CEE
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Summer 2011
Accomplished
The Yeh Student Center is complete More concrete canoe history Alumni news and features
CEE
Excellence. Flexibility. Illinois.
CEE at Illinois Online • • • • • • • •
Earn your master’s degree entirely online. Work with our top-ranked faculty. Take the same classes as resident students. Interact with other students through projects and assignments. Earn the same M.S. degree with the same degree requirements as on-campus students. Access lectures and course materials online. Work toward professional development hours and certificates. Enjoy the flexibility and convenience of an online program.
CEE is published twice a year for alumni and friends of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Those alumni who donate annually to CEE at Illinois receive every issue. Amr S. Elnashai Professor and Head John E. Kelley Director of Advancement and Alumni Relations Celeste Bragorgos Director of Communications Breanne Ertmer External Relations Coordinator Letters, comments and editorial submissions: CEE Magazine Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 1117 Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory MC-250 205 North Mathews Avenue Urbana, Illinois 61801 (217) 333-6955 celeste@illinois.edu Advertising inquiries: Celeste Bragorgos (217) 333-6955 celeste@illinois.edu
Professional Development Hours, Certificates You can register as a non-degree student for a single course or pursue a 3-course certificate as a non-degree student. Afterwards, you can apply for the M.S. program and transfer up to 12 hours (3 courses) to be used toward your 36-hour M.S. degree program requirement.
cee.illinois.edu/ceeonline
Front cover: Photo of the new M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center, completed in June. Photo: Erich Adickes Follow CEE at Illinois: facebook.com/ceeatillinois twitter.com/ceeatillinois youtube.com/ceeatillinois
CEE Summer 2011
4 Research thrusts for changing the world/Amr S. Elnashai 7 The long wait is over/Lawrence P. Jaworski (BS 72, MS 73) 8 Yeh Student Center opens 10 Big California dig offers lessons in urban excavation 11 Environmental lab students begin water projects in Africa 12 Class studies China’s environmental challenges 14 Illinois highway research: Paving the way for more than 100 years 18 Mentor program gives freshmen a smoother start 19 New research projects focus on high-speed rail 20 Concrete canoe team heads to nationals 21 Concrete canoe alumni reminisce 23 Bridge team has good showing at regionals 24 Study estimates land available for biofuel crops 25 Department news
20
32 Student awards 34 Alumni news 38 Old masters: Richard Engelbrecht 39 In memoriam
13
40 Chicago alumni dinner 41 Alumni awards 42 Roof in bloom
11
8 Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
3
Research Thrusts for Changing the World Amr S. Elnashai, Professor and Head William J. and Elaine F. Hall Endowed Professor in Civil and Environmental Engineering by
W
as Nathan M. Newmark a structural engineer, a geotechnical engineer, a mechanician, a geophysicist, a computer scientist or a mathematician? Well, he was all of the above, and more. If we were sufficiently fortunate to be hiring the next Nathan Newmark now, in which ”area” of the Civil and Environmental Engineering department at Illinois would he fit best? Probably none—and all. Perhaps one person’s lack of fit is another person’s exciting opportunity. Have times changed so much that the body of knowledge requires everyone to be compartmentalized within a sub-discipline of an engineering sub-discipline, namely Civil and Environmental Engineering? I submit to the judgment of our alumni, friends, community of students, faculty and staff the proposition that at all times throughout history there have been options of disciplinary and interdisciplinary inquiry. During medieval times, churches in Europe held to a broad-based education under unfavorable conditions by teaching the seven strands of knowledge grouped into two interdisciplinary packages, the Trivium (grammar, logic and rhetoric), and the Quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy). These multidisciplinary clusters formed the basis of education more than 10 centuries ago. We need not all be polymaths, and perhaps we need not all focus on one single aspect of science, engineering and technology for a lifetime either. We need, however, to have a framework, a direction, aspirational and practical, exciting and empowering. Our department excels when it is adventurous, when it peers beyond the horizon, when it leaps into space, while maintaining firm contact with the ground of rigor and core
4
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
competence. During a visit to Harvard in 2007, National Academy of Engineering President Charles M. Vest said, “Making universities and engineering schools exciting, creative, adventurous, rigorous, demanding, and empowering milieus is more important than specifying curricular details.” This philosophy counter-balances concerns about enriching curricula with experiences, project-based learning and hands-on discovery at the cost of
If we were hiring the next Nathan Newmark now, in which ”area” of the Civil and Environmental Engineering department at Illinois would he fit best? Probably none— and all.
extensive treatment of core material. In the winter issue of our CEE Magazine, I wrote about ”Engineering Education for a Changing World.” I follow up in this article with a view of the broad-based leadership of our department on ”research for changing the world” that is consistent with our view on education. Wealth creation, through industrial, commercial and residential developments, leads to pressure on our environment and ecology. We at Illinois see ourselves as the stewards of balancing wealth creation and environmental protection and recovery. This balance is no more evident than at the nexus of water, energy and the environment, which is one of our emerging research thrusts. Underpin-
ning all rural and urban development and wealth creation is an efficient and reliable infrastructure system. After a period of historically-unprecedented infrastructure development in the United States, in the ‘50s through the ‘80s, the very core of our prosperity is threatened by a crumbling infrastructure system that has managed only a grade of D when assessed by the American Society of Civil Engineers. Thus, another of our research thrusts is providing innovative solutions to infrastructure renewal. While protecting and enhancing the environment and our ecological system, it is imperative that we protect the wealth we are creating. The “wealth protection” objective leads naturally to one more of our research thrusts, namely management of risk to society. The foundation of accomplishments in the abovehighlighted troika of thrusts is a deep understanding and mastery of tools for design, construction, simulation and operation of complex civil and environmental systems. There are ongoing discussions and vibrant debate in our department on these issues; hence the thoughts below are a work-in-progress, based on our current and ever-evolving thinking. We invite debate and embrace it. We welcome disagreement, not conflict. An organization without disagreement is not harmonious, it is apathetic, and if two or more individuals agree on everything, all of them but one are redundant. The Water-Energy-Environment Nexus The water-energy-environment nexus is the greatest challenge of all, and the world’s foremost test of not just prosperity, but survival. Energy and water are at the heart of the economy and way of life, critical for and affecting national de-
“Making universities and engineering schools exciting, creative, adventurous, rigorous, demanding, and empowering milieus is more important than specifying curricular details.” —Charles M. Vest fense, food production, human health, manufacturing, recreation, tourism, and the daily functioning of basic societal units. Energy production requires a reliable, abundant, and predictable source of water, a resource that is already in short supply around the world. Electricity production from nuclear energy and fossil fuels accounts for about 40 percent of all freshwater withdrawal in the U.S., thus depriving the world of just under half of its water resources, which would otherwise have been available for a hugely-enhanced quality of life. On the other hand, energy required for treatment and delivery of water accounts for as much as 80 percent of its cost. An insufficient supply of affordable energy will have a negative impact on the price and availability of water. While the interrelationship of water and energy is a critical aspect of the nexus, there are also potentially devastating environmental impacts at all stages of energy production and water development. Limited water leads to conflicts among energy, agriculture, and the environment, and even leads to political instability and ultimately war. There are documented cases of water use restrictions for power consumption in order to protect fish and other aquatic organisms. Climate change and the shift to renewable energy sources, especially biofuels, lead to new complex issues and further requirements for rationalizing water development and use. None of the three strands of water, energy and environmental impact can be addressed in isolation from the two others. Civil and environmental engineers are ideally suited to lead the world’s interdisciplinary response to the above-discussed challenge, in cooperation with the physical and socio-economic sciences.
Renewal of the Infrastructure Renewal of the infrastructure is critical for a stable and prosperous future. In 2009, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave the U.S. infrastructure systems a grade of D and estimated that $2.2 trillion is needed to repair, maintain or upgrade the systems that support economic progress and societal safety. Conspicuous by their exceptionally poor state are systems for drinking water, inland waterways, levees, roads and wastewater, all scoring D-. Two years later, with relatively no remedial action taken, it is reasonable to expect that the grade card that would be given to our infrastructure has slipped further toward an F. Crumbling infrastructure has a direct impact on our personal and economic health, and the nation’s infrastructure crisis is endangering our future prosperity, as stated by ASCE. Transportation systems of all modes, utility networks and supporting facilities, wastewater treatment plants, waterways, levees, dams, and energy distribution grids are under severe stress from normal use, and from natural and malicious hazards. Viewing the infrastructure as a live and interacting system-of-systems is not just a more efficient framework for design, construction, operation and maintenance; it is truly the only way to understand the interdependencies of the constituent systems, and their interaction with natural and socio-economic systems. The most robust water network, for example, will be disabled if no electricity reaches its facilities and pumping stations. The challenges are colossal. And who is better suited than the CEE community of researchers and practitioners whose training and focus is interdisciplinary, and whose enhanced understanding
of the synergy of sciences, technology and the humanities provides the only feasible framework to address the colossal challenges? Managing Risk to Society Managing risk to society protects our investment in the present and future. Natural and malicious disasters and accidents around the world have persistently revealed the lack of a holistic approach towards the four components of disaster management, i.e., assessment, mitigation, response and recovery. Examples abound, amongst which are Hurricane Katrina, Tohoku earthquakes and tsunami, Christchurch earthquakes, Georgia severe weather and many other incidents where lives and livelihoods were in jeopardy due to weaknesses in assessing risk, mitigating against it before the incident, effectively responding to it, and recovering back to normality after the event. The annual losses from natural disasters are about $50 billion-$60 billion, and expected to rise to more than $180 billion by the end of the century, as reported by the World Bank and the United Nations, with approximately 80,000 people killed and millions made homeless on a yearly basis. It is therefore of utmost importance to build aspects of risk management into all investments and to draw comprehensive plans for assessing and mitigating risk, where necessary. It is very important to note that mitigating the anticipated consequences of risk pays back at a ratio of more than 1:5, according to the World Bank; for every dollar spent, more than $5 is saved, not including human suffering that is alleviated by mitigation. Effective continued on page 6
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
5
Continued from page 5
development of the four components of disaster management requires a great breadth of expertise that includes several disciplines and sub-disciplines, such as systems analysis, structural, geotechnical and environmental engineering, construction management, urban planning, chemical, nuclear and transportation engineering, analytical simulation, data mining and management, amongst many others. Civil and environmental engineers understand both the quantitative and the qualitative sides, and are the community best suited to act as integrators of physical, natural and social sciences towards understanding and managing risk posed to society and our current and future investment. Civil and Environmental Systems Civil and environmental systems is the foundation thrust and necessary platform of all developments. A systems approach is essential; it is both intellectual and practical. Our ever-more complex world depends on its civil and environmental systems to function effectively, and this will be increasingly so in the future. This foundation thrust builds on and extends the traditional view of civil and environmental engineering and integrates it with other engineering sub-disciplines, and the physical, natural and social sciences. The thrust emphasizes how different components and sub-systems are integrated and monitored as a system-of-systems that serves a community’s needs in the context of uncertainty, multiple and competing objectives, interdependencies, and the oft-conflicting requirements of different constituencies. The issues are spatial, interconnected and dynamic, and encompass natural, built, social and economic interacting systems. The technical aspects of civil and environmental systems are addressed in the context of long-term social, economic, political, and cultural issues that include design and construction of green civil and environmental infrastructure, construction, monitoring, maintenance, operations, preservation, systems warrantee, performance 6
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
in extreme events, decommissioning and rebuilding to meet new requirements. The thrust is a toolkit for the three thrusts of water-energy-environment, infrastructure renewal, and societal risk management. It is inherently interdisciplinary, and requires detailed conversations with a multitude of other communities to develop new approaches of integrated designconstruction-operation-maintenance to serve the mission of wealth creation and protection. The CEE Systems thrust is both a foundation and an interface. Its foundation role is explained above; its interface role is exemplified by the required expertise from other engineering subdisciplines, and from the physical, natural and social sciences. The above construct provides a clear pathway towards developing research objectives as well as implementation, assessment and resource redeployment plans. I will address the implications of embracing this construct on our research direction in future articles and map the consequences of adopting it on our educational programs. We are already implementing a comprehensive plan for energizing the department along the above lines. Our plans include curricular developments and retuning, hiring across-areas faculty who are acting as intellectual foci around whom to build interdisciplinary teams, providing interdisciplinary management structures, linking budgets to our new education and research goals, providing incentives to accelerate broadening our perspectives, emphasizing positive urgency for change and permeating our approach in all constituencies: alumni, friends, colleagues, national and international organizations, through our networks and communications media. While being steadfast in our march forward, we maintain channels of communications with all stakeholders, heed constructive criticism, adjust the path as necessary and engage with support and opposition openly and sincerely. Dogma has no place in our department. Solid determination to render CEE at Illinois the most rigorous and interdisciplinary academy for learning, discovery and service is our central mission. i
CEEAA Board of Directors President Lawrence P. Jaworski, P.E., (BS 72, MS 73) Brown and Caldwell Beltsville, Maryland Vice President Tracy K. Lundin, P.E., (BS 80, MS 82) Fermilab Batavia, Illinois Second Vice President Allen J. Staron, P.E., (BS 74) Clark Dietz Inc. Chicago Past President Kenneth M. Floody, P.E., S.E. (BS 83) Ingenii LLC Oak Park, Illinois Secretary James M. LaFave (BS 86, MS 87) Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois Directors Daniel F. Burke (BS 92, MS 93) City of Chicago Department of Transportation Chicago David Byrd (BS 01, MS 06) EFI Global Inc. Addison, Illinois Lynne E. Chicoine (BS 78, MS 80) CH2M HILL Portland, Oregon Stanley M. Herrin, P.E., (BS 74, MS 78) Crawford, Murphy & Tilly Inc. Springfield, Illinois Alan J. Hollenbeck, P.E., (BS 75, MS 77) RJN Group Inc. Wheaton, Illinois Deron G. Huck, P.E., (BS 90) CH2M HILL Kansas City, Missouri John P. Kos, P.E., (BS 77) DuPage County Wilbur C. Milhouse, P.E., (BS 94, MS 95) Milhouse Engineering & Construction Inc. Chicago Paula C. Pienton (BS 85) AECOM Chicago Frank Powers (BS 82, MS 83) H.W. Lochner Inc. Chicago Colleen E. Quinn, P.E., (BS 84) Ricondo & Associates Inc. Chicago Julian C. Rueda (BS 80, MS 82) Geo Services Inc. Naperville, Illinois C. Wayne Swafford (BS 78, MS 82) Kaiser Foundation Health Plan Inc. Oakland, California Scott Trotter (BS 90) Trotter and Associates Inc. Saint Charles, Illinois
The long wait is over By Lawrence P. Jaworski, P.E., (BS 72, MS 73) President, CEE Alumni Association Board of Directors
W
hen I was working on my B.S. and master’s degrees a very loooong time ago, we always wondered why there was that empty space at the northeast corner of Newmark Laboratory (then still called the Civil Engineering Building). Well now we know and indeed are about to dedicate the brand new M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center. This is a facility that is long overdue and will finally provide some desperately needed classroom space, conference rooms and general common areas for CEE students. Students will no longer need to wander around various buildings on the engineering campus looking for a place to study or hold a meeting. The new facility is truly wonderful. The CEEAA Board toured the facility and was impressed even in the early stages of construction. The Yeh Student Center has six classrooms and 20,500 square feet of space. Additional features include a conference room, two work/study rooms where project teams can meet or TAs can work with students, student group storage areas, and common areas where the students will be able to relax, study and socialize. The Yeh Center will also serve as a living laboratory with links to the physical structure where displays fed by wireless sensors will show longspan vibrations, energy consumption, and other unique features of the building directly applicable to the students’ learning experience. The addition meets the standards for a silver certification through LEED, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, a program administered by the U.S. Green Building Council. To all of you who pledged funds to make this long-awaited vision finally come true—a HUGE thanks. Of course this could not have been possible without the generous “challenge donation” of Geoffrey Yeh (BS 53), who promised a $4 million naming gift if fellow CEE alumni would contribute $3 million in additional funds. Thank you, Geoffrey! The dedication of the Yeh Center and related events are scheduled for Sept. 23-24. We will have a CEEAA Board meeting on Thursday, Sept. 22, at the start of the festivities. The actual dedication is set for Friday at 3 p.m., followed by a reception and self-guided tours of the center. Several of the board members are planning to stay over Satur-
day to cheer on the Illini as they take on Western Michigan in the recently renovated Memorial Stadium. There will be a CEE Pre-Game Party starting at 9:30 a.m. in the Activities and Recreation Center (formerly the IM Building). We hope you can join us for all the activities. I expect you might find some of us at Murphy’s as well! Your last message was about helping “mother.” Now that the focus of our fundraising efforts the last few years, the student center, is complete, it is time to turn our attentions to supporting the people and programs in the department. We have the largest number of students ever in the department, and we work to continue to draw the best and brightest, while they face the challenge of increasing tuition. Scholarships and fellowships help us to keep those kids coming in the door. One of the key reasons we hold a No. 1 ranking is our outstanding faculty. We continue to recruit new teachers and researchers to educate those students and work on groundbreaking advances in the fields of civil and environmental engineering. Faculty award support allows us to retain those excellent minds. With the launch of the online M.S. program, more people will have access to an Engineering at Illinois education, and the ranks of our alumni will swell, further strengthening our position as the top program in the country. People can participate in the program themselves or promote it within their companies. Finally, we now have a few items of CEE merchandise. People can order to support the department and student organizations, all while they get to “fly the colors.” i
We work to continue to draw the best and brightest, while they face the challenge of increasing tuition. Scholarships and fellowships help us to keep those kids coming in the door.
Are you interested in serving on the CEE Alumni Association Board of Directors? Application available online at cee.illinois. edu/alumni. For more information, contact John Kelley, Director of Advancement, jekelley@illinois.edu, (217) 333-5120.
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
7
Introducing the Yeh Student Center Newmark Lab’s new classroom addition is complete, and dedication events are planned for September hen CEE students return to campus in August, they will be greeted by the sight of the brand new M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center, which was completed in June. The Yeh Center is a 20,500-square-foot addition to Newmark Lab that is entirely student-focused, providing new classrooms and meeting spaces for students in the department. It was funded entirely by gifts from CEE alumni and friends, including a $4 million naming gift from CEE alumnus M.T. Geoffrey Yeh (BS 53) and gifts from other alumni and friends totaling approximately $3 million. Dedication events will take place on Friday, September 23, with a ceremony, tours and a reception, and Saturday, September 24, with a home football game against Western Michigan University and a CEE tailgate. To register, visit https:// my.cee.illinois.edu/yeh. Chicago-area firm Teng & Associates Inc. designed the addition, which features new classrooms—including a large, tiered classroom—a conference room, meeting rooms for student groups, and spacious study areas. The lobby features a glass wall installation designed around a civil and environmental engineering theme by local design firm McKenzie Wagner Inc. The Yeh Center meets the standards for a silver certification through LEED, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, a program administered by the U.S. Green Building Council, thanks to environmentally friendly features like the green roof. i
8
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
At top, the entrance to the Yeh Center on the east side of Newmark Lab. Above, the Yeh Center’s second largest classroom, which seats 87. The largest classroom, not pictured, seats 138. Inset: chairs have bookbag storage underneath. Bottom: the lobby features seating and a glass wall installation designed around a civil and environmental engineering theme. At right, a view of the second floor study area taken from the third-floor.
Photos: Erich Adickes
W
Dedication details Friday, September 23 Dedication ceremony, tours, reception Saturday, September 24 Home football game CEE tailgate Registration https://my.cee.illinois.edu/yeh
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
9
Big California dig offers lessons in urban excavation
U
nderground construction projects in heavily built areas are necessary for continued and sustainable urban life, but they present distinct challenges. CEE Professor Youssef Hashash has long been at the forefront of the development of advanced computational and monitoring tools that help construction professionals avoid damage to surrounding structures during urban digs. Now an extensive project in downtown San Francisco has presented a unique opportunity for a team of researchers led by Hashash and funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to study an urban excavation of unprecedented scale. The NSF this month announced a grant of nearly $780,000 to fund Hashash’s project, “GOALI: Performance of deep and wide excavations in congested urban areas.” The NSF’s GOALI program, Grant Opportunities for Academic Liaison with Industry, promotes university-industry partnerships. Hashash, along with Professor Michael Riemer of the University of California at Berkeley and industry partner Dr. Nick O’Riordan of ARUP North America Ltd., will study the excavations for the Transbay Transit Center (TTC), a massive dig in the soft soils of San Francisco Bay area. Over a three-year period, they will instrument the site, gather data, conduct field and laboratory soil tests, and develop new computational models for large-scale urban digs. This has been made possible through close collaboration with the Transbay Joint Powers Authority, which is the authority responsible for the project. During excavations in urban areas, care must be taken to keep disruption of local activity to a minimum and avoid damage to surrounding structures. This can be complicated by adverse soil con-
The five-level Transit Center will serve both bus and rail and will include a 5.4-acre rooftop park. (Large photo: Transbay Joint Powers Authority. Inset photo: Business Wire)
ditions. Construction professionals use advanced computational tools to predict ground response and sophisticated sensor systems to monitor excavations, but the reliability of predictive models is limited by the available performance data from construction projects. The massive TTC excavation will offer researchers an opportunity to employ extensive instrumentation to collect data that can be used to create models of exceptional accuracy for large-scale projects in urban areas. “A suitable analogy for this project is the equivalent of conducting open-heart surgery on a patient running a marathon,” Hashash says. The TTC is a nearly $2 billion public works project designed to replace the existing Transbay terminal in downtown San Francisco with a modern regional transit hub that will connect 11 transit systems and be the terminus point for the high speed rail line from Los Angeles. The construction of the TTC includes an open cut excavation that is about 200 feet wide, 60 feet deep, and more than 1,500 feet long in relatively soft soils. The excavation is adjacent to several high-rise and low-rise buildings including one of the tallest buildings in San Francisco. The TTC will have to be constructed with minimal disruption to infrastructure and economic activity in the area. Field instrumentation will include bracing strain gages, extensometers,
and the first development and use in the U.S. of flushable piezometers to measure potential negative pore pressures in the unloaded clays. Data from the laboratory testing and field monitoring programs will be used in inverse analyses to generate new soil constitutive models and to update predictions of excavation performance. Analyses will also be conducted to better understand the impact of longterm unloading on the seismic response of the underground structures. The project leverages the more than $10 million in public investments in the geotechnical aspects of the project to acquire unique data on excavation and soilresponse beyond what is currently available in current empirical databases and numerical models, Hashash says. “It will significantly advance state-ofthe-art excavation modeling techniques,” he says. The knowledge gained during the TTC dig is expected to inform future underground projects being planned in Los Angeles, Seattle, New York and Miami. “Our ability to achieve urban sustainable living is critically dependent on development of underground space in everchallenging environments at an unprecedented scale,” Hashash says. “Through knowledge gained on this project, we will develop the expertise and technical tools to confidently construct these types of structures with minimal disruption to the urban environment.” i
into africa P
rofessor Benito Mariñas has broadened the scope of his popular environmental lab course to include student design projects related to water treatment in sub-Saharan Africa. In addition to ongoing work in Mexico, Mariñas added class projects in Ethiopia and Kenya. Three student teams traveled to their designated project sites this spring to gather information and water samples and collaborate with college students at universities local to the various projects. “The places that really need this, where most people are dying because of lack of access to clean water and lack of access to sanitation, are in sub-Saharan Africa,” said Mariñas, the Ivan Racheff Professor of Environmental Engineering. Mariñas’ course teaches laboratory methods to senior undergraduates through real-world design projects in an international setting. Mariñas collaborates with local universities—the Universidad de Las Americas–Puebla (UDLAP) in Mexico; Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia; and the University of Nairobi in Kenya. The local universities help identify projects, provide laboratory space, and offer critical site-specific technical, socio-economic and cultural information. Students work in teams to address real-world problems of water purification,
collaborating with the students at the local universities. The projects are addressed by multiple classes in stages; the African projects are just now beginning, while the Mexico project is more advanced. All Illinois team members are invited to participate in one trip to a project site, each one-week long and provided at no cost to students, thanks to sponsorship by CEE at Illinois, the College of Engineering’s International Programs in Engineering office, and the National Science Foundation-sponsored Center of Advanced Materials for the Purification of Water with Systems (WaterCAMPWS). The trips enable joint design sessions with college students from the collaborating international universities and field trips to target communities. Bringing students to Africa poses greater challenges than travel to Mexico, but Mariñas sees educational value in exposing students to an area that presents one of the world’s most pressing waterrelated engineering challenges. Students today have a strong desire to work internationally and use their engineering degrees to make a real difference in the world, Mariñas said. i
Photos, top to bottom: Kenyan children draw water from Lake Victoria, where livestock also go to drink. CEE student Abdul Hassaballah collects a sample from a drinking water source near Bondo, Kenya. CEE student Matt Sokolowski (left, green t-shirt) and partner student Patricio Roa Garduno from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology talk to children at a Kenyan primary school. CEE student Dana Al-Qadi surveys rural women about their water needs and priorities.
Engineering in person Environmental systems students study China’s challenges first-hand By Dan Malsom hirteen CEE students and their professor traveled to China over spring break in March to get a first-hand look at environmental challenges in the country’s Shiyang River Basin. The trip was part of a class project in Professor Barbara Minsker’s newly redesigned Environmental Systems II course, for which she is collaborating with Tsinghua University Professor Jianshi Zhao, who is teaching a parallel class in China. Minsker redesigned the course this year as part of the department’s initiative to give students more international and multi-disciplinary educational experiences. According to Minsker, in order to fully comprehend environmental problems, “there are two elements. One is that to understand sustainability in general, you need to study real world problems. Only
T
Above (left to right): Professor Zhou, a water management official, and CEE undergraduate Chuan Li visit a farm site that no longer has groundwater access. Right: The group visits an observation site in the three-kilometer band of drought-resistant plants used to combat desertification around Minqin. 12
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
Students from both universities pose with professors Minsker (front row, green coat) and Zhou (to the right of Minsker).
real world problems have the breadth and richness necessary to adequately prepare students. (Students) also need to understand how to address sustainability in different cultures.” Early in the semester, Minsker introduced her students to the environmental costs of intensive farming through lectures, videos, and guest speakers in the Upper Embarras River Basin in Illinois.
Then, in China, students experienced in person the problems facing farmers and others living in the Shiyang River Basin’s arid climate. “Being able to see what we are studying gave me a much deeper perspective than I could gain by reading about them,” said CEE undergraduate student Chuan Li. “The challenges became much more real and personal because I got an idea of what the farmers could have felt.”
Students toured reservoirs and engineered water structures in the watershed and also had the opportunity to interview local farmers and the river basin’s water management committee. They also viewed some different mechanisms protecting farmland against desertification—the process by which desert land spreads and renders farmland unusable—and learned about the mix of infrastructure development and public policies enacted in the region to help combat it and support the population. “You can see that this project is not only about engineering, but deeply connected with the social sciences,” said Tristan Wietsma, CEE graduate student. It had been 10 years since Minsker had taught the Environmental Systems course because of other teaching and leadership commitments. The return to environmental systems gave her a chance to teach the class in a new way that was inspired by her leadership in the campus-wide sustainability initiative, particularly the Prairie Project sustainability curriculum program that she created this year. Professor Ximing Cai, who also participated in the Prairie Project, introduced her to Zhao, who had spent his sabbatical at Illinois several years ago. Minsker and Zhao share lecture materials and case study information, and make many lectures available online to all students involved. When Minsker taught the course in 2001, she began the semester by teaching students the different methods of environmental
“I thought, naively, that I had a good understanding of the population size and the pace of industrialization. … But the human brain is just not very good at dealing with large numbers.”
Photos: Tristan Wietsma
systems analysis. The course would then culminate in an environmental case study and final project. Today, the opposite is true. “I decided to turn [the course] upside down: teach the problems and then the methods,” Minsker said. The China trip introduced students to a scope of environmental issues, and now they must work back in class to find possible solutions. “On one hand, we went to the west of China, and saw the harsh natural and living environment, especially the desert,” said Wenzhao Xu, a graduate student at Tsinghua. “On the other hand, we learned lots of engineering methods and regulations to solve this problem of conflicts between societal development and ecosystem sustainability. Field study is necessary if you want to learn it more.” Li sees the trip influencing decisions he will have to make in the future. “I have been for a long time interested in water resources and its related challenges around the world,” he said. “I think the experience from this trip will keep that interest in me for a very long time. It will definitely be an influence to my career.” When it comes to China’s fast-paced growth, population boom, and accompanying massive environmental problems, Minsker said, “you really have to see it to understand the immensity of it.” “The trip really opened my eyes to the scale of development going on,” Wietsma said. “I thought, naively, that I had a good understanding of the population size
and the pace of industrialization. … But the human brain is just not very good at dealing with large numbers. For example, if you ask someone how many pennies can fit in a room, typically their answer is off by several orders of magnitude. It really took getting my feet on the ground before everything I had read and heard started to sink in.” The trip was paid for primarily by the students, with financial aid provided by the CEE Department, the Graduate College, and the Center for East Asian and Pacific Studies to defray the cost for those who couldn’t pay in full. For the Illinois students, the cost per person was about $2,100. Minsker is seeking funding that would enable her to offer the trip to students each time the course is offered. While the river basin case study took up most of the time on the trip, Minsker and her students also had a chance to do some sightseeing. Tour stops included the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, among other places of interest. According to Minsker, the trip and hands-on case study has proven invaluable to the group as a whole. “Just spending a week together in those close quarters, we’re so much closer as a class now,” she said. “I’ve noticed throughout the semester that the students seem so much more motivated and interested as compared to when I used to teach the class. The students were really engaged this time, so we are hoping that we can do trips like this as a regular part of our curriculum every year.” Zhao said he hopes that Illinois and Tsinghua will continue to collaborate. “Of course we are planning to set up a long-term collaborative course,” he said. “And my department head is asking me if it is possible to establish collaboration on more courses between the Department of Hydraulic Engineering of Tsinghua and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering [at Illinois].” i Left: CEE grad student Yun Tang pictured at the channel in Minqin. Right: Students visited the Great Wall.
By Dan Malsom hirteen CEE graduate students and their professor traveled to China over spring break in March to get a first-hand look at environmental challenges in the country’s Shiyang River Basin. The trip was part of a class project in Professor Barbara Minsker’s newly redesigned Environmental Systems II course, taught in collaboration with Tsinghua University Professor Jianshi Zhao, who is teaching a parallel class in China. Minsker redesigned the course this year as part of the department’s initiative to give students more international and multi-disciplinary educational experiences. According to Minsker, in order to fully comprehend environmental problems, “there are two elements. One is that to understand sustainability in general, you need to study real world problems. Only real world problems have the breadth and richness necessary to adequately prepare students. (Students) also need to understand how to address sustainability in different cultures.” Early in the semester, Minsker introduced her students to the environmental costs of intensive farming through lectures, videos, and guest speakers. Then, in China, students experienced in person the problems facing farmers and others living in the Shiyang river basin’s arid climate. “Being able to see what we are studying gave me a much deeper perspective than I could gain by reading about them,” said CEE graduate student Chuan Li. “The challenges became much more real and personal because I got an idea of what the farmers could have felt.” Students on the trip toured reservoirs
T
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
13
Illinois Highway Research Paving the way for more than 100 years By Leslie Myrick he University of Illinois’ pavement engineering program dates back to 1906, when Carroll C. Wiley (BS 1904, MS 1910), a department alumnus and Illinois faculty member from 1906-1952, pioneered highway engineering at Illinois. Wiley’s successors joked that he “came with the automobile.” During the past 100 years, as roads have changed from dirt, to gravel, to asphalt and concrete, engineers at Illinois have made lasting contributions to the world’s roadways. Among pavement engineers, some of the most commonly referenced research is that done at Illinois. Today’s faculty, students, and the Illinois Center for Transportation build on the Illinois pavement program’s rich history and have firmly established it as the most well-respected in the world. While completing his doctorate at Illinois, Harald Westergaard developed the first theoretical basis for the design of concrete pavements. Westergaard, an alumnus of Mechanical Engineering (1916) who served on the Theoretical and Applied Mechanics faculty from 1916-1936, developed mechanistic models that have been used around the world to improve concrete analysis and design. His major consulting projects included the Hoover Dam and the Panama Canal. Illinois was home to several early
T
1906 Carroll C. Wiley joins the University as the first professor of highway engineering.
14
road tests, including the Bates Road Test and the AASHTO Road Test in Ottawa, the results of which led to great advances in concrete and flexible pavements, because for the first time, trucks of different weights and axle spacings were taken into account. The road tests introduced such concepts as the load equivalency factor, and roughness and performance measures. Professor Moreland Herrin, faculty member from 1958-1987, now emeritus, pioneered asphalt research at the University of Illinois and worked as the Assistant Materials Engineer for the AASHTO Road Test. In the late 1950s, the University of Illinois established the Highway Engineering Technician Training Program, a first-of-its-kind summer program in the nation. The program was led by Professor Ellis Danner (BS 30, MS 49), who served on the faculty from 1946-1973. Run similar to a boot camp, the program trained future highway engineers, and many of the participants helped build the segment of Interstate 74 that runs east of Champaign to Danville. Professors Ernest Barenberg (PhD 65), a faculty member from 1960-1996, and Marshall Thompson (BS 60, MS 62, PhD 64), a faculty member from 1965-1996, were integral in developing the mechanistic-empirical design frameworks for pavements, which merged sophisticated modeling with prediction of performance
1914 Wiley establishes the first Highway Engineering Conference in the U.S. It exists today as the Traffic and Highway Engineering Conference, with more than 1,000 attendees annually.
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
1916
after 20 years of traffic and weathering. This work is reflected in the Eisenhower Interstate System and in many agencies’ guidelines for the design and construction of flexible pavement systems. Barenberg and Thompson also conducted revolutionary work to stabilize clay soils with lime. The University’s worldwide impact became apparent when other countries began translating the lime stabilization work into their own languages. Revolutionary work in testing asphalt mixes during the 1970s to quantify their limits and optimal thickness, led by Professor Sam Carpenter, now emeritus, gave transportation agencies a better understanding of their own mixes and how to achieve ideal thickness, which resulted in fewer construction needs. Outstanding and innovative laboratory facilities have contributed to Illinois’ continued success in pavement and materials research. In 1993, Professor Barry Dempsey (BS 60, MS 66, PhD 69), who served on the faculty from 1969-1999, facilitated the transportation group’s laboratory relocation to the Advanced Transportation Research and Engineering Laboratory (ATREL), which occupies 47 acres of the former Chanute Air Force Base in Rantoul, 15 miles north of the Illinois campus. The lab includes 67,000 square feet of space for pavements, materials, Continued on page 16.
Harald Westergaard develops the first theoretical basis for the design of concrete pavements.
1923–1965 Edward E. Bauer, faculty member from 1923-1965, developed some of the earliest national specifications and testing procedures for soils, asphalt, and concrete, and authored one of the first textbooks on concrete. He also directed the bituminous, concrete, and soil labs.
ICT work to support national sustainable pavements program
P
avement experts at the Illinois Center for Transportation, led by Director Imad Al-Qadi, will assist the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) as it develops a national sustainable pavements program. The team includes CEE alumnus Kurt Smith (BS 84, MS 85) of APTech as a program manager. The project, to begin during summer 2011, will identify sustainability challenges with regard to pavements. The FHWA will use the information to help develop its sustainable pavements program to consider asphalt, concrete, granular, and other recyclable materials. The desired outcome is to increase the awareness, visibility, and the body of knowledge of sustainability considerations in the design, construction, maintenance, and rehabilitation of pavement systems. Other organizations that are part of this team, in addition to APTech and Illinois, include the University of California Pavement Research Center at UC Davis, University of Washington, Virginia Tech, University of New Hampshire, The Right Environment, and CH2M Hill. i
Early paving operations of the 1910–1930 era, including (top) equipment pulled by mules.
Late 1950s
1952 The University of Illinois signs the first official agreement with the Illinois Department of Transportation to collaborate on transportation research. (Previously the university had served as contractor.)
The U of I establishes the Highway Engineering Technician Training Program, led by Ellis Danner, the first of its kind in the nation.
1960s The University’s work is reflected in the Eisenhower Interstate System and in many agencies’ guidelines for the design and construction of flexible pavement systems.
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
15
Continued from page 14.
and transportation operations testing and research. Dempsey served as ATREL’s first director and used it as a catalyst for the University to reach new levels in transportation research. Illinois is also well known for its work on airfield pavements. In 1995, Dempsey established the Center of Excellence for Airport Technology (CEAT), first sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). This safety and pavement research center has trained numerous students who have moved on to jobs in airport engineering. Even as director of CEAT and ATREL, Dempsey continued developing useful products to solve pavement problems, such as the interlayer stress absorbing composite (ISAC) material that carries U.S. and foreign patents and has been used in numerous airport and highway pavement projects. Dempsey also pioneered the development of the Integrated Climate Model (ICM) that has been used extensively in research and design procedures. Professor Michael Darter, faculty member from 1973-2003, has also been at the center of many developments, including the widely used Pavement Condition Index (PCI) system, which was one of the first tools used to assess the condition of an airport pavement or roadway for future maintenance planning. His work led to the introduction of pavement management systems, which agencies use to inventory, main-
The transportation faculty in 1979: (standing, left to right) Sam Carpenter, Ernie Barenberg (sitting, left to right) Michael Darter, David Boyce, Moreland Herrin, Marshall Thompson, Barry Dempsey, Lufti Raad.
tain, and repair their pavement systems. He was also the lead investigator on the AASHTO M-E design guide for concrete pavements. In 2001, Illinois faculty designed a loading system to conduct full-scale pavement testing for trucks, planes, and railcars. The Advanced Transportation Loading Assembly (ATLAS), now housed on the ATREL grounds, offers unique testing capabilities. The machine can apply up to 6,000 repetitions per day and simulate up to 20 years of wear on pavement in just a few weeks. In 2004, Professor Imad Al-Qadi joined the faculty, expanding activities at ATREL with the founding of the Illinois Center for Transportation (ICT), established Imad Al-Qadi with primary funding from the Illinois Department of Transportation. Since its inception, ICT has grown to become one of the leading transportation centers in the nation. The center
started with 12 projects, nine of which were pavement projects, and all the investigators were from the Illinois transportation group. Today, ICT has more than 145 approved projects involving more than 90 investigators from 12 universities, representing true diversity in transportation research. Other current faculty specializing in pavements include professors William Buttlar, Jeff Roesler (BS 92, MS 94, PhD 98), and Erol Tutumluer. Their contributions continue to improve pavements worldwide. The ICT research of the past five years has helped support more than 135 graduate students, in addition to many undergraduate students, and these numbers are always increasing. The work of the transportation area is supported by the Illinois Department of Transportation, the Federal Highway Administration, the Transportation Research Board, the National Science Foundation, the National Cooperative Highway Research Program, the Air Force, the Federal Aviation Administration, industry, and many other sponsors. The Illinois pavement program has long attracted and educated the best students in the world, who then take jobs around the world, further spreading the University’s influence and reputation. Building on the rich history of the Illinois pavement engineering program, ICT will continue to conduct groundbreaking transportation research to serve the state of Illinois, the nation, and the world. i
1992 1995
The Advanced Transportation Research and Engineering Laboratory is established in Rantoul, Ill., on the former Chanute Air Force Base.
16
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
The Center of Excellence for Airport Technology is established.
2001 Faculty help procure the largest moveable full-scale pavement testing facility in the country, the Advanced Transportation Loading ASsembly (ATLAS).
A wide-base tire rolls over a test pavement at ATREL.
From 18 wheels to 10? ICT awarded $1.2M to study wide-base tires
R
Paving, 1910–1930. (Top) An early concrete “paving train.” Note the tracks alongside the concrete mixer. (Middle) Grading a gravel road the old-fashioned way. (Bottom) Checking a truck for over-loading. Note the single tire on the rear axle.
2005
The Illinois Center for Transportation is established with primary funding from the Illinois Department of Transportation. Since its inception, ICT has grown to become one of the leading transportation centers in the nation.
2011
First online pavement course is taught by Illinois faculty when the department begins offering master’s level courses online.
esearchers at the Illinois Center for Transportation (ICT) have been selected to lead a $1.2 million Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) project to model and validate the use and effects of wide-base tires as an alternative to the conventional dual-tire system on semi-truck trailers. Wide-base tires have the potential to provide numerous benefits to the environment and the trucking industry. This project, “The Impact of Wide-Base Tires on Pavements–A National Study,” will build on ICT’s and its team members’ existing knowledge and international leadership on this subject to quantify the impact of vehicle-tire interaction on pavement damage. The team will use advanced theoretical modeling that will be validated by testing sensored full-scale pavements to determine the relationship between the tire characteristics, including width, aspect ratio, loading, tire inflation pressure, actual tread width, and pavement damage. The team will develop a tool and methodology that allows engineers and agencies to assess the impact of widebase tires on the pavement network and analyze the economic, safety, and environmental effects of using wide-base tires relative to the impact on pavement performance. As part of previous research, the ICT team showed the environmental advantages of widebase tire implementation. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Smartway Transport Project promotes the use of wide-base tires as a way to improve fuel economy by reducing weight, aerodynamic drag, and rolling resistance. Other potential benefits they cite include reduced drive-by noise and improved stability. Along with the administration of the project, full-scale testing will be conducted at the Advanced Transportation Engineering and Research Lab. The project is set to begin during summer 2011 and has a three-year timeline. i
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
17
Freshman James Krist, left, with his CEE mentor, junior Michael Roggeman.
Mentors give freshmen a smooth start
T
he best advice about the CEE curriculum that CEE junior Michael Roggeman ever got, he says, was the result of a chance encounter. While waiting in line at a career fair, Roggeman struck up a conversation with a CEE upperclassman and ended up with some sound advice about which classes would make him more competitive for summer internships earlier in his college career. Armed with the belief that the sharing of helpful information among students shouldn’t be left to chance, Roggeman signed up as a mentor with the department’s new Freshman Mentor Program. Roggeman was paired with incoming CEE freshman James Krist. Because he attended a large high school, Krist was not intimidated by the size of the U of I, he says, but he has found the mentor program beneficial for orientation and meeting fellow civil engineering students. The two met informally a couple of times a month throughout the year. They discuss classes, internships, career plans, and whatever else is on their minds, Krist says. His experience has been so good, that he hopes to remain with the program in coming years as a mentor for other students. The mentor program is a key initiative of the CEE Student Committee, established in fall 2010. The committee of six to eight CEE students, led by Academic Adviser Becky Stillwell, meets weekly to brainstorm and plan events designed to increase engagement among freshmen and sophomores and generally enhance the student experience in the depart18
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
ment. Since engineering students don’t start taking classes in their majors until junior year, freshmen and sophomores often are unfamiliar with the department and all the opportunities available to them, like CEE student organizations, Roggeman says. Student Committee events and initiatives like the mentoring program “get the freshmen integrated into the program earlier,” he says. “There are so many good things that happen here that I just stumbled upon later. I wish I had known about them as a freshman,” Roggeman says. Events have included the CEE Fall KickOff in September, a pizza dinner and party which was attended by professors and upperclassmen as well; a mentor/mentee picnic in October; a scavenger hunt around campus with combined teams of mentors and mentees in November; the CEE Career Fair Pregame, an event held the night before the fall job fair that brought in alumni to give advice; and registration assistance in April. About 40-50 students participated in the mentor program this academic year, Stillwell says, and the committee is hoping for even greater participation next year. Their goal is to ensure that future classes of incoming freshman feel welcomed and engaged in CEE from their first days on campus. i For more information about the CEE Student Committee or any of its programs or events, contact Becky Stillwell, rborden@ illinois.edu.
Full speed ahead As high-speed rail comes to the U.S., CEE is conducting research essential to its success
A
$3.3 million study of high-speed rail (HSR) track components will be led by researchers in CEE’s Rail Transportation and Engineering Center (RailTEC). The research to improve concrete crossties and fastening systems, sponsored by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), represents the largest study of its kind in North America, as well as the largest railroad engineering research project awarded to the University of Illinois to date according to Professor Chris Barkan, Director of RailTEC. “The magnitude of this project reflects the importance of improved concrete crosstie design for both freight and passenger railroads in the U.S.,” Barkan said. Concrete crossties, referred to as sleepers elsewhere in the world, are an essential component of the kind of necessary for high-speed rail operations in the U.S. “These track systems allow railways to maintain the tight geometric tolerances, such as track gauge, that are required for high-speed train operation,” said railroad engineering lecturer and CEE alumnus J. Riley Edwards (MS 06), who is leading the study. “Many of the proposed HSR lines in the U.S. will require high-speed passenger trains to share the same tracks with heavy-axleload (HAL) freight trains. These joint
Feasibility study to explore high-speed rail line between Champaign and Chicago
O
A high-speed train in Taiwan. Photo courtesy of Professor T.C. Kao.
corridors present unique challenges in terms of the design and maintenance of infrastructure. This research project is aimed at improving the current concrete tie and fastener design in order to lower their life cycle cost and increase safety and reliability.” During the two-and-a-half-year study, researchers will conduct laboratory and field testing to improve understanding of the tie and fastening system, leading to performancebased recommendations for concrete ties and fastening system design in the U.S., specifically those used in joint passenger-freight railway infrastructure. They will also develop a centralized knowledge and document depository of concrete ties and fastening systems to be housed at U of I. In addition to Edwards, the research team includes experts in materials and structures: CEE professors Bassem O. Andrawes, Daniel A. Kuchma, and David A. Lange, and Research Engineer Marcus S. Dersch (BS 09, MS 10), a CEE alumnus. “Our approach brings together strong rail ‘domain knowledge,’ materials expertise, and structural engineering capability,” Lange said. “We have a complete team, and we are looking forward to working with our industry and government partners.” The University’s preeminence in railroad engineering education and research makes it a natural choice for HSR and HAL research, Barkan said. “Illinois houses a full-scale concrete tie and fastening system loading frame, and we are conducting
research related to what the railroad industry considers to be one of the most detrimental failure mechanisms of concrete crossties, rail seat deterioration,” Dersch said. “Through the funding provided by the FRA it is our goal to develop the premier concrete crosstie and fastening system research program.” The research represents a collaboration between academia and industry, with seven industry partners providing cost sharing contributions. The industry partners involved in the project are: Amtrak; BNSF Railway; GIC Ingenieria y Construccion S.A. de C.V.; Hanson Professional Services Inc.; LB Foster Company, CXT Concrete Ties; Union Pacific Railway; and Unit Rail Inc. /Amsted Rail Inc. The University of Illinois has been a leader in rail education and research for more than a century. The railroad engineering program at the University of Illinois has the most extensive curriculum in railroad engineering of any university in North America, complemented by an extensive research program in rail engineering and transportation through RailTEC. Graduates of the program are working for all the major U.S. railroads, as well as numerous rail engineering design and construction firms. The University has been an Association of American Railroads (AAR) Affiliated Laboratory for almost three decades, and in this role conducts research on new and emerging technologies with the potential to benefit rail transportation. i
Save the date SM
Railroad Environmental Conference
October 25-26, 2011. Registration will open in August. ict.illinois.edu/railroad/RREC/overview.asp
n June 2, Governor Pat Quinn announced a partnership between the University of Illinois, the Illinois Department of Transportation and a special advisory group to study the feasibility of 220-mph passenger rail service between Chicago, Urbana-Champaign and beyond. The study will complement the ongoing construction of a regional 110-mph network that will connect Chicago to 40 cities in the Midwest, while supporting Governor Quinn‘s vision to create jobs, enhance regional mobility and improve the environment by expanding passenger rail in Illinois. “Illinois is leading the nation with our work to expand high-speed and passenger rail,” said Governor Quinn. “This study will provide greater insight into how we can make 220-mph rail service a reality. An expanded and improved rail network will boost our position in the global economy and create thousands of jobs.” The study will explore the costs and benefits of establishing 220-mph service between O’Hare International Airport, downtown Chicago, McCormick Place, and Champaign-Urbana. It will also look at extending the corridor in the region to cities south of Champaign-Urbana, including St. Louis and Indianapolis. Leading the study will be CEE Professor Christopher P.L. Barkan, director of the railroad engineering program and one of the nation’s top rail scholars. Contributing will be University of Illinois at Chicago Urban Transportation Center director Stephen Schlickman, former executive director of the Regional Transportation Authority. Their findings, made possible through a $1.25 million contribution from the Illinois Jobs Now! capital program, are expected to be complete and presented to the governor in late 2012. “I’m delighted that the University of Illinois can lend its vast expertise to this crucial study, and I’m grateful to the governor and other leaders in the state for their support of this important work,” said U of I President Michael Hogan. “High-speed rail is transformational in its effect on economic development, personal mobility and on our society in general. It’s an idea that is well worth a hard look. The benefits to the University of Illinois alone cannot be overstated.” i Full story at http://cee.illinois.edu/hsr_june_2011
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
19
Canoe team 2nd at regionals, off to nationals By David Nauheimer and Jacob Thede Co-Captains his year marks the 40th anniversary of intercollegiate concrete canoeing. We can trace the start of the competition all the way to 1971, when Purdue challenged the University of Illinois to a series of races. On May 16, 1971, the teams both journeyed to Kickapoo State Park for the races. After four races, the teams were tied, and during the fifth race Purdue lost when their paddlers capsized their canoe. Illinois clinched the victory to become the first world champions. The University of Illinois concrete canoe team, the Boneyard Yacht Club, began its 40-year tradition of excellence that day. The team takes its name from the Boneyard Creek which weaves through the Bardeen Quad. This season, to celebrate the anniversary of concrete canoeing, the team built THE CEMENTERY, a vessel honoring the history of the club. It is one of Illinois’
T
20
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
The co-ed sprint race at regionals (front to back): Justin Helpingstine, Jeni Fornek, Arielle Malinowski, and Ben Sexton.
strongest entries to date. It consists of graveyard motifs with bone inlays and the logo of the team at the center of the canoe. At the front is an LED-powered, illuminated skull. The team put more than 2,550 person-hours of work into the design, testing, and construction of the canoe, and the effort has paid off. The team finished second overall behind the University of Wisconsin-Madison at the regional competition and qualified for nationals June 16-18 in Evansville, Ind. This is the first time the team has attended the national competition since 2007. Significant changes were made this year to the mold construction. Since the design of the hull shape had already been
given, mold construction started immediately once the rules were released. This year, the largest innovation was developing a new type of mold that could actually adjust to accommodate shrinkage and expansion of the concrete mix. It consisted of four independent sections that were mounted to rollers and three gaps that served as release joints. This mitigated shrinkage cracking in the canoe, and also allowed the team to stay within the dimensional tolerances. A lot of innovation went into this Continued on page 22 The 2010-2011 Concrete Canoe Team poses on race day with its canoe, The Cementery, at the regional competition in Madison, Wis.
Canoe team alumni remember... Benjamin Birch (BS 04, MS 07) This [early concrete canoe t-shirt] is framed and on a wall in my house. I got it from my dad, Wayne Birch (BS 72). He worked in the concrete lab when he was a student and helped with the team who made the first canoe and was at the first races. Maybe that makes me one of the first second generation concrete canoers, I don’t know. I had grown up hearing bits here and there about the competition, and when I changed majors to civil engineering I immediately joined the team. The canoe on the wall [in the Newmark Lab crane bay] called “Illiniwake” is the one I was captain for with Amanda Bordelon (BS 05, MS 07). George Hendricks (BS 71) I saw the pictures of the 40th anniversary of the concrete canoe races. This brought back a lot of memories, because my roommate, Dale Hinkle (BS 71), was a member of Dr. Kesler’s class and an active participant in the design and construction of the first concrete canoe. ... I enjoyed your article and, in fact, called Dale (a very successful geotechnical engineer who now lives in Montana) to tell him that I had seen his picture in your magazine. The picture that is missing is the one of the maiden voyage of this vessel. [See photo at top right.] This occurred in Crystal Lake Park. Being a civil engineering student and knowing of their project, I took great interest in their progress. I joined the class in transporting the canoe to Urbana to help them “see if it would float.” When no one stepped forward to get in, Dale and I volunteered and proceeded to paddle out into Crystal Lake. We were
joined by our dog, Ben, (actually our roommate’s dog). I can attest to the weight of this vessel since it took all of us to get it from the truck to the water. This first foray onto water is documented by a picture which appears on the website concretecanoepictures.com. I am not sure about the actual timing of this “maiden voyage,” but it had to be sometime in the fall of 1970 since we both graduated in January of 1971 and left Champaign. The canoe was later relocated to a small lake near Oakwood, Ill., where it was housed until being put into play in the first race. The picture of Dale and me in the canoe and Ben paddling alongside, I think, was featured in some civil engineering magazines at the time which circulated around the world (at least that’s what I was told). In the picture, Dale is in the rear with the fancy hat and I am in the front. Editor’s note: The website concretecanoepictures.com was created by CEE graduate student Armen Amirkhanian, adviser for the Boneyard Yacht Club and concrete canoe historian. Mark A. Lawrence (BS 81, MS 82, PhD 86) I enjoyed reading your article about concrete canoes. I heard an additional anecdote about that first race when I took the Properties of Concrete course from Professor Young (by the way, it’s J. Francis, not Francis J.) back in 1980. He told us that Professor Kesler tweaked the noses of the Boilermakers by showing up at a conference shortly after that race in a t-shirt proclaiming Illinois the world concrete canoe champions. I believe that’s the shirt he’s wearing in the photo that went with your article. Editor’s note: You’re right about that, Mark. See page 22. Tom Palansky (BS 82) I was the captain of the Boneyard Yacht Club in 1979 and 1980. In fact, I can lay claim to co-originating the name Boneyard Yacht Club one afternoon at Murphy’s after a long Saturday morning working on our craft. The other creative CE was Art [last name unknown]. Art drew up the first Boneyard YC t-shirt design. I still have two shirts! One correction: Dick Shipley was not a professor (but should have been). Great guy; the best teacher. He ran the CE concrete lab.
Dale Hinkle (back of canoe) and George Hendricks take the first concrete canoe on its maiden voyage, accompanied by their roommate’s dog, Ben. Steve Wegman (BS 74) I helped build and raced one of the early concrete canoes. I remember that we troweled fiber reinforced Portland cement paste with vermiculite or some other very light, fine aggregate onto a wire mesh frame and created a monster that weighed a lot—hundreds of pounds. I remember that the keel wasn’t perfectly straight, sort of a banana right, which worked out OK because both paddlers were right-handed and we could just paddle on the right side to go straight. I think we did a test run at Crystal Lake in Urbana. I remember that we went to South Bend, Ind., and raced on a lake at Notre Dame. We placed second in the first heat and advanced to the semi-finals or finals, where we did not place. I remember the top edge of the canoe was rough and cut our hands if we dragged them across it while we were paddling—something we should have realized and cleaned up before putting it in the water. You’ll notice in the photo that paste appears to be smeared over part of the name; I think that was a last-minute response to the damage done to knuckles on the first run. There was a canoe from Iowa, probably Iowa State, there that had an inverted prow. That is, instead of tapering back from a point at the top of the front in traditional canoe shape its point was at the bottom and tapered back as it went up. I think they had the idea that it would work as a battering ram. It worked fine until they started paddling hard, at which time the taper caused the front end to dive, and it sank. I think the race was won that year by a canoe from Montreal that weighed about 75 pounds. Our canoe sat outside the Civil Engineering Building (now Newmark Lab) the rest of the school year after the race and was offered to any of us who wanted to take it home. No one did, and it was demolished. Someone took the attached black and white photo, I think at Notre Dame. That’s me, with a lot more hair, stepping into the back of the canoe. At left, an early canoe race. Alumnus Steve Wegman is stepping into the back of the canoe.
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
21
Continued from page 20
Canoe team the topic of BTN video
T
his spring the Big Ten Network (BTN) began taping a two-minute video about the Boneyard Yacht Club and the 40th anniversary of inter-collegiate concrete canoe racing. BTN videographers Kevin Southworth and Caitlin Dixon followed the team from the last stages of construction through regionals and traveled with the team to the national competition. The video will be shown on the Big Ten Network and on the department’s YouTube channel, youtube.com/ceeatillinois.
Retro canoe shirts available at the CEE online store We loved Clyde Kesler’s World Champs t-shirt so much, we decided to replicate it in honor of the 40th anniversary of concrete canoe racing. The design, Illini orange on heathered gray, is a bit weathered, as though you were there at the very first race (except that you look way too young to have been in college back then.) Just $12 each. Proceeds benefit the canoe team. Order your very own, plus other CEE merchandise, at https://my.cee.illinois.edu/buy/. Wear it with Illini pride.
22
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
year’s mix design. A 1,300 psi concrete mix was developed that was 95 percent sustainable by volume. The principle aggregates were Poraver, an expanded glass, and crushed cement kiln brick, which was collected and crushed by the team. The main cementitious material that was used was VCAS, a vitrified calcium aluminosilicate. VCAS gave the mix many desirable qualities such as high sustainability and lower weight. White Type I Portland cement was also used within the mix. Kevlar-carbon fiber, fiberglass mesh, and recycled polypropylene fibers were used as reinforcement to provide THE CEMENTERY with increased strength and rigidity. Admixtures such as air entrainment, shrinkage reducer, and retarder were also used in the final mix. A new emphasis was placed on paddling this year. Throughout the first semester there were bi-weekly paddling sessions. More than a dozen people became highly proficient paddlers. Practice continued into November, and tryouts were held. Paddling training started again in the spring, and very talented men and women raced in the regional competition. However, because of the fierce competition at nationals, the team is continuing to practice into the summer. This year also saw a lot of success in recruiting new members. The team currently consists of 30 members from all class standings. New members devoted a lot of time to the canoe and demonstrated strong potential leadership. The team is looking forward to conducting minor repairs on the canoe and competing in the national competition. The team learned a lot and had fun all year. A special thank you must be sent out to Armen Amirkhanian, CEE grad student and canoe team adviser, and Jason Mote, P.E., CEE Ph.D. student. Without their help and motivation the team would not be where it is today. We would also like to thank our sponsors, without whom this year would not be possible. Anyone interested in joining the team or financially contributing may contact next year’s captains, Raphael Stern (stern5@ illinois.edu) and Arielle Malinowski (malinow7@illinois.edu). i Follow us on Facebook to hear about the canoe team’s performance at nationals in June: facebook.com/ceeatillinois.
Bridge team happy with speed, let down in load test at regionals By Scott Earnest and Joseph Riddle, captains, and Oana Toma he Illinois Steel Bridge team had another successful season this year and performed well at the Great Lakes Conference regional competition. Sponsored by the American Society of Civil Engineers and the American Institute of Steel Construction, the regional competition was held at the University of WisconsinMilwaukee on April 2. Twelve teams from the Great Lakes region competed. The competition involves three main components: construction speed, bridge deflection, and bridge weight. In previous years, we had designed the bridge to be very stiff, usually resulting in slower construction speeds and higher bridge weight. This year, we decided to design the bridge, named Chief of Paign, to be lighter and quicker to assemble, while possibly sacrificing some stiffness. The season as a whole went pretty well; we encountered several obstacles throughout fabrication but overcame each one through long hours in the shop and lots of dedication from the whole team. These obstacles definitely taught us a lot as the season progressed. We finished manufacturing the bridge in mid-March, leaving us only eight available days of practice before the competition (which was almost a whole month earlier this year than in past years). After eight intense practices with a very dedicated construction team, we managed to get our construction time down considerably, as we had hoped to do from the beginning. At regionals, we performed very well during construction; we matched our quickest construction time from practice with minimal penalties. We even had some unforeseen technical difficulties, including an impact gun bit actually shearing during the competition. Our ability to improvise demonstrated our knowledge of the bridge and quality of preparation. Excited about our construction time, we moved on to the load test. During the lateral load test, the bridge was only allowed to deflect 0.5”. Prior to practicing,
T
At the banquet following the competition are team members (l to r) Brian Cunningham, Stephen Ozols, Tom Dehlin, Scott Earnest, Joe Riddle, Jared Thoele, Oana Toma, Brett Mattas, Kirk Atwater.
we had conducted a full load test, and the bridge passed. After practicing, we believe some of the connections were loosened and possibly plastically deformed, so when we laterally load tested at competition, the deflection exceeded 0.5” so we were not allowed, for safety reasons, to complete the load test. After a tough year of fabrication, long nights at Newmark, and lots of construction practice, it was very disheartening to see the bridge fail the lateral load test. However, with the strict limits on deflection, many other schools also failed in a similar fashion, and we still ended up placing third in construction speed and economy and fifth overall. Although we will not be attending Nationals in Texas, we did learn a lot this year, despite ending the season on a negative note. We feel very good about our chances next year, as there
will be eight returning members who will be very motivated to do well and will have as many as three years of steel bridge experience to build on. i
Top: James Triezenberg, Scott Earnest and Joe Riddle begin timed construction. Bottom: With timed construction nearly over, (l to r) Joe Riddle, Scott Earnest, James Triezenberg, Tom Dehlin and Stephen Ozols work to complete the bridge in 9 minutes. Inset: the completed bridge, named Chief of Paign. Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
23
Study estimates land available for biofuel crops By Liz Ahlberg sing detailed land analysis, Illinois researchers have found that biofuel crops cultivated on available land could produce up to half of the world’s current fuel consumption—without affecting food crops or pastureland. Published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, the study led by civil and environmental engineering professor Ximing Cai identified land around the globe available to produce grass crops for biofuels, with minimal impact on agriculture or the environment. Many studies on biofuel crop viability focus on biomass yield, or how productive a crop can be regionally. There has been relatively little research on land availability, one of the key constraints of biofuel development. Of special concern is whether the world could even produce enough biofuel to meet demand without compromising food production. “The questions we’re trying to address are, what kind of land could be used for biofuel crops? If we have land, where is it, and what is the current land cover?” Cai said. Cai’s team assessed land availability from a physical perspective—focusing on soil properties, soil quality, land slope, and regional climate. The researchers collected data on soil, topography, climate and current land use from some of the best data sources available, including remote sensing maps. The critical concept of the Illinois study was that only marginal land would be considered for biofuel crops. Marginal land refers to land with low inherent productivity, that has been abandoned or degraded, or is of low quality for agricultural uses. In focusing on marginal land,
U
24
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
At left: Associate Professor Ximing Cai, left, and graduate student Xiao Zhang performed a global analysis of marginal land that could produce biofuel crops. Photo: L. Brian Stauffer Above: Miscanthus. Photo: istockphoto.com
the researchers rule out current crop land, pasture land, and forests. They also assume that any biofuel crops would be watered by rainfall and not irrigation, so no water would have to be diverted from agricultural land. Using fuzzy logic modeling, a technique to address uncertainty and ambiguity in analysis, the researchers considered multiple scenarios for land availability. First, they considered only idle land and vegetation land with marginal productivity; for the second scenario, they added degraded or low-quality cropland. For the second scenario, they estimated 702 million hectares of land available for second-generation biofuel crops, such as switchgrass or miscanthus. The researchers then expanded their sights to marginal grassland. A class of biofuel crops called low-impact highdiversity (LIHD) perennial grasses could produce bioenergy while maintaining grassland. While they have a lower ethanol yield than grasses such as miscanthus or switchgrass, LIHD grasses have minimal environmental impact and are similar to grassland’s natural land cover. Adding LIHD crops grown on marginal grassland to the marginal cropland estimate from earlier scenarios nearly doubled the estimated land area to 1,107
million hectares globally, even after subtracting possible pasture land. This area would produce 26 to 56 percent of the world’s current liquid fuel consumption. Next, the team plans to study the possible effect of climate change on land use and availability. “Based on the historical data, we now have an estimation for current land use, but climate may change in the near future as a result of the increase in greenhouse gas emissions, which will have effect on the land availability,” said graduate student Xiao Zhang, a co-author of the paper. Former postdoctoral fellow Dingbao Wang (MS 05, PhD 09), now at the University of Central Florida, also co-wrote the paper. “We hope this will provide a physical basis for future research,” Cai said. “For example, agricultural economists could use the dataset to do some research with the impact of institutions, community acceptance and so on, or some impact on the market. We want to provide a start so others can use our research data.” The Energy Biosciences Institute at U. of I and the National Science Foundation supported the study. The paper, “Land Availability for Biofuel Production,” is available online at: http://pubs.acs.org/ doi/abs/10.1021/es103338e. i
Department News Michael Alvarez, a CEE senior, won the Engineering Council Outstanding Student Contribution Scholarship. Alvarez was an active member of the Engineering Employment EXPO Committee of Engineering Council. He also participated in Engineering Open House, NAESC Conference ComAlvarez mittee, Engineering Information Bureau, and Illinois Leadership Programs. He was an instructor for the Engineering 100 program. He was named a 2011 Knight of St. Patrick, one of the highest honors given by the College of Engineering. The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) student chapter has received the Most Improved Society of the Year award from the Engineering Council Executive Board and Awards Selection Committee for the 2010-2011 academic year. This award goes to a society that has gone out of its way not only to excel, but also to improve upon past performances. Over the past year, ASCE has vastly improved the society by increasing both its activities and its membership. CEE Ph.D. student John D. Atkinson (MS 09) was selected as a Mavis Future Faculty Fellow. This program in the College of Engineering is to facilitate the training of the next generation of great engineering professors to become proficient in research, teaching and mentoring. Three CEE faculty members were named 2011 Engineering Council Outstanding Advisers: Instructor J. Riley Edwards (MS 06), Associate Professor Liang Liu and Research Assistant Professor Arthur Schmidt (BS 83, MS 84, PhD 02). CEE graduate student Laura Fierce received an Outstanding Student Paper award from the American Geophysical Union for her presentation at the 2010 fall meeting in San Francisco, Calif. Fierce’s presentation was titled, “Exploring the sensitivity of black carbon aging time scales with particle-resolved aerosol model simulation.” Her advisers are CEE Associate Professor Tami Bond and Assistant Professor Nicole Riemer from Atmospheric Sciences. CEE graduate student Ciaran Harman has won the Ross J. Martin Award from the College of Engineering. The award is given in recognition of outstanding research achievement. Harman’s research combines field work and investigative modeling to understand how climatic variability interacts
MS degree, classes now offered online
C
EE at Illinois announces the new offering of the master of science degree program online, beginning in fall 2011. “The program allows students who can’t come to campus to have the same high-quality educational experience as resident students,” says Professor William G. Buttlar, Director of Online Programs. Online students will view the same lectures as on-campus students, delivered by the same CEE at Illinois professors, but they will access them online. Lectures will be available within cross-disciplinary programs in con24 hours after they are delivered on sultation with their advisers. Courses campus. Homework and projects will are available online in the following be submitted electronically, and stu- areas of concentration to complement dents must take exthe student’s area ams with a proctor. Among classes being of specialty: ConCourse information offered this fall is a struction Materials, will be available on Environmental Enthe course website, course in high-speed rail gineering and Sciand students will ence, Environmental be able to contact their professors via Hydrology and Hydraulic Engineering, email or phone. Some courses will also Geotechnical Engineering, Information allow students to connect through Technology and Structural Engineerchat rooms, online office hours, Skype ing. Among classes being offered this meetings, and group projects and pre- fall is a course in high-speed rail, taught sentations. The degree requirements by professors Christopher Barkan, diare the same as for the on-campus rector of Illinois’ railroad engineering non-thesis M.S. program—36 hours of program, RailTEC, and T.C. Kao, Direccourse work—and the degree awarded tor of the Railway Technology Research to online students is the same degree Center in the Civil Engineering Departawarded to resident students. Online ment at National Taiwan University. students have five years to complete Students may try online classes the program. before applying to a degree program, The M.S. degree in Civil Engineer- Buttlar says. Courses count for profesing offered online is currently avail- sional development hours and may be able for specialization in Construction combined for a certificate. Management and Transportation EnFor more information, visit cee.illigineering. Students can also develop nois.edu/ceeonline. i
Continued on page 27
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011 Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
25 25
Department News Shape-memory alloys in seismic design focus of research
B
assem Andrawes, them to behave in a ducassistant professor tile manner,” Andrawes of structures, has won a says. “But this ductility is National Science Founoften linked with signifidation (NSF) Faculty cant and permanent damEarly Career Developage to critical structural ment (CAREER) Award. components, which jeopAndrawes will receive ardizes the safety of the $400,000 over the next structure and reduces its five years to develop ability to withstand strong Bassem Andrawes and study a new techseismic aftershocks.” nology that uses smart Andrawes will study materials to reinforce lifeline concrete the use of an innovative type of transstructures with the aim of mitigating verse reinforcement made of Shape damage from strong earthquakes. Memory Alloys (SMAs)—materials that “The seismic design philosophy “remember” their original shape and rewhich is accepted all over the world turn to it after deformation—to apply is based on protecting the structures active confinement at the most critical lofrom experiencing sudden collapse cations in the structure. He will utilize the during earthquakes by designing shape-memory feature of these smart
materials to mitigate the level of damage in the structure while still maintaining the desired level of ductility and energy dissipation. He will study the new technology under earthquake scenarios that depict a strong seismic main shock followed by smaller aftershocks—a critical, yet overlooked, perspective, he says. “In many cases, aftershocks cause more damage to the structure than the first shock.” Andrawes says. CAREER awards are the NSF’s most prestigious form of support and recognition for junior faculty who “exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of education and research within the context of the mission of their organizations.” i
Students win $75,000 EPA grant for South Dakota water project
A
student team advised by CEE Professor Charlie Werth has won a $75,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to take their design for a sustainable water filtration system to the next level. The award was given at the National Sustainable Design Expo, April 16-17 in Washington, D.C., part of the EPA’s 2011 Earth Day celebration, in the People, Prosperity and the Planet (P3) award competition. The team is working on the “Oglala Lakota Water Project,” for which it is designing a water filtration device that uses bone char as a filtration material to remove arsenic and uranium from groundwater at the Pine Ridge Reser-
26
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
vation in South Dakota. Illinois students first began working on the project in the summer of 2009, when Oglala Lakota College, with whom the students are collaborating, requested assistance from the University of Illinois-based WaterCAMPWS, the Center of Advanced Materials for the Purification of Water with Systems. Team members Jacob Becraft and Emily Van Dam at the Two trips to the reservation National Sustainable Design Expo. that year confirmed the presence of arsenic and uranium in design for implementation at the resthe drinking water. The group designed ervation in a sustainable and environa preliminary point-of-use filter device mentally friendly manner. i for use under the kitchen sink, he said. In Full story at http://cee.illinois.edu/ the next year, they will standardize a filter p3_2011.
Hashash part of Japan quake team
A
Continued from page 25 with the spatial structure of landHarman scapes, and how these interactions shape the landscape over time. As a synthesis of concepts and theories drawn from ecology, geomorphology, pedology, climatology and hydrology, his work has been recognized as highly original and transformative. Professor Praveen Kumar will be appointed as an Associate of the Center for Advanced Studies during the academic year 2011-2012. The appointment will allow him to further advance his research agenda on the broad theme of Hydrocomplexity. He will advance theory, inference system and simulation tools for identifying, modeling and predicting how climate and human-induced changes in the hydrologic cycle impact the network of interaction of ecologic and hydrologic processes. He will explore how and when these changes impart dramatic changes (tipping points) in related systems by crossing resilience thresholds. Kumar was also named the Colonel Harry F. and Frankie M. Lovell Endowed Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Professor David Lange has been given the Stanley H. Pierce Award from the College of Engineering. The award is given in recognition of his efforts to develop empathetic student-faculty cooperation. Lange was cited for advancing the structure and quality of the undergraduate programs in CEE to enhance recruiting and retention of outstanding students. He has applied a strong focus to underrepresented groups within engineering. He has built strong connections with leading recruitment firms, improving career opportunities for new graduates, and has headed Lange several initiatives to benefit students, including creating a new staff position for undergraduate advising, securing funding to create an Internet-enabled student lounge in Newmark Lab, and leading plans for classrooms and amenities in the new Yeh Student Center. Jon Liebman, Professor Emeritus, was honored by the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass (AACG) for his years of service to the AACG as a board and advisory board member, past president (1999-2001) and first and only webmaster. CEE graduate student Sheng-Lin Lin was awarded the Best Presentation Award at the 8th International Conference on
s part of an engineering reconnaissance mission to Japan April 9-15, Professor Youssef Hashash got a first-hand view of the aftermath of the massive earthquake and subsequent tsunami that devastated the country in March. The purpose of the trip was to gather data about the response of the country’s infrastructure, said Hashash, the John Burkitt Webb Endowed Faculty Scholar. Experts in structural engineering, geotechnical engineering, and tsunamis made up the team. Hashash’s specific focus was examining the performance of the country’s geotechnical structures. The Magnitude-9.0 undersea earthquake, one of the five strongest recorded, struck off the shore of Japan on March 11 and triggered a tsunami. “The magnitude of the tsunami was like nothing I’ve ever seen before,” Hashash said. The full story and a link to the preliminary report are online at: cee.illinois. edu/ hashash_japan_2011.
Above, Hashash examines liquefactioninduced lateral spreading near ShinUrayasu, Tokyo. Below, a tsunami-damaged city block in Kesennuma.
Former governor Edgar speaks to CEE audience
Former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar spoke to an audience of CEE students, faculty and staff on April 14 at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications. The talk, “A Chat with Governor Jim Edgar,” was presented by the department as its annual Ethics Seminar for faculty and students. In this photo, Edgar (third from left) chats with CEE professors (left to right) Dan Abrams, David Lange, Arif Masud, Marshall Thompson, Barbara Minsker and Tim Stark.
Continued on page 28 Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
27
Department News New primary, secondaries mean more multi-disciplinary options By Dan Malsom ndergraduate students in CEE now have a new primary area of study and three new secondary concentrations to choose from, thanks to a recent change in the curriculum. The new courses of study are part of an ongoing process to revise the curriculum to ensure that students receive a multidisciplinary education. The primary concentration in Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure Systems and secondary concentrations in Sustainability, in CEE Multidisciplinary, and in Global Context will accompany the seven primary areas and seven secondary areas already available to students. The department has approved custom secondary areas in the past similar to the new options, says Liang Liu, CEE associate head and director of undergraduate studies. The new areas of study add already-designed secondary areas to those previous custom degree requests and make them more easily attainable for any interested CEE students. “These new additions to the CEE curriculum carry the innovative spirit and progressive attitude of faculty, students, and administrators in preparing our undergraduates to become leaders in the future,” Liu said. The new areas of study allow students to take advanced classes outside CEE as part of the area’s advanced technical course requirements without having to request approval, a departmental first. Classes offered in the schools of Architecture, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Econom-
U
ics, and Atmospheric Science comprise part of the new curricula. The new areas of study reflect the future of engineering and how the engineering profession has changed, said Professor and head Amr Elnashai. “In today’s world, societal problems are not solved by structural engineers, nor by environmental engineers either. It takes a systems approach by a whole group of engineers,” he said. The new areas of study draw largely upon classes already present in the CEE curriculum, but with two new classes that will begin in 2012: Engineering for the Global Environment, and Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure Systems. Professor Barbara Minsker played a key role in leading discussions that made the new programs a reality. Minsker headed a committee tasked with creating the new curriculum and met with industry leaders to make sure the new curriculum met both student and workplace needs, all while ensuring the satisfaction of accreditation requirements. These new areas of study serve as a reflection of how the CEE department wishes to adapt in the coming years, Elnashai says. While Illinois CEE students have advanced core competency and engineering problem-solving skills, he says, they need to understand better how to integrate what they know from a systems perspective. The new systems primary, specifically, “is intended to be the focus of how we want to train our students in the future.” i
Shaking the competition Students representing the University of Illinois took third place in the international Earthquake Engineering Research Institute Undergraduate Design Competition in San Diego, Calif., Feb. 9-12. The competition challenged students to design a multi-story commercial office building and predict its seismic load resistance capacity. Scale models made from balsa wood were fitted with weights and tested against three seismic events. Above, some of the team (l to r): Jeanine Genchanok, Michael Morun, Quinton Champer, Jon LaScala, and Daniel Biernat. Videos of the models’ performance under loading can be seen on the department’s YouTube channel: youtube.com/ceeatillinois.
Continued from page 27 Urban Earthquake Engineering, held March 7-8 in Tokyo. His paper, “An Integrated Earthquake Impact Assessment System,” was co-authored with professors Amr S. Elnashai and Billie F. Spencer Jr. Professor Liang Liu received the University’s Undergraduate Advising Award at the Celebration of Teaching Excellence April 26 at the Alice Campbell Alumni Center. CEE graduate student Matthew Porter received the first place Esmilla Writing Award, awarded by the Environmental faculty, for his research proposal, “Biodegradation of methylmercury at wetland sites through conjugation of native bacteria with a broad-spectrum methylmercury resistance plasmid.”
Full story at cee.illinois.edu/multidisciplinary Continued on page 30
28
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
New catalystmaking process holds promise By Liz Ahlberg niversity of Illinois researchers have demonstrated a simpler method of adding iron to tiny carbon spheres to create catalytic materials that have the potential to remove contaminants from gas or liquid. Professor Mark Rood, CEE graduate student John Atkinson (MS 09), and their team described their technique in the journal Carbon. Carbon structures can be a support base for catalysts, such as iron and other metals. Iron is a readily available, low-cost catalyst with possible catalytic applications for fuel cells and environmental applications for adsorbing harmful chemicals, such as arsenic or carbon monoxide. Researchers produce a carbon matrix that has many pores or tunnels, like a sponge. The large surface area created by the pores provides sites to disperse tiny iron particles throughout the matrix. A common source of carbon is coal.
L. Brian Stauffer
U
Professor Mark Rood and CEE graduate student John Atkinson.
Typically, scientists modify coal-based materials into highly porous activated carbon and then add a catalyst. The multistep process takes time and enormous amounts of energy. In addition, materials made with coal are plagued by ash, which can contain traces of other metals that interfere with the reactivity of the carbonbased catalyst. The Illinois team’s ash-free, inexpensive process takes its carbon from sugar rather than coal. In one continuous process, it produces tiny, micrometer-sized spheres of porous, spongy carbon embedded with iron nanoparticles—all in the span of a few seconds. Rood and Atkinson have received grants from the National Science Founda-
tion (NSF) to develop the carbon-iron spheres to remove nitric oxide, mercury, and dioxin from gas streams— bioaccumulating pollutants that have caused concern as emissions from combustion sources. The Electric Power Research Institute, the NSF, the U.S. Department of Energy, the Air and Waste Management Association, and the U of I supported this work. Co-authors included U of I Chemistry Professor Kenneth Suslick, graduate student Maria Fortunato, and researchers from the Illinois State Geological Survey. i Full story online at cee.illinois.edu/ rood_catalysts.
International programs increase global engagement, collaboration
A
number of new agreements between CEE at Illinois and overseas universities will increase the department’s global engagement, facilitating student exchange and collaborations in research and education. Agreements have been signed in the past year with Dalian University of Technology, Tongji University, Tsinghua University, the University of Hong Kong and Zhejiang University in China; Abu Dhabi University in the United Arab Emirates; and Istanbul Technical University in Turkey. The new “3 + 2” programs will al-
ucation, research and low international students societal service. to spend their senior years The objectives of at Illinois, obtain bachelor of forging strong interscience degrees from their national ties include home institutions, and conattracting the world’s tinue their education to earn brightest students to master of science degrees graduate school at Ilfrom CEE at Illinois. Erol Tutumluer linois and promoting Professor Erol Tutumluer institution-to-instituhas been named the department’s first Director of International tion collaborations that foster faculty Programs, responsible for directing the and student exchange and global enexpansion of the department’s global gagement in teaching and research. For more information, visit cee.ilactivities. He will deal with all aspects of i international engagement, including ed- linois.edu/international.
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
29
Department News Continued from page 28 Professor Timothy D. Stark and CEE alumnus Manzoor Hussain (MS 07, PhD 10) have received the Richard S. Ladd Standards Development Award from ASTM International’s Committee D18 on Soil and Rock. Stark and Hussain were recognized for their work in preparing ASTM Standard Designation D7608 “Standard Test Method for Torsional Ring Shear Test to Determine Drained Fully Softened Shear Strength and Nonlinear Strength Envelope of Cohesive Soils (Using Normally Consolidated Specimen) for Slopes with No Preexisting Shear Surfaces.” Associate Professor Timothy J. Strathmann is serving as a visiting professor in the School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Lausanne, Switzerland. He is working together with his host, Professor Tamar Kohn, on a project examining the processes that control the fate and persistence of pharmaceutical contaminants and their metabolites released in wastewater effluent into Lake Geneva (Lac Léman). As part of this project, they are working with a larger team of EPFL researchers to deploy Russian Mir submersible submarines to characterize the 3-dimensional distribution and degradation of contaminants moving throughout the lake, which is also used as a source of drinking water for local communities.
CEE Job Fair Successful; Fall Fair Planned
Professor Albert J. Valocchi has been named an Abel Bliss Professor of Engineering. The Bliss Professorships are the result of a bequest from the late Helen Eva Bliss in memory of her father, Abel Bliss Jr.
Hundreds of CEE students turned out Feb. 25 for the annual spring job fair to meet with recruiters from more than 60 companies. The event has been so popular over the years with students and companies alike that the department has planned a second annual event for the fall. This year’s Fall Job Fair will be held on Thursday, September 29. For more information, visit https://my.cee.illinois.edu/jobfair.
Sponsors
The department extends a special thanks to the following company sponsors of the 2011 Spring Job Fair: Silver Level Brown and Caldwell Civiltech Engineering Inc. The Walsh Group Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates Inc.
30
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
Bronze Level Bowman, Barrett & Associates Shannon and Wilson Inc.
A paper by Professor Charles J. Werth “Pore-Scale Study of Transverse Mixing Induced CaCO3 Precipitation and Permeability Reduction in a Model Subsurface Sedimentary System” was selected for an Editor’s Choice Award as one of Environmental Science and Technologies Best Papers of 2010, 2nd runner up in the category of Technology. The paper was co-authored with former student Changyong Zhang (MS 01, PhD 06), CEE Professor Albert Valocchi, Professor Bruce Fouke (Geology), and several collaborators from the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Professor Charles J. Werth was selected as a Wiley Research Fellow by the Department of Energy’s William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL) in recognition of his strong contributions to the user facility. The program recognizes scientists who make significant contributions to EMSL outside of their individual research efforts. Fellows are scientists who actively participate in developing plans and strategies to guide EMSL’s instrument and capability investments, science themes and user activities.
Students “knighted” in engineering honor tradition
F
our CEE students were named 2011 Knights of St. Patrick. The honorary organization for engineering students inducts a select group of students each year who represent leadership, and excellence of character, and who have made an exceptional contribution to the College of Engineering and its students. This year’s knights are Michael Alvarez, Jose Garcia, Kimberly Parker, and Christopher Walton. The Knights of St. Patrick got its start at the University of Missouri-Rolla more than 100 years ago when the legend of St. Patrick driving the snakes out of Ireland captured the imaginations of some book-weary engineering students on the eve of St. Patrick’s Day in 1903. The students reasoned that such a feat could have been accomplished only by an engineer and declared that if St. Patrick was in fact a fellow engineer, they deserved a break on his feast day. They celebrated by cutting classes. Over the years, the tradition of celebrating St. Patrick’s Day on engineering campuses grew and evolved into what is known today as one of the highest honors an engineering student can receive. In a nod to the anti-authority origins of the group, new knights play pranks on the administration. Among
Assistant Dean Michael C. Hirschi, left, aka St. Patrick, poses with CEE senior Chris Walton. Hirschi formally knighted the honored students at a ball in March. For some knights, he used a nontraditional object for knighting—in Walton’s case, a lightsaber.
other things, this year’s knights pranked the administrative offices in Engineering Hall in a nighttime operation that included freezing all the staplers into a bowl of ice. They also built a castle in the building’s main hallway. In total, there are 11 new knights this year from throughout the College of Engineering. Michael Alvarez (BS 11) was a CEE senior with a primary concentration in Geotechnical Engineering and a secondary that he customized to satisfy his interest in industrial engineering. While at Illinois,
Alvarez has been active with Engineering Council, Engineering Employment EXPO, Engineering Open House, Engineering 100 Program, the National Association of Engineering Student Councils, and the Engineering Information Bureau. Jose Garcia (BS 11) was a CEE senior with a primary concentration in Environmental Engineering and a secondary in Environmental Hydrology. He was heavily involved in the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and currently serves as president. His activities included high school outreach, community service in the Hispanic community, mentoring underclassmen, and working with committees. He has been involved with Engineering Council, serving on the Student Introduction to Engineering and Community Service committees. Kimberly Parker (BS 11) was a CEE senior with a primary in Environmental Engineering, a secondary in Environmental Hydrology, and a minor in chemistry. As an undergraduate, she did research with Professor Timothy Strathmann under the WaterCAMPWS, the Center of Advanced Materials for the Purification of Water with Systems. Parker led the Engineers Without Borders Guatemala Water Project, advised by Professor Helen Nguyen, and helped found the Oglala Lakota Water Project in Pine Ridge, SD, which is advised by Professor Charles Werth. Christopher Walton (BS 11) was a CEE senior concentrating in Environmental Engineering with a secondary in Environmental Hydrology. He is involved with the Engineering Council, the Engineering Open House Central Committee, the American Society of Civil Engineers, and Alternative Spring Break. i The four new Knights of St. Patrick from CEE pose with a castle they built with other new members in Engineering Hall as part of their initiation. Left to right: Michael Alvarez, Jose Garcia, Christopher Walton, and Kimberly Parker.
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
31
2011 CEE Student Awards A. Epstein Award in Civil Engineering Kimberly Parker Alvord, Burdick & Howson Award Alex M. Beugelsdijk Anna Lee and James T.P. Yao Scholarship Andrew A. Smiles ASCE Outstanding Instructor Award Robert H. Dodds Jr. Thierno I. Kane, left, received the Klein & Hoffman Inc. Scholarship from company representative Mark Calvino (BS 83, MS 84).
ASCE Outstanding Student Award Christopher R. Walton Bates and Rogers Scholarship Ronald M. Halicke Gilberto Chaidez Bechtel Engineering Diversity Program Scholarship Ugwem Eneyo Maria Warnock Bob Zieba Memorial Scholarship Samantha Bryant Bowman, Barrett & Associates Outstanding Scholar Award Steven U. Gresk Caterpillar Foundation Engineering Merit Scholarship Carrie Desmond
Joseph P. Zeller, left, received the Lawrence J. Fritz Undergraduate Scholarship from presenter Laura Schmitt, Champaign.
Caterpillar Scholars Scholarship Kevin Wolz John P. Gage Central Illinois Section American Society of Civil Engineers Chris Walton CH2M Hill Transportation Endowed Scholarship Christine M. Rhoades Chicago Outer Belt Contractors Association Scholarship Kathryn M. Born Carrie D. Desmond Chester P. Siess Award Young Joo Lee Joshua S. Steelman
Jason D. Fifarek, left, received the Walter E. Hanson Graduate Study Award from presenter Daniel J. Whalen (BS 84, MS 85) of Hanson Professional Services Inc. 32
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
Civil Engineering Class of 1943 Undergraduate Leadership Award Timothy W. Veldman Clement C. Lee Outstanding Scholar Award Elizabeth A. Rehwoldt
Vyoma Patel, right, of the student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), presented the ASCE Outstanding Instructor Award to Professor Robert H. Dodds Jr. (BS 73, MS 75, PhD 78).
Crawford, Murphy & Tilly Award Elizabeth M. Tewolde CRSI Education and Research Foundation Scholarship Raphael Stern Delores Wade Huber Scholarship Denglin Wu Sheng Tao Huang DFI Educational Trust Berkel & Company Contractors Inc. Scholarship Deborah J. Gaskins Stephanie M. Tong Maria C. Warnock Doris I. and James L. Willmer Endowed Scholarship in Civil and Environmental Engineering Megan E. Wallace Earle J. Wheeler Scholarship Jonathan Chiu Vincent J. Kania Eli W. Cohen – Thornton Tomasetti Foundation Scholarship David M. Nauheimer Ernest L. Doctor Memorial Award (IAPA) Salman Hakimzadeh George L. Farnsworth Jr. Scholarship Andrew V. Rehn Glenn E. and Helen L. Stout Water Resources Research Award Nam Jeong Choi Esther Eke
Professor and Head Amr S. Elnashai, right, presented the Ira O. Baker Prize, second place, to Chuan Li. Kimberly Parker, winner of the first place Ira O. Baker Prize, was not able to attend the awards ceremony. Golf Course Builders Association of America Foundation Scholarship Andrzej R. Tatkowski Grant W. Shaw Memorial Scholarship Saranya R. Konala Ryan R. Smith
Max Whitman APWA Memorial Scholarship Laura L. DeHaan Melih T. Dural Undergraduate Research Prize Yunfei Yang
Harold R. Sandberg Scholarship Vincent J. Kania
Moreland Herrin Scholarship Alexander Ng James E. Pforr
Harry R. Hanley Memorial Scholarship (IAPA) Shohei Kurokawa
Norman Carlson Scholarship Samuel L. Sogin
Henry T. Heald Award Lauren D. Valentino
PPG Engineering Diversity Program Scholarship Justine Brennan
Illinois Association of County Engineers Award Joseph K. Riddle Oana A. Toma Emily J. Van Dam Mary K. Ward
RJN Foundation Civil Engineering Scholarship Megan E. Wallace
Samuel C. Roberts Award in Civil Engineering Industry Advancement Foundation of Central John P. Sarsfield Ilinois Builders of the AGC Scholarship Walker Parking Consultants Daniel P. McCarthy Undergraduate Scholarship Amna Mahmud Ira O. Baker Prize - First Prize Kimberly Parker Walter and Carole A. Crowley Scholarship Lauren D. Valentino Ira O. Baker Prize - Second Prize Chuan Li Walter E. Hanson Graduate Study Award Jason D. Fifarek Ira O. Baker Memorial Scholarships Andrew R. Bishop Wayne C. Teng Scholarship Rajarshi N. Bhakta Justine A. Brennan Ilan L. Cohn Klein and Hoffman Inc. Scholarship Bethany L. Myelle Thierno I. Kane Thomas J. Thoren Koch Scholarship in Civil and Environmental William C. Ackermann Sr. Civil Engineering Engineering Scholarship Ted R. Bluver Jenna M. Diestelmeier Lawrence J. Fritz Undergraduate Scholarship Douglas M. Houser Kevin Law Joseph P. Zeller Leigh F. J. Zerbee Scholarship Civil Engineering Hong R. Kim Erich W. Maxheimer Patrick Zacher Loreta and Silvio Corsetti Memorial Scholarship Kaitlyn L. Fleming Maude E. Eide Memorial Scholarship Jeanine Genchanok Zachary D. Sasnow
Above: Megan E. Wallace, left, received the Doris I. and James L. Willmer Endowed Scholarship in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Lauren Stromberg (BS 08, MS 10), the 2006 recipient of the award. Below: Christine M. Rhoades, right, accepted the CH2M Hill Transportation Endowed Scholarship from company representative Joshua Cantone (MS 07, PhD 10).
William E. O’Neil Award Moatassem Abdallah William John MacKay Award Richael K. Young Oana A. Toma Alex M. Beugelsdijk, right, received the Alvord, Burdick & Howson Scholarship from company representative Donald Eckmann (BS 56). Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
33
Alumni News
2010s
Manish Kumar (MS 00, PhD 10) received a first place Academic Achievement Award for 2011 from the American Water Works Association in recognition of the contributions of his doctoral dissertation to the water supply industry. His thesis was titled “Biomimetic Membranes as New Materials for Applications in Environmental Engineering and Biology.” Kumar will be starting as an assistant professor at the Pennsylvania State University in the fall.
Baker wins College of Engineering alumni award Professor Emeritus William J. Hall (MS 51, PhD 54), left, with CEE alumnus William F. Baker (MS 80), Partner-inCharge at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP, Chicago. Baker won a College of Engineering Alumni Award for Distinguished Service “for his leadership in the development of innovative structural systems for high-rise buildings, both nationally and internationally, including the world’s tallest building.”
Tze Ling Ng (MS 03, PhD 10), a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the department, is the 2010 Engelbrecht Fellowship recipient. Ng recently accepted a faculty position at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Her research focuses on the use of mathematical modeling and optimization tools, integrated with economics, for environmental planning and management. Matt Sugihara (BS 08, MS 10) is an environmental engineer for Exxon-Mobil. He received the second place Esmilla Writing Award, awarded by the Environmental faculty, for his research proposal, “Enhancing biodegradability of pharmaceutically active compounds by advanced chemical treatment.”
2000s
Edward W. East (MS 91, PhD 05) received the 2010 Institute Member Award from the National Institute of Building Sciences. A senior project manager at the Construction Engineering Research Laboratory in Champaign, East was cited for his strong advocacy for research in design and construction management, development of national and international building information modeling exchange, and integration of these advanced tools for use by the design and construction industry and facility owners. Robert Holmes Jr. (PhD 03) has been named Southeastern Illinois College’s 2011 Distinguished Alumnus. Holmes is the National Flood Specialist for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in Rolla, Mo., and serves as an adjunct professor of civil engineering in the department. In his current position, Holmes serves as the lead flood scientist for USGS flood, operational and scientific endeavors nationwide. He is a technical expert and consultant in complex flood investigations and studies nationwide, and also advises the USGS Associate Directors for Water and Hazards. Lanhua Hu (MS 06), a current CEE PhD student, was awarded the 2010-2011 Engelbrecht Fellowship by the Environmental Engineering and Science faculty. The award is given annually to a student near graduation who shows outstanding prom34
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
ise for success in environmental engineering. Hu’s research focuses on developing advanced oxidation technologies for the treatment of emerging chemical contaminants and viral pathogens. Matthew J. Moffitt (BS 06), P.E., has earned his professional engineering license in Illinois. Moffitt is a civil engineer with Foth Infrastructure & Environment, Champaign, with expertise in transportation and storm water design and construction for municipal and state agencies. Chad M. Osterbur (BS 00) has been licensed as a professional land surveyor in Illinois. He is employed by MSA Professional Services, a civil engineering consulting firm in Champaign. Christopher J. Stritzel (BS 01), Senior Engineer with Crawford, Murphy & Tilly Inc. consulting engineers, has recently been named 2010 Young Engineer of the Year by the Capital Chapter of the Illinois Society of Professional Engineers. Scott A. Winter (MS 06) joined Winter Construction of Freeport, Ill., as Vice President of Design/Build Services. Winter is a licensed architect and the President and Principal Architect for Winter Design Inc., an architectural planning and design firm and wholly owned subsidiary of Winter Construction.
Bryan P. Loewen (BS 94) has joined Newmark Knight Frank in Dallas, Texas, as Senior Managing Director of its Global Corporate Services group. Rick Manner (MS 92) is executive director of the Urbana and Champaign Sanitary District. Manner was formerly the assistant general manager of the Fox River Water Reclamation District in Elgin, Ill. Richard K. Murphy (MS 90), a Captain in the U.S. Coast Guard, recently assumed command of the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore, Md. He is the 40th commanding officer in the 111-year history of the shipyard, the Coast Guard’s only shipbuilding and ship repair facility. John M. Peisker (BS 84, MS 94) has been elected first vice president of the Associated General Contractors of Illinois.
1980s
Terry Barnett, (BS 79, MS 81) P.E., S.E., recently celebrated 30 years of service at Hanson Professional Services Inc. He serves as a senior structural engineer for Hanson’s government market.
1990s
James R. Harris (MS 75, PhD 80), principal of J.R. Harris & Co., Structural Engineers, Denver, Colo., was elected to the American Concrete Institure Board of Direction.
Francis K. Humay (BS 92) is a structural engineer living in Oahu, Hawaii.
Cynthia K. Tuck (BS 82, MS 84), P.E., joined the Association of California Water Agencies as its state legislative director. Tuck has served as undersecretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency since 2007. Continued on page 36.
Jason M. Bretz (BS 95), P.E., has joined Tarlton Corp., a St. Louis-based general contracting/construction management firm, as project executive for federal government work.
Khachaturian joins CEE as adjunct professor
W
hat do you do when a tunnel that provides half the water supply to New York City is leaking? How do you increase sustainability in a concrete jungle with 8.2 million people? CEE alumna Kathryn Mallon, P.E., (BS 88) answered these questions and more during her keynote address,
Kathryn Mallon, left, with Professor Charles Werth, chair of the Environmental Engineering and Science program.
“Really Cool Engineering Challenges Working for the Largest City in the U.S.,” delivered April 1 at the Environmental Engineering and Science Spring Symposium. Mallon works for the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in the Bureau of Engineer-
ing Design and Construction. As Deputy Commissioner of the agency’s capital delivery program, she manages more than 400 staff focused on the design and construction of $10 billion in water and wastewater capital work. She joined the DEP in 2008, a move that has afforded her “the opportunity to be involved in several lifetimes worth of ‘once-in-a-lifetime projects’,” she said. Among the projects Mallon discussed was New York City’s Green Infrastructure Plan. The city is piloting the use of sustainable technologies to slow storm water runoff after heavy rainfall and reduce combined sewer overflow—a unique challenge in a city so heavily built and paved that it is 75 percent impervious. Pilot projects include porous pavements, planting areas in right-of-ways, green roofs and blue roofs, which feature gravel-filled, perforated trays, which capture and slowly release rain water. Mallon also discussed the planned repair of a leak in the Rondout-West Branch Tunnel, which brings water to the city from the Delaware Watershed upstate. It currently provides half of the water used in New York City. Near the town of Roseton on the Hudson River, the tunnel is leaking at a rate of 15-35 million gallons a day. Mallon detailed the process of diagnos-
Department of Environmental Protection
Alumna speaks on New York City’s cool engineering challenges
Green infrastructure in NYC (clockwise from top left) streetside bioswale, blue roof, porous pavement, and green roof.
ing the leak, which included the use of an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle, a self-propelled and navigated torpedo, to pinpoint the leakage areas. She discussed the agency’s process of evaluating solutions to the problem, weighing risks, benefits and cost, and arriving at the decision to construct a bypass tunnel. Completing the repair will require a 6- to 15-month interruption in service during which the agency must secure alternative water supplies. i Full story at cee.illinois.edu/mallon_ees
Jon Khachaturian joins CEE as a visiting adjunct professor
J
on E. Khachaturian (BS 78) has joined CEE as a visiting adjunct professor. As the CEO of Versabar Inc. of Houston, Texas, he directs a group of six companies with more than 650 employees engaged in heavy lift engineering and field operations both onshore and offshore. Khachaturian holds more than 50 patents and has been a leader in heavy lift technology in the Gulf of Mexico for more than 30 years. In 2010, Khachaturian was named to the National Academy of Engineering “for develop-
ing innovative, safe, reusable, and economical heavy lifting systems to advance the international marine industry.” His honors have included numerous awards for technical innovation. He was named a Distinguished Alumnus of the department in 2006. “Our family has been affiliated with the civil engineering department starting in 1945 with my Dad, Professor Narbey Khachaturian; myself from 1973-1977; and finally my son Matthew, who graduated in 2007,” he said. “I am excited to continue this affiliation with my recent appoint-
ment as an adjunct professor.” Khachaturian would like to offer several engineering seminars each year to faculty and students to discuss engineering applications in the heavy lift industry and provide industry perspective that complements the course curriculum, he said. “Of course, if the timing of these seminars coincides with an Illini home game, then so much the better!” i
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
35
Alumni News Baker, Der Kiureghian elected to NAE
T
wo CEE alumni were among 68 new members elected to the National Academy of Engineering for 2011. They are William F. Baker Jr. (MS 80), partnerin-charge at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP, Chicago, and Armen Der Kiureghian (PhD 76), Taisei Chair of Civil Engineering, Baker University of California, Berkeley. Baker was cited, “For leadership in the development of innovative structures for high-rise buildings worldwide.” Baker is known for structural innovation, most notably in the design of tall buildings. He developed the “buttressed core” structural system for the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest manmade structure. In conjunction with sophisticated wind engineering,
the buttressed core system makes it possible to construct skyscrapers of extreme elevation. Der Kiureghian was cited, “For contributions to Der Kiureghian risk and reliability and earthquake engineering to advance the practice of civil and structural engineering.” He has served on the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley, since 1978 and has an outstanding record of research publications in engineering mechanics, earthquake engineering, structural reliability, stochastic mechanics, and risk analysis. After the devastating earthquake of 1988 in Armenia, Der Kiureghian was instrumental in establishing the American University of Armenia (AUA) in Yerevan as an affiliate of the University of California. i
Lanyon retires from MWRD
R
ichard Lanyon (BS 60, MS 61) retired from his position as Executive Director of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) of Greater Chicago in late 2010. His career at the MWRD spanned nearly 48 years. As Executive Director, he directed the day-to-day operations of the MWRD, which included 2,100 employees and an annual budget of approximately $1 billion. Lanyon’s most recent awards include the Edward J. Cleary Award from the American Academy of En-
36
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
vironmental Engineers and the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of Clean Water Agencies. He was a Distinguished Alumnus of the Department of CEE at Illinois in 2003. He and his wife, Marsha, live in Evanston, and he continues to be an advocate for sensible and sustainable water management in the urban environment. i
Continued from page 34.
1970s
Christine F. Andersen (BS 73), P.E., director of public works for the City of Santa Barbara, was recently elected an at-large director of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Thomas E. Havenar (BS 79), P.E., S.E., recently celebrated 30 years of service at Hanson Professional Services Inc. He is a senior structural engineer in Hanson’s infrastructure market. Herbert R. Hribar (MS 77) was appointed Chief Executive Officer of CENX Inc., operator of the world’s first and most connected Carrier Ethernet exchanges with more than 15 million Ethernet Service Locations. Larry Jaworski (BS 72, MS 73), P.E., current president of the Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association, recently earned the status of Board Certified Environmental Engineer from the American Academy of Environmental Engineers. Mark H. Kroenig (BS 73, MS 74), P.E., has joined the Risk Assessment and Management (RAM) Group of Gannett Fleming as a principal consulting engineer. The RAM Group provides environmental consulting services and specializes in costeffective management of contaminated sites. William Martinez (BS 77) has been confirmed as a Coloradobased federal judge. Martinez is a partner at Denver law firm McNamara, Roseman, Martinez & Kazmierski LLP. George P. Meister (BS 72) retired as county engineer and highway superintendent for Marshal and Putnam counties in Illinois. Jack B. Norman (MS 71) was inducted into the BurlingtonEdison High School Hall of Fame in Mount Vernon, Wash.
1960s
Richard J. Erickson (BS 69), CEO of O’Neil Industries Inc., was named the spring 2011 Chapter Honor Member of Chi Epsilon Alpha Chapter. Harry West (PhD 67), professor emeritus of civil and environmental engineering at Penn State University, was honored by Penn State’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering with an endowment in his name to advance the state of the practice of civil engineering education. The endowment will allow the department to inaugurate the Harry West Teaching Award, establish a seminar series, and fund educational research.
Stallman gift will benefit southern Illinois students
C
EE alumnus and long-time University of Illinois employee William E. Stallman (BS 50) and his wife, Margarite, have established a scholarship fund in the department. The William E. Stallman scholarship will be awarded annually to an undergraduate student from southern Illinois. After graduation from the department, Stallman worked for the Illinois Division of Highways (now the Illinois Department of Transportation) for 16 years. He worked in the bureaus of Design, Materials, Construction and Traffic, ultimately being appointed head of the Bureau of Traffic. In 1966, Stallman returned to the University of Illinois to work on his master’s degree and teach in the Department of General Engineering. During this time, he was offered a position working for the University in the newly created Office of Space Utilization. The office was responsible for
Margarite and William Stallman
scheduling classrooms, maintaining a campus space inventory, planning minor campus remodeling, assigning and reassigning space to departments, and overseeing the development of the campus capital budget. He retired from the position and the University in fall of 1987. After retirement, Stallman did some consulting work and became an active
volunteer for Champaign Unit 4 School District and the Urbana Campus Chapter of the State Universities Annuitants Association. The Stallmans will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary in 2011. Margarite, or “Mike” as she prefers to be known, taught in several school systems but primarily the Champaign school district. Mike is also a graduate of the University of Illinois; she received her B.S. in 1950 and her M.S. in 1971 from the College of Education. The couple has two daughters, Diane Wiss, and Karen Stallman. A son, Andrew (BS 85), also a department alumnus, passed away in 1992 at age 29. Karen’s son, Casey Lewis, the Stallman’s only grandchild, is a 2009 graduate of the U of I College of Engineering, having majored in Bioengineering. He is currently enrolled in the College of Law at Washington University in St. Louis. i
CEE at Illinois Corporate Partners Program cee.illinois.edu/cpp The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering gratefully acknowledges the following companies who contribute to CEE at Illinois as Corporate Partners.
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
37
Old Masters
Engineering giants of the department’s history
Richard S. Engelbrecht
1927-1996 Educator, researcher, pioneering leader in environmental pollution control By Professors emeritus William J. Hall, Vernon Water Sanitation Commission L. Snoeyink, and John D. Haltiwanger from 1976 until his death. He ichard S. Engelbrecht was born on served on numerous commitMarch 11, 1926, in Ft. Wayne, Ind. He tees, panels and boards of the received an A.B. degree in Zoology from National Research Council. He Indiana University-Bloomington in 1948, also served as a consultant to after which he pursued graduate studies the U.S. Environmental Proin microbiology and biochemistry at the tection Agency, the World same institution. Subsequently he re- Health Organization, the Naceived M.S. and Sc.D. degrees in Sanitary tional Science Foundation, Science from the Massachusetts Institute and many other governmental and private agencies. of Technology in 1952 and 1954. His contributions to the Engelbrecht joined the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of solution of societal problems Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1954 as led to an immense number of an Assistant Professor and held the rank professional awards. Among of Professor of Environmental Engineer- these were the Harrison Prescott Eddy ing from 1959 until he retired in 1992, Medal for noteworthy Research (1966) when he became Professor Emeritus of and the Arthur Sidney Bedell Award Environmental Engineering. From 1987- (1973), both from the Water Pollution 89 he held the Ivan Control FederaHe was an institution Racheff Professortion; the George W. ship of EnvironmenFuller Award (1974) nationally as well as tal Engineering, and and the Publication during 1979-1991 Award (1975), both internationally and in the he was Director of from the American National Research Council Water Works Asthe U of I Advanced Environmental Conand the was known as “Mr. Water.” sociation; trol Technology ReEric H. Vick Award search Center. For (1979) from the Ina period of time in 1973, he was Visiting stitution of Public Health Engineers (U.K.). Professor at the Technion-Israel Institute Engelbrecht was elected to membership of Technology, Haifa, Israel. in the National Academy of Engineering Englebrecht’s forte was public service. in 1976, and to Honorary Membership in He served on numerous national and in- Abwassertechnische Vereiningung (West ternational committees, commissions, Germany) in 1978. In 1974 he received and boards of governmental agencies the Radebaugh Award, and in 1985 the and professional societies. For example, George J. Schroepfer Award from the he was a member of the Ohio River Valley Central States Water Pollution Control As-
R
38
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
sociation. The Benjamin Garver Lamme Award of the American Society of Engineering Education was bestowed upon him in 1985. In 1986 he was elected to Honorary Membership in the Water Environment Federation, and was awarded the Gordon Maskew Fair Medal by the same organization in 1987. He was elected to Honorary Membership in the International Association on Water Pollution Research and Control in 1990. In 1992 he received a Certificate of Appreciation from the Japan Sewage Works Agency, and because of his long involvement with many environmental projects and his help to Japanese graduate students at the University of Illinois, he received a national decoration from the Emperor of Japan in 1993, namely the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon. The Association of Environmental Engineering Professors honored him in 1993 with its Founders’
In Memoriam 1970s Award for sustained and outstanding contributions to environmental engineering education. A month prior to his death he had been awarded the Warren A. Hall Medal from the Universities Council on Water Resources. Engelbrecht was the author or co-author of more than 122 articles, proceedings papers and chapters in books. Among the many professional organizations in which he was active were the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Society for Microbiology, the American Water Works Association, The Water Environment Federation, formerly the Water Pollution Control Federation (President, 1977), and the International Association on Water Quality, formerly the International Association on Water Pollution Research and Control (President 1980-1986). Engelbrecht was an “early to bed, early to rise” man, accomplishing much of his most creative work in the early morning hours. Consistent with this mode of operation, he frequently faded in early evening, but at intimate social gatherings quite often humorously wore a large badge which read, “I am awake and having fun.” Engelbrecht’s death left a large void in the profession. He provided strong, well-directed leadership and served as a role model for others, who through similar professional services worked for the betterment of society. He will long be remembered by his friends and associates worldwide. He was an institution nationally as well as internationally and in the National Research Council was known as “Mr. Water.” Professor Engelbrecht died on September 1, 1996 in Urbana, Ill. i
Roy M. Armstrong (MS 72) died Dec. 31, 2010. He was a civil engineer with Engineering Associates in Champaign. He served in the U.S. Army in the Engineering Department in Fort Hood, Texas, from 1968-1970.
1960s
Allen F. Dill (PhD 63) died Dec. 24, 2010. He was 87. He served in the U.S. Navy Reserves, having earned his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy. He also taught civil engineering at Northern Arizona University. James C. Moese (BS 61) died Dec. 16, 2010. He was 72. Moese served in the Army Corps of Engineers for two years following his graduation from the University of Illinois. He worked for the state of California for 37 years, first in bridge design and then in retaining structures. Louis G. Petro (PhD 63) died March 25. He was 86. Petro served as a sergeant in the U.S. Army, 11th Armored Division, during WWII. He was awarded the Bronze Star. His career included working as a consulting engineer for several firms in New York State before joining academia. He served first as head of the Civil Engineering department at Jamestown Community College and then as Chairman of the Civil Engineering department at Indiana Tech in Fort Wayne, Ind. He also served the city of Fort Wayne as Director of the Housing Authority. Henry E. Severson (BS 61) died March 19. He spent his career at Boeing. James H. Withers (MS 53, PhD 64) died Feb. 18. He retired as a Colonel from the U.S. Air Force in 1973, having served in World War II and Vietnam. For five years, he worked as a Project Director for C.F. Braun & Co. in Alhambra, Calif., after which he taught engineering at California Polytechnic State University, retiring in 1990 as a full professor.
Richard L. Siegle (BS 56) died Nov. 29, 2010. He was 76. Siegle retired a Commander from the U.S. Navy after 21 years in the Civil Engineer Corps. He later served as Deputy Director of General Administration for the State of Washington, Director of Facilities Services at the Smithsonian Institution and Director of Facilities at the Washington State Historical Society. William G. Weber (BS 50) died Jan. 18 in Ft. Myers, Fla. He was 86. During his career, he worked for several major engineering and construction companies in the water industry and the mining and metallurgical industry and as a city engineer in Florida.
1940s
Richard H. Faber (BS 48) died March 6, 2010, in Chicago. He was 85. Faber served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy during World War II and was vice president of Drywall Associates. George B. Lyon (BS 40) died Dec. 13, 2010. He was 93. Lyon’s career included serving in WWII in the South Pacific as a member of the Army Corps of Engineers. He taught civil engineering for nearly 40 years at Cornell University. Boyd C. Paulson (BS 45) died Nov. 9, 2010. He had a long career constructing dams, tunnels and mining sites around the world with Utah International. A high point of his career was managing projects for the Snowy Mountains Hydro-electric Scheme in New South Wales, Australia, where he fulfilled his dream to build a concrete dam using Hoover Dam construction techniques, drilled a 13.5-mile tunnel from two ends, and broke the world record for distance tunneled for 52 weeks in a row. David H. Yazell (BS 47) died Nov. 27 1020. He served in the Marine Corps for 10 years, then worked for the Santa Fe Railroad as a civil engineer, and for Mutual of New York as an agent and trainer.
1950s
Robert A. Beesley (BS 55) died Feb. 13. He was 77. He served in the U.S. Navy with the Construction Battalion in Japan. He worked for HB and A from 1957-1985, then for the Memphis and Shelby County Airport Authority until his retirement in 2008. James D. Bergstrom (BS 55) died Feb. 17. He was president of Ragnar Benson Inc., a general contractor in Park Ridge, Ill., for more than 20 years.
Send us your news
Please send news and photos to: celeste@illinois.edu or Editor, CEE magazine 1117 Newmark Lab, MC-250 205 N. Mathews Ave. Urbana, IL 61801
Donald W. Reilly (BS 51) died Nov. 16, 2009. Civil Civil and and Environmental Environmental Engineering Engineering Alumni Alumni Association—Summer Association—Summer 2011 2011 39 39
CEE at Illinois Alumni Dinner in Chicago
C
hicago-area alumni, CEE faculty, students and friends of the department gathered February 9 at the Union League Club in Chicago for the annual CEE at Illinois Alumni Dinner in Chicago. The event included a cocktail reception, dinner, the presentation of the CEE Alumni Association awards, and a department update by Professor and Head Amr S. Elnashai. For the CEE students who signed up to attend the dinner, the day also included a tour of the project to improve Lower Wacker Drive. The department thanks the following individuals and their teams for hosting the tour and making presentations to the students: Daniel Burke, P.E., S.E., (BS 92, MS 93), Chief Bridge Engineer, Chicago Department of Transportation; Courtney Johnson (BS 10), Assistant Project Manager, Aldridge Electric; Andrew Keaschall, P.E., S.E., (BS 04, MS 05), Project Engineer, Benesch; and John Sadler, P.E., Managing Resident Engineer, Chicago Department of Transportation. With gratitude, CEE acknowledges the following sponsors of the alumni dinner:
The 2011 winners of the CEE Alumni Assocation Distinguished Alumnus awards pose at the alumni dinner. From left: Professor and Head Amr S. Elnashai, James A.Hanlon (BS 72), Joseph M. Kaiser (BS 70, MS 71), Ilker R. Adiguzel (PhD 83), David R. Maidment (MS 74, PhD 76), and Lawrence P. Jaworski, P.E., (BS 72, MS 73), President of the CEE Alumni Association Board of Directors.
Gold Level
Patrick Engineering Inc. Trotter and Associates Inc.
Left to right: CEE students Bo Mu, Dareen Salama, Xiaojia Left to right: Adam J. Backhaus (BS Zhang, and Maryam Eidini-Nezhad. 08) and Joseph F. Sanfilippo (BS 08).
Silver Level
Benesch Bowman, Barrett & Associates Greeley and Hansen Milhouse Engineering & Construction RJN Group TranSystems Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates Inc.
Bronze Level
AECOM Clark Dietz Crawford, Murphy & Tilly Inc. Donohue & Associates Inc. EFI Global Inc. Epstein F. H. Paschen John Frauenhoffer Hanson Professional Services Inc.
40
HDR Inc. Ingenii LLC Larry Jaworski Kudrna & Associates Ltd. MWH Global Sargent & Lundy Ricondo & Associates Sidney Epstein Foundation Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP Left to right: professors Marcelo GarcĂa and Ximing Cai; CEE award winner W. E. O’Neil Construction David Maidment; and professors Albert Valocchi and Murugesu Sivapalan.
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
2011 CEE Alumni Awards The Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association is pleased to announce the 2011 recipients of its Distinguished Alumnus/Alumna Award and Young Alumnus/Alumna Achievement Award. The Distinguished Alumnus/Alumna Award recognizes professional accomplishments or unique contributions to society by alumni of the department. The Young Alumnus/Alumna Achievement Award recognizes a recent graduate who has achieved distinction in his or her field and reached a level of accomplishment significantly greater than that of other recent graduates. The honorees were recognized at the Chicago Regional Dinner Meeting in February. For more information about the winners, visit cee.illinois.edu/alumni_awards_2011.
Distinguished Alumnus/Alumna Award Joseph M. Kaiser, P.E., (BS 70, MS 71) Executive Vice President, BSI Constructors Inc., St. Louis, Mo. For superior technical and administrative leadership demonstrated in the management of construction projects in the St. Louis area, including technically complex facilities, significant architectural structures and major renovations and restorations.
Ilker R. Adiguzel (PhD 83) Director, Construction Engineering Research Laboratory, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Champaign For leadership and innovation in directing engineering research and development for sustainable military installations that support the national defense; for a commitment to encouraging and mentoring students who are under-represented in the engineering community; and for fostering collaboration and lasting relationships with academia.
David R. Maidment (MS 74, PhD 76) Hussein M. Alharthy Centennial Chair in Civil Engineering, University of Texas, Austin, Texas For significant and lasting impact on teaching, research and practice in the fields of hydrology and water resource engineering, including the pioneering of geographic information systems applications in hydrology and technologies that have been adopted by national and international institutions.
James A. Hanlon, P.E., (BS 72) Director, Office of Wastewater Management, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C. For leadership in the development and implementation of programs associated with protecting and enhancing the nation’s drinking water and wastewater systems and consequently improving the quality of life and public health for residents across the country.
Young Alumnus/Alumna Award Scott D. Reed (BS 99) Civil/Environmental Engineer, Black & Veatch Corporation, Cincinnati, Ohio For technical expertise in wastewater collection, treatment and biosolids management, including presentations at regional and national conferences.
Nominations invited: CEE alumni awards If you know of a deserving colleague who graduated from CEE at Illinois, consider nominating him or her for a CEE Alumni Association award. The Distinguished Alumnus/Alumna Award and the Young Alumnus/Alumna Achievement Award recognize those who have distinguished themselves in the field at different career stages. The next deadline is Aug. 1, 2011. For more information, please visit our alumni awards page of the CEE website at cee.illinois.edu/CEEAAawards.
Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Summer 2011
41
Yeh Center
Roof in bloom The green roof on the newly completed M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center in Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory was in bloom in May. The flowers are allium schoenoprasum forescate, a variety of onion. The roof will bloom throughout the summer and into fall, as the different varieties of plants flower. For more pictures of the Yeh Center, see pages 8-9 of this issue.
The Old Masters article appears on page 38. 42
Visit CEE on the web at http://cee.illinois.edu
Join us for the dedication of the new M. T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center. • •
September 23, 3 p.m., dedication, tours and reception (free, but registration required) September 24, pre-game party (hour and a half prior to kickoff ) at the Activities and Recreation Center and football game vs. Western Michigan (see registration site for costs) All attendees are asked to register.
https://my.cee.illinois.edu/yeh
Get your CEE on!
Shop online at the CEE store and show your CEE pride. New items are being added all the time.
my.cee.illinois.edu/buy
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory MC-250 205 North Mathews Avenue Urbana, Illinois 61801
Non-Profit Organization U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit No. 75 Champaign, IL 61820