and railroads. In this method, box culverts are pushed through the …

Mechanical And Transport Properties Of Alkali-Activated Natural Pozzolans As Sustainable Binders, Brittany Radke

Calvert Undergraduate Research Awards

OPC production accounts for 5 to 7% of the global carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions, contributing to global warming. The desire to reduce CO₂ emissions and produce more durable concrete has given impetus to search for new binders. It is suggested that alkali-activated natural pozzolans have the potential for use as a sustainable replacement for OPC in concrete.

The current study presented herein evaluated fresh, mechanical, and transport properties of alkali-activated natural pozzolan mortars containing various concentrations of sodium hydroxide solutions as an alkaline activator. To this aim, alkali-activated natural pozzolan mortars were made with concentrations of sodium …

Concession Analysis For Highway Infrastructure Projects Financed As Public-Private Partnerships, Tanaphat Jeerangsuwan

Open Access Dissertations

Public funds allocated to the improvement and maintenance of highway infrastructure have reached the limits due to a rapid rate of socioeconomic growth and deterioration in infrastructure system performance. A public-private partnership (PPP) concessions a contractual and project financing mechanism that helps public authorities lessen the impact of their limited financial resources. In this project financing scheme, a public authority enters into a partnership with a private concessionaire for the purpose of developing a specific infrastructure facility. In return, the concessionaire receives the right to operate for a specified period of time. This creates strong potential for the delivery of …

Methods For Estimating Sediment Yield And Dam Capacity In The Great Lakes Watershed, Jennifer Hui

Wayne State University Theses

Sedimentation is the most important factor in the longevity of dams built in the United States. As most dams are reaching their capacity for sediment storage, this study investigated the historical and predicted future rates of sediment accumulation as well as the remaining storage capacity. This study examined the mechanisms influencing sediment production and storage in the watershed to provide future insight regarding potential control of this process. Twelve reservoirs throughout the Great Lakes watershed were selected and analyzed for their greater applicability to the entire watershed. Both historic and new data were collected on these dams to determine how …

Measurements Of Fluvial Sediments Using A Single-Frequency Acoustic Attenuation System, Thomas Alexander Kajdan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Suspended sediments are a global-scale pollutant that threaten the integrity of our waterways and pose an environmental threat to many aquatic ecosystems. Innovative techniques are required to continuously monitor this pollutant. Ultrasonic acoustic measurements have the potential to improve the temporal resolution of fluvial sediment data. This work investigates the use of a prototype field grade single-frequency acoustic attenuation system that was developed at the National Center for Physical Acoustics (NCPA), located at the University of Mississippi. This field-deployable unit consists of two 20 MHz immersion transducers that are aligned in a "pitch-catch" configuration at a fixed distance of 18 …

Effect Of Construction Worker Demographic On E-Learning With Hazard Communication Standard, Serhan Kaya

Wayne State University Theses

Construction safety and health training can be delivered by different training methods, such as traditional, online and blended learning. E-learning is a newly introduced method whose effectiveness is still being investigated. This study focuses on the effect of construction worker demographics on the effectiveness of e-learning. The univariate analysis technique was used to find out the distribution and frequency of data collected by an internet based system. Further, multivariate analysis (cross tabulation) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were performed to determine the association between the independent variables which are age, gender, ethnic background, union status, number of employees in the …