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Some of the material in is restricted to members of the community. By logging in, you may be able to gain additional access to certain collections or items. If you have questions about access or logging in, please use the form on the Contact Page.
Hurricane Andrew (1992) caused one of the largest property losses in U.S. history, but limited availability of surface wind measurements hindered the advancement of wind engineering research. Many studies have been conducted on regular...
Florida has been actively implementing the AASHTO Pontis Bridge Management System (BMS) to support network-level and project-level decision making in the headquarters and district offices. As a concerted effort of the FDOT to improve the...
The purpose and focus of this research was on studying the hazard to Florida's coastal bridges from storm surge induced wave forces inflicted on the bridges during hurricanes. It has been observed in recent years that bridges located in...
Taller wind turbines with big wheel area have been proposed for low wind speed sites, where conventional 80m tower cannot produce enough electricity. Hub height of 140m gives the potential to all 50 states to produce power from wind....
Evaluation of existing structures is critical for an efficient management of transportation facilities, especially bridges. Knowledge of actual load effects and structure resistance can be very helpful for the determination of the load...
Hurricanes produce phenomena during the duration of the storm that are not particularly addressed in Standard Building Code Loading Combinations. One such phenomenon is the horizontally projected missiles due to high wind velocities...
The management of solid waste is a major environmental concern in the United States. Waste tire rubber forms a major part of this problem and a rather severe one since tire rubbers are not biodegradable hence its disposal into landfills...
In this dissertation new methodologies were developed to address some of the existing needs as it relates to Transportation Asset Management Systems (TAMS). The goal of TAMS is to model the performance and preservation of transportation...
Precast prestressed concrete members are widely used in civil engineering structures around the world with growing demand in the last few years due to the rapid urbanization and industrialization driving an increase in infrastructure...
High alkali cements are not used in the state of Florida because of its supposed deleterious effects to concrete. The alkali-silica reaction forms a gel in the voids of the concrete and the increase in internal pressure created by the...
The analysis of traffic crashes that occurred in Florida in 2002 has shown that six-lane divided highways had higher crash rates than two-lane and four-lane highways. Variation of roadway geometrics and traffic characteristics on six...
Testing Protocol, Material Specifications, Long-Term Durability Analysis in Accelerated Environments, and Prediction Modeling of Basalt Fiber Reinforced Polymer (BFRP) Bars
Bridge infrastructure in coastal areas is deteriorating at an accelerated pace due to increased traffic and aggressive environments. Traditional black steel reinforcement in bridges is corroding due to exposure to saline environments....
Bulb-T girder bridges are composed of precast, prestressed concrete beams with a reinforced concrete slab. Typically, the slab extends transversely beyond the exterior beam, and there is a traffic barrier on the edge. The bridges are...
Recent innovation in the engineered wood industry has produced Structural Composite Lumber (SCL) that tends to achieve maximum strength, stiffness and efficient use of wood. Product variations of SCL such as Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL)...
As it stands, many of Florida’s roads have already reached their designed service life and are now in the process of being renewed. The current method in rehabilitation of concrete pavement requires the expired piece of pavement to be...
Paratransit buses are custom built as the major vehicle manufacturer produces the custom built passenger cage installed on the chassis for the Paratransit bus. In order for these Paratransit bus members to be sufficient, they have to be...
Shotcrete refers to the construction technique that concrete or mortar is conveyed through a hose and pneumatically projected onto substrate surfaces. Shotcrete is broadly used in civil engineering for rehabilitation of existing...
Buildings' Sustainability Analysis: Analytical Hierarchy Process to Analyze Cost, Leed Credits, and Carbon Neutrality Utilizing a Building Information Modeling Platform
For building owners, there are several factors that they must consider when thinking about whether or not a building has achieved the goals set up for it. With increases in energy prices, knowledge about the damage being done to our...
Modeling traffic crashes is a complex undertaking. Previous research studies have used a variety of techniques to analyze crashes. Conventionally, traffic crashes have been modeled using regression models. Recently, intelligent systems...
The use of post-tensioning in bridge girders causes tensile bursting stresses to occur some distance ahead of the anchorage device in a region known as the general zone. Large amounts of mild steel reinforcement are placed in this area...
In the past decade, FDOT has carried out network-level decisions through the utilization of AASHTO Pontis Bridge Management System. Like most states, Florida DOT had been previously using a customized version of the 1997 AASHTO CoRe...
Different building materials have been used in construction for centuries to meet the accommodation needs. Building materials were primarily designed to tolerate the environmental impacts and to meet the demand. However, some of these...
Autonomous vehicle (AV) is becoming very popular due to technological evolution in autonomous transportation sector. It can be more reliable than human-controlled vehicle as it can detect pedestrians with high accuracy and control the...
Span length of bridges is ever increasing. With the increase in span, bridges are becoming more slender, making them more prone to wind-induced forces and vibrations. Some bridges show significant wind-induced vibrations after the...
For the past several decades the segmental box girder bridge has proven itself to be one of the more efficient bridge types. Using reusable form work, segments are match-cast, ensuring a more perfect connection during the construction...
While rollover crashes are the least frequent types of crash, around one third of vehicle occupant fatalities occurs in rollover crashes. Rollover crashes are usually associated with multiple impacts which result in complex interactions...
The deterioration of the safety of operation, coupled with the persistent increase in rearend crashes, is of great concern in finding accurate and realistic methods of modeling traffic flow and preventing traffic crashes. For some...
The National Design Specification for Wood Construction (NDS) outlines different factors and equations necessary for designing structures exploiting timber. While analyzing a timber shear wall there are several specific equations and...
As the strategy of green building becomes more and more popular due to a combination of environmental and economic concerns, there develops a need for clearly being able to understand the potential implications for choosing green...
Paratransit buses consist of a custom body mounted to a GM/Ford cutaway chassis by a secondary manufacturer called body builder. Paratransit buses form a significant segment of the bus market in the US nowadays. They are used as a...
Current U.S. energy policy, which includes wind and solar incentives, favors the increased use of renewables for power generation. Renewable energy incentives and falling technology costs support robust growth in renewable energy...
The Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) ``Every Day Counts'' initiative aims to shorten the overall project delivery time, enhance safety, and protect the environment both on and around construction projects. Using innovative...
Four (4) new bridges were constructed by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to replace four (4) deteriorated bridges on U.S. Highway 90 between Tallahassee and Quincy, Florida. The new bridges were built using new...
Ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) is a special type of concrete with high compressive and tensile strength, high durability, and a dense microstructure that results in improved mechanical and durability properties. However, due to...
This thesis investigates the surface pressure distribution on a 15-story mid-rise building model. The experiment was performed on a building with/without balconies; the data on the building without balconies being the reference pressure...
The increase in commodity flow and just-in-time pick up and delivery activities in urban areas have led to increase in truck traffic on urban roadways which raises safety and operational concerns. The concerns are related to trucks'...
The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is currently implementing the AASHTO Pontis® Bridge Management System (BMS) to support network-level and project-level decision making at the state and district levels. User cost models in...
Energy absorption structures and devices, such as car bumpers, are designed to transform the kinetic energy into another form of energy in a controlled and predictable way. Focus of this dissertation was to enhance energy absorption of...
Prestressed concrete is used in structures because of its versatility, adaptability, and durability. Durability of prestressed concrete bridges in extremely aggressive environments is of increasing concern because of corrosion of the...
For the past decades many studies have focused on the operation and safety of limited access roadways. However, the accessibility of these facilities are made possible by interchanges which are systems of interconnecting roadways with...
Truss towers form a vital part of the communication infrastructure, and the control of responses for such structures during adverse events such as an earthquake is of significant importance. The objective of this research venture is to...
The State of Florida acquires over 300 cutaway buses every year. The increasing popularity of such buses raised concerns about passenger safety and overall crashworthiness of this transportation mode. Dimensions of the cutaway buses and...
Traffic crashes are one of the leading causes of death, substantial economic loss, and severe injuries for drivers. They also put lives of people at risk, cause severe traumas and incapacitating injuries, which usually require a painful...
Urban freeways and tollways in the United States are characterized by a significant number of truck traffic hauling freight between various origins and destinations. The truck traffic varies in size from single-unit trucks to multi-unit...
The Florida Department of transportation most commonly uses prestressed concrete piles as foundation in bridges. It has been observed since past few years that the piles installed in aggressive marine environments are subjected to...
Extensive research has been previously conducted on cylindrical models with different surface patterns. These experiments were generally performed with the intention of passively reducing friction drag on aerodynamic structures exposed...
Green engineering is the newest technology implemented for sustainability in the design of buildings and most recently highways. Sustainability concepts applied to the design and construction of roadways includes long term planning, ...
Wireless communication through automated and connected vehicles is an evolving technology. This ameliorates the driving conditions, reduces time spent in traffic and curtails the crash occurrences. One of the most challenging areas, ...
Construction is a major industry in the United States. In 2010, over $506 billion was spent in construction and construction-related activity, amounting to over 3.4% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). $21.2 billion, or 0.6% of federal...
Some of the material in is restricted to members of the community. By logging in, you may be able to gain additional access to certain collections or items. If you have questions about access or logging in, please use the form on the Contact Page.
