Civil Engineering Commons^™

Investigation Of Coastal Vegetation Dynamics And Persistence In Response To Hydrologic And Climatic Events Using Remote Sensing, Subrina Tahsin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Coastal Wetlands (CW) provide numerous imperative functions and provide an economic base for human societies. Therefore, it is imperative to track and quantify both short and long-term changes in these systems. In this dissertation, CW dynamics related to hydro-meteorological signals were investigated using a series of LANDSAT-derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) data and hydro-meteorological time-series data in Apalachicola Bay, Florida, from 1984 to 2015. NDVI in forested wetlands exhibited more persistence compared to that for scrub and emergent wetlands. NDVI fluctuations generally lagged temperature by approximately three months, and water level by approximately two months. This analysis provided insight …

Influence Of Limit Equilibrium Methods In The Design Of Contiguous Cantilever Sheet Pile Walls Through Reliability-Based Analysis, Alvaro J. Mattos, Juan Camilo Viviescas, Juan Pablo Osorio

Conference papers

In geotechnical engineering the design of bored- pile walls is commonly performed in terms of the embedment length (D) defined according to the limit equilibrium methods (also known as balance methods) formulated by Krey, Blum, Rowe, Hansen and the empirical method of Look in sandy soils. The limit equilibrium methods are calculations associated with the shape of the earth pressures distributions in the shaft, earth pressures theories, geotechnical properties and safety factors, while the empirical criteria establish that the relationship between embedment and the free height (H) is of the order of D/H = 1.5. These design methods are complemented …

Image-Based Roadway Assessment Using Convolutional Neural Networks, Weilian Song

Theses and Dissertations--Computer Science

Road crashes are one of the main causes of death in the United States. To reduce the number of accidents, roadway assessment programs take a proactive approach, collecting data and identifying high-risk roads before crashes occur. However, the cost of data acquisition and manual annotation has restricted the effect of these programs. In this thesis, we propose methods to automate the task of roadway safety assessment using deep learning. Specifically, we trained convolutional neural networks on publicly available roadway images to predict safety-related metrics: the star rating score and free-flow speed. Inference speeds for our methods are mere milliseconds, enabling …

Analysis Of The Pile Load Tests At The Us 68/Ky 80 Bridge Over Kentucky Lake, Edward Lawson

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

Large diameter piles are widely used as foundations to support buildings, bridges, and other structures. As a result, it is critical for the field to have an optimized approach for quality control and efficiency purposes to measure the suggested number of load tests and the required measured capacities driven piles. In this thesis, an analysis of a load test program designed for proposed bridge replacements at Kentucky Lake is performed. It includes a detailed site exploration study with in-situ and laboratory testing. The pile load test program included monitoring of a steel H-pile and steel open ended pipe pile during …

Investigation Of Atmospheric Effects On Vapor Intrusion Processes Using Modelling Approaches, Elham Shirazi

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

Most people in the United States (US) spend considerable amount of time indoors—about 90% of their time as compared to outdoors, which makes the US population vulnerable to adverse health effects of indoor air contaminants. Volatile organic compound (VOC) concentrations are well-known to be higher in indoor air than outdoor air. One source of VOC concentrations in indoor air that has gained considerable attention in public health and environmental regulatory communities is vapor intrusion. Vapor intrusion is the process by which subsurface vapors enter indoor spaces from contaminated soil and groundwater. It has been documented to cause indoor air contamination …

Applied Fluid Mechanics Lab Manual, Habib Ahmari, Shah Md Imran Kabir

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications - Archive

This lab manual provides students with the theory, practical applications, objectives, and laboratory procedure of ten experiments. The manual also includes educational videos showing how student should run each experiment and a workbook for organizing data collected in the lab and preparing result tables and charts.

E-Construction Technologies For Efficient Highway Construction Inspections, Dhaivat Patel

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

Over recent years, organizations such as the Federal Highway Administration and Departments of Transportation across the United States have showed interest in automating highway construction processes. The addition of e-Construction and other advanced technologies can significantly improve the efficiency and safety of highway paving operations, specifically paving inspections. Activities such as collecting load tickets, tracking pavement lay-down temperatures, and monitoring roller movement are antiquated practices that DOT inspectors perform during paving operations. E-Ticketing, Paver Mounted Thermal Profiling, and Intelligent Compaction were proposed to automate paving inspections and were recently tested in two resurfacing pilot projects in the state of Kentucky. …

The Nola Development: Stormwater Management And Green Alternative Designs, Davis P. Odle

Honors Theses

In the design for any development, the management of storm and wastewater is crucial in creating a viable product. The NOLA complex is a development in Oxford, MS that consists of residential as well as commercial units. The stormwater management systems designed for this facility include: an underground storage device, separate ductile iron pipes for the stormwater and wastewater outflows, a rain garden for green alternative storage. The underground storage system is designed for the 500-year storm and to fit under the southwest parking lot on the site. The stormwater outflow pipe will be designed for the 100-year storm, while …

Basic Turbo Roundabouts As An Alternative To Conventional Double-Lane Roundabouts: Operational Performance Evaluation, Zuhair Elhassy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Conventional roundabouts have been prevalent worldwide since the emergence of modern roundabouts in 1966. An innovative design of multilane roundabouts known as turbo roundabouts, however, has been recently introduced as an alternative to conventional multilane roundabouts. Due to several reasons, there has been no general consensus on the operational performance of turbo roundabouts throughout the world. Nationwide, turbo roundabouts have yet to be part of roadway systems, but there is an ongoing project expected to be finished in early 2020. Therefore, this dissertation aims to evaluate the operational performance of a widespread variant of turbo roundabouts, namely basic turbo roundabouts, …

Escherichia Coli Removal From Stormwater Using Steel Chips Filter, Peng Dai

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Media filtration has received increasing attention as an effective technology that can facilitate the removal of particles and dissolved pollutions in the stormwater. However, most traditional media filtration systems are generally ineffective in removing bacteria, causing pollution of groundwater and receiving surface water. In this study, recycled steel chips were evaluated as low-cost filter materials for bacterial removal from stormwater. Laboratory column experiments were conducted to evaluate the impact of steel chips particle size, flow rate, initial E.coli concentration, pH, natural organic matter (NOM), steady and intermittent flow on E.coli removal. The results showed that E.coli removal decreased from 99.4% …

Repairable Moment-Resisting Steel Buildings, Heath William Pederson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Current seismic design codes ensure life safety for buildings, but structural members may significantly yield or even fail under strong earthquakes. A new design approach is to implement connections that localize the yielding and failure to fuses. A more sophisticated approach is to be able to replace the fuses after the event. The present study was carried out to develop repairable moment-resisting (MR) connections for steel buildings and to investigate their seismic performance through nonlinear finite element analyses (FEA). Two details were proposed using buckling restrained fuses (BRFs) and buckling restrained reinforcement (BRR). Test data was collected from the literature …

ผลของปริมาณบอแรกซ์และเถ้าแกลบต่อสมบัติของจีโอโพลิเมอร์มอร์ต้าร์จากเถ้าลอยแคลเซียมสูง, กิตติ์ จันทร์ประสิทธิ์

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

งานวิจัยนี้มีวัตถุประสงค์หลักในการพัฒนาสมบัติของวัสดุจีโอโพลิเมอร์ที่ผสมบอแรกซ์ที่เรียกว่า “บอโรอลูมิโนซิลิเกต (BASG)” ซึ่งเป็นหนึ่งในวัสดุที่เป็นมิตรต่อสิ่งแวดล้อม ส่วนเชื่อมประสานของจีโอโพลิเมอร์ทำจากเถ้าลอยแคลเซียมสูง โซเดียมไฮดรอกไซด์ (NH) โซเดียมซิลิเกต (NS) และบอแรกซ์ ทุกส่วนผสมใช้สัดส่วนเถ้าลอยต่อทรายคงที่เท่ากับ 1:2.75 โดยน้ำหนัก ใช้อัตราส่วน NS/NH โดยน้ำหนักเท่ากับ 1:1, 0.75:1 และ 0.5:1 ใช้บอแรกซ์แทนที่ NS ในปริมาณ 0%, 10%, 20% และ 30% โดยน้ำหนัก และศึกษาการใช้เถ้าแกลบ (RHA) ในการพัฒนากำลังรับแรงและความทึบน้ำของจีโอโพลิเมอร์มอร์ต้าร์ โดยใช้ RHA ในปริมาณ 0%, 3.6%, 4.8% และ 6.0% โดยน้ำหนักของเถ้าลอย จากการทดสอบพบว่าการแทนที่ NS ด้วยบอแรกซ์ส่งผลให้ความสามารถทำงานได้และความแข็งแรงของมอร์ต้าร์ลดลง เมื่อเปรียบเทียบกับส่วนผสมควบคุมที่ไม่ผสม RHA พบว่า BASG มอร์ต้าร์ที่ผสม RHA มีกำลังอัด กำลังดัด และความทึบน้ำที่ดีกว่า ผลการทดสอบโครงสร้างระดับจุลภาคบ่งชี้ว่าการใส่ RHA ช่วยเพิ่มสัดส่วน Si/Al ของจีโอโพลิเมอร์เจล โดยกำลังรับแรงอัดของ BASG มอร์ต้าร์ที่ผสม RHA มีค่าสูงสุดเท่ากับ 58.6 MPa

พฤติกรรมการรับแรงดัดของคานคอนกรีตผสมเส้นใยเหล็กภายใต้ภาวะการกัดกร่อน, อาณสิทธิ์ การินทอง

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

ตั้งแต่อดีตจนถึงปัจจุบัน โครงสร้างคอนกรีตเสริมเหล็กเป็นโครงสร้างที่นิยมใช้กันอย่างแพร่หลาย แต่เนื่องจากเหล็กเสริมมีความทนทานต่อการกัดกร่อนที่ต่ำ ปัญหาการกัดกร่อนภายในโครงสร้างเป็นปัญหาสำคัญที่ส่งผลกระทบต่อความสามารถในการรับแรงของโครงสร้างที่ลดลงเนื่องจากสูญเสียปริมาณเหล็กเสริมไป ซึ่งอาจทำให้เกิดอันตรายต่อผู้ใช้งานโครงสร้างได้ ดังนั้นจึงจำเป็นต้องมีการพัฒนาโครงสร้างคอนกรีตเสริมเหล็กให้สามารถรับกำลังภายใต้สภาวะการกัดกร่อนได้ดีขึ้น งานวิจัยนี้จึงมีวัตถุประสงค์เพื่อศึกษาพฤติกรรมการดัดของคานคอนกรีตเสริมเหล็กผสมเส้นใยเหล็กภายใต้ภาวะการกัดกร่อน ด้วยการศึกษาอิทธิพลของปริมาณเส้นใยที่ใช้ต่อความเสียหายที่เกิดขึ้นเนื่องจากการกัดกร่อน และอิทธิพลของปริมาณเส้นใยที่ใช้ต่อพฤติกรรมของคานที่สภาวะการกัดกร่อน ตัวแปรที่ใช้ในการศึกษาคือ ระดับการกัดกร่อน (ร้อยละ 0, 2 และ 5) และปริมาณเส้นใยเหล็กที่ใช้ผสม (ร้อยละ 0, 0.5, 1.0 และ 1.5 โดยปริมาตรคอนกรีต) โดยศึกษาจากตัวอย่างคานทั้งหมด 12 ตัวอย่าง ผลการทดสอบพบว่า ปริมาณการใช้เส้นใยที่ในปริมาณที่เหมาะสมทำให้ความกว้างรอยแตกร้าวเนื่องจากการกัดกร่อนลดลงอย่างมีนัยสำคัญ โดยการผสมเส้นใยร้อยละ 1.0 ช่วยลดความกว้างรอยแตกร้าวลงได้ถึงร้อยละ 63.55 ที่การกัดกร่อนร้อยละ 2 และลดลงร้อยละ 27.96 ที่การกัดกร่อนร้อยละ 5 และการผสมเส้นใยช่วยทดแทนกำลังรับแรงดัดที่สูญเสียเนื่องจากการกัดกร่อนได้ โดยการผสมเส้นใยร้อยละ 0.5 สามารถทดแทนกำลังที่สูญเสียไปร้อยละ 101.3 ที่การกัดกร่อนร้อยละ 2 และ การผสมเส้นใยร้อยละ 1.0 สามารถทดแทนกำลังที่สูญเสียไปร้อยละ 101.2 ที่การกัดกร่อนร้อยละ 5 อีกทั้งเส้นใยเหล็กยังช่วยเพิ่มประสิทธิภาพในการถ่ายแรงไปยังเหล็กเสริมรับแรงดึงและช่วยให้พฤติกรรมการรับแรงดัดของคานคอนกรีตเสริมเหล็กไม่เปลี่ยนแปลงไปภายใต้ภาวะการกัดกร่อน

Balancing Mass Transit Ridership Through Land Use Development, Achara Limmonthol

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

The utmost utility of the transit system can be supported by the balance of ridership. It is not only gaining more operational benefits but also enhancing the efficiency of the system as a whole. Transit Oriented Development (TOD) is defined as an integration between land use and transportation, which focuses on the station areas. Land use characteristics are the essential factors that affect trip generation and trip attraction. Some types of land use generate trips mainly during peak hours. Meanwhile, some other types generate trips during off-peak hours. This dissertation therefore focuses on the balancing mass transit ridership through land …

Synthesis Of Fault Traces In Se Louisiana Relative To Infrastructure, David Culpepper, Elizabeth Chinn Mcdade, Nancye Dawers, Mark Kulp, Rui Zhang

Data

Corresponding data set for Tran-SET Project No. 17GTLSU12. Abstract of the final report is stated below for reference:

"Geological faulting has been implicated as a contributor to subsidence, coastal land-loss and submergence of marshlands in southern Louisiana. This report reviews whether fault motion, either by slow creep or more sudden slip, can cause deformation of engineered structures resulting in increased infrastructure maintenance and repair costs. The impact of surface, or near-surface, geologic faulting on critical infrastructure is insufficiently documented in southeastern Louisiana, but the state has a vast amount of energy-sector subsurface data that to date has been under-utilized for …

Field And Numerical Study For Deteriorating Precast Double-Tee Girder Bridges, Brian Kidd

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Two deteriorating DT bridges in South Dakota, both over 30-years old, were field tested with a static and dynamic load. From the recorded strain values, the liveload distribution factors (LLDFs) and dynamic load allowance (IM) factors were calculated. The AASHTO LRFD and AASHTO Standard Specifications were compared with the field LLDFs and IMs. It was determined that the AASHTO LRFD Specifications were conservative for deteriorating DT girder bridges, with two exceptions. The AASHTO Standard codified LLDFs were significantly higher than the field LLDFs in all cases. The AASHTO LRFD and AASHTO Standard specifications were conservative when calculating the IM factors …

Ua66/9/2 Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Engineering Publications, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Publications created by and about the Engineering department.

Ua66/9/3 Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Engineering Student Organizations, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Records created by and about Engineering department student organizations.

Training Effectiveness Analysis Of Osha Silica And Excavation Safety Standards For Construction, Bedel Desruisseaux

Wayne State University Theses

ABSTRACT

TRAINING EFFECTIVENESS ANALYSIS OF

OSHA SILICA AND EXCAVATION SAFETY STANDARDS

FOR CONSTRUCTION

by

BEDEL DESRUISSEAUX

May 2019

Advisor: Dr Mumtaz Usmen

Major: Civil Engineering

Degree: Master of Science

As construction safety and health standards evolve due to changing industry practices and stakeholder expectations, and the mandates get stronger on compliance with these standards, the need for training programs become more pronounced. The proposed paper covers the training material development and program delivery and evaluation efforts associated with two OSHA standards applicable to construction; one on Respirable Crystalline Silica (29 CFR 1926.1153) and other on Excavation and Trenching (29 CFR …

Pervious Lightweight Concrete And Engineered Sand Filter, Sarah Puchner

Summer Community of Scholars Posters (RCEU and HCR Combined Programs)

No abstract provided.

Validation Of The Highway Capacity Manual Urban Street Travel Time Reliability Methodology Using Empirical Data, Ernest Tufuor, Laurence Rilett

Mid-America Transportation Center: Final Reports and Technical Briefs

The 6th edition of the Highway Capacity Manual (HCM-6) includes the concept of travel time reliability (TTR), which attempts to determine the distribution of average trip travel times over an extended period. TTR is an inherent part of travelers’ route choice decisions and is used by traffic managers to better quantify operations rather than simply using average travel times. The focus of this paper is on the HCM-6 urban street TTR methodology contained in Chapter 17. The approach uses historical data (e.g., weather and volume fluctuations) and simple empirical data (e.g., 1-day volume count) to provide the user with average …

Assessing Impact And Blast Resilience Of Polymer Coated Cementitious Materials, Murtaza Nalwala, Gabriel Nsengiyumva, Yong-Rak Kim

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

RESEARCH MOTIVATION: The bridge piers are highly vulnerable to the impact and blast loads. The position in which they are constructed makes it difficult to install protective devices around them. By the current AASHTO standard, it is possible to under-design bridge piers for commercial vehicle impacts and other events such as blast.

OBJECTIVE: To improve impact and blast resilience of bridge piers using polymeric coatings.

CONCLUSION • Polymer coating of Portland cement concrete can be achieved with a good bonding. • The polymeric coating seem to improve impact resilience of Portland cement concrete by increasing absorbed impact energy (i.e., area …

Using Online Discussions To Develop The Entrepreneurial Mindset In Environmental Engineering Undergraduates: A Case Study, Lisa B. Bosman, Nathalie Duval-Couetil, Brooke K. Mayer, Patrick J. Mcnamara

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Entrepreneurship is an important aspect of the U.S. and global economy. As such, developing an entrepreneurial mindset is crucial for both engineering students and practicing engineers. The purpose of this paper is investigate the role of online discussions, as a pedagogical approach, in the development of the entrepreneurial mindset, and explore a variety of approaches to assess student learning outcomes. Online discussions prompts were created for environmental engineering courses using the Kern Engineering Entrepreneurial Network (KEEN) framework. The framework proposes that an entrepreneurial mindset can be fostered in students by promoting curiosity, encouraging connections, and creating value. This paper describes …

Long-Term Impact On Environmental Attitudes And Knowledge Assessed Over Three Semesters Of An Environmental Engineering Sequence, Benjamin Michael Wallen, Nathaniel Sheehan, Luke Plante, Erick Martinez, Jeffrey A. Starke

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

The pedagogy employed in a three-course environmental engineering sequence is investigated to determine the efficacy of enabling long-term improvement of knowledge and attitudes toward the environment. These three courses incorporate concepts of the five grand challenges released by the National Academy of Engineering and National Academy of Sciences and increase the breadth of knowledge for T-professionals. Previous studies of lengths from a few weeks to semester long courses evaluated the potential causality among various demographics and environmental knowledge and attitudes. The research presented herein contrasts and compares changes in environmental knowledge based upon a 12-question survey and changes in environmental …

Decoding And Optimizing Magnesium Phosphate Binders For Additive Construction Applications, Hashem Khaled Almashaqbeh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work aims to give more insight about the physical, mechanical, thermal, and chemical performance of the MPC paste composites. Our primary outcome from this research is to improve the MPC composites with different additives, including boric acid, GnP, and acetic acid for potential utilization in 3DcP applications. Furthermore, Martian and Lunar regolith simulants can be mixed with the MPC composites to create mortars as a possible extraterrestrial 3DP in-situ construction material mainly to support the NASA habitation exploration mission.

Damage Detection Using Destructive Testing Of A Reinforced Concrete Slab, Michael Edward Daves

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Visual inspection is one of the primary tools for evaluating the health of bridges as more reach or exceed their intended lifespan. Bridge deterioration must be monitored to ensure continued safety, so owners need maintenance reports to decide on corrective actions. Strategic repair can offer asset managers the benefit of saving money and time; thus, knowing where to locate and what type of repairs can be challenging when relying on visual techniques alone. A tool designed to aid bridge inspectors is the SHE^tm program, which quantitatively measures damage location and severity for any set of time data.

Investigating The Use Of Passive Acoustics As A Surrogate Method Of Monitoring Coarse Bedload Transport In Rivers And Streams Via Laboratory Experiments And Field Studies, Bradley Goodwiller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The movement of coarse gravel in rivers in streams is important for many applications including wildlife habitation, river morphology, infrastructure maintenance and marine navigation. Physical sampling remains the most accurate method of determining coarse bedload transport but it can be expensive, dangerous and flow intrusive. Surrogate methods of monitoring bedload transport is an active area of research worldwide. One such method is the use of passive acoustics to record the sound generated when gravel particles in motion impact each other or the particles on the bed. This dissertation presents research and development that has been conducted on three key areas …

Warrants For Right-Turn Flashing Yellow Arrow Signal Phases, Mohammed Alfawzan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The right-turn flashing yellow arrow (FYA) signal phasing is a new signal practice in the United States. The Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices MUTCD (2009) allocates a signal phasing section for the right-turn FYA, which requires a four-section head FYA signal. It supports multiple phases' indications that guide the motorist through permissive, protected, and/or permissive/protected phases. For this dissertation, I investigated three permissive right-turn FYA signal phases in various traffic conditions and signal timing circumstances. The first permissive right-turn FYA signal phase is the tight-turn on impeding through (RTOIT) taking place during the cross-street through traffic movement. The second …

Redefining Construction “As-Built” Plans To Meet Current Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Needs, Victoria Lynn Lasley

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

As-built drawings are the traditional method used by the construction industry to record changes made during construction. As-builts provide valuable information for new design projects as well as rehabilitation and remediation projects. The completeness and accuracy of these plans are essential for transportation industries and their success. While the importance of as-builts is widely recognized, the process of creating them has proven to be difficult. It is a time consuming process and entities often lack the resources necessary to complete accurate and detailed as-builts. After an investigation of current as-built operations within State Transportation Agencies, recommendations have been made to …

Improving Safety Performance Of Highway Maintenance Crews Through Pre-Task Safety Toolbox Talks, Zamaan Al-Shabbani

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

The dangerous work environment in the construction industry and the inherent high risks associated with construction work make it the focus of safety training and regulations. Highway construction and maintenance has unique hazards but seemingly less directly applicable safety standards, regulations, and programs. Department of Transportation (DOT) employees working in highway maintenance are exposed to a variety of unique hazards specifically associated with their work and not relating to the adjacent traffic. Yet, highway construction and maintenance work has not received sufficient attention in terms of safety research and programs. The lack of safety training and education in highway construction …