A current challenge to the civil/environmental engineering field is to assist full-scale wastewater treatment facilities through wider use of advances in modeling methods and analytical techniques. To address this challenge I applied modeling tools and, with assistance, the molecular biology analytical method of Fluorescent In-Situ Hybridization (FISH) to the high...
In urban areas, an accurate evaluation of ground deformations from various construction activities requires one to properly consider both the probable ground strain level under expected working conditions and the recent stress history of the soil. For well-designed projects, the levels of ground strains typically are less than 0.5%, emphasizing...
Two experimental methods have been developed to induce flexural waves in concrete piles for which a portion of the shaft is accessible, and the test results were compared to theoretical solutions of flexural guided wave propagation. The pile response is measured and the results are analyzed to compute the group...
Safe design requires a valid mechanical model and correct probabilistic analysis. Concrete, which is an archetypical quasibrittle material, typically exhibits stable crack propagation in many types of failure. Therefore, a scientific approach requires analyzing concrete failure on the basis of fracture mechanics. One of the simplest ways to incorporate fracture...
The abundance and breadth of condition data generated by advanced inspection technologies have increased the frequency and accuracy of data collection, which is not exploited by the existing performance models. Moreover, simultaneity of deterioration and maintenance causes difficulty of estimating effectiveness of maintenance activities for existing performance models. To address...
In response to construction activities and loads from permanent structures, soil generally is subjected to a variety of loading modes varying both in time and location. It also has been increasingly appreciated that the strains around well-designed foundations, excavations and tunnels are mostly small, with soil responses at this strain...
The advent of next-generation sequencing has made it increasingly feasible to survey microbes in situ, including inside buildings where many people spend extended periods of time. Microbes in buildings, and specifically in dust, are linked to various health outcomes, and the amount of antimicrobial chemicals in dust is associated to...
Building design and operation impact the accumulation and survival of microorganisms in indoor spaces. These microorganisms, together referred to as the indoor microbiome, have implications for human health and well being. However, the relative importance of factors like architecture compared to, e.g., human occupancy, remains unclear. This study aimed to...
An accurate knowledge of the engineering properties of rocks is crucial for a variety of geomechanical problems, ranging from wellbore stability to failure in rock slopes, underground excavations, and crustal faults. While strength and deformation properties are usually obtained from a limited number of in situ and/or laboratory tests, their...
While infrequent, clay slope failures caused by earthquakes result in loss of life and substantial property damage. In strong seismicity areas, it is sometimes assumed that the stability of clay deposits can be evaluated through the residual undrained strength that is applicable at large deformations. A crucial factor missing in...