Quake-Safe Housing, Again
Because so little data exist about earthquake behavior of buildings that have been strengthened to meet seismic codes, many engineers are curious about the Hotel Oakland in California...
Where Does Rock Begin Beneath Philadelphia?
Philadelphia provides an excellent example of the engineering problems associated with the interpretation of saprolite/weathered rock/sound rock profiles. The bedrock beneath the city...
Ground Stabilization in Shallow Depth Soft Ground Tunneling
A new approach was employed for ground stabilization to drive a semi-circular cross-section tunnel with overall dimensions of 24 ft (7.3m) wide, 12 ft (3.7m) high, and 164 ft (50.0m) long....
Instrumentation for SASW Testing
The Spectral-Analysis-of-Surface-Waves (SASW) method is presented. Various test setups and corresponding data reduction procedures are discussed. Several instrumentation systems have been...
Recent Advances in Cone Penetrometer Measurements (Software and Hardware) and Its Application to Liquefaction Susceptibility
Some of the recent advances made in Cone Penetration Test (CPT) data acquisition system and real time processing of CPT data are presented. A key component of the new CPT data acquisition...
Use of Bender Elements in Soil Dynamics Experiments
Transducers employing piezoelectric bender elements have been found to be versatile sources and receivers of small-amplitude shear waves, with multiple potential applications. The constitutive...
Multi-Directional Wave Velocity by Piezoelectric Crystals
Piezoelectric ceramics are successfully used to measure velocities of waves propagating through a dry granular material assembly. Several directional shear and compression waves are measured...
Use of Piezoceramic Bender Elements in Soil Dynamics Testing
The use of piezoceramic bender elements is described to measure small strain, shear wave velocity distributions in soil models used in centrifuge and shake table testing. Experimental...
The Structural Curtain
Curtain walls are not standard off-the-shelf items. For major projects, they are almost always custom-designed. Typically, curtain walls are on the critical path of project and often account...
Plastic Highway Bridges
For highway bridges, composites are most effective in cables and decks. Researchers have developed and tested cables and deck sections for strength and fatigue resistance. Link-type cables...
Lifeline Earthquake Engineering in Japan: A State-of-the-Art
This is a subjective state-of-the-art report on the lifeline earthquake engineering in Japan. Beginning from the difference between civil engineering and building engineering in Japan,...
Lifeline Earthquake Engineering?A New Zealand Perspective
This paper outlines the application of earthquake engineering to New Zealand's lifelines, tracing the development of design practices in roading, bridging, power generation...
Recent Advances in Seismic Design and Retrofit of California Bridges
This paper describes the damage and lessons learned from the most recent major earthquakes, the resulting bridge seismic design and detailing changes and the seismic retrofit program implemented...
Seismic Design and Performance of Railroad Bridges
Damage to railroad bridges during earthquakes in the United States and Japan is summarized. Research tasks are outlined to develop seismic design and retrofit criteria for railroad bridges....
Earthquake Considerations in Design of the Los Angeles Metro
This paper discusses the earthquake design of the Los Angeles Metro. The design earthquake parameters are presented and discussed in light of the behavior of buried structures subjected...
Seismic Design for Port of Los Angeles, 2020 Program
Due to the Port of Los Angeles' (POLA) importance as a regional hub for transportation and commerce and the potential for a major seismic event in the Southern California...
Seismic Practices for the Air Transportation System: Evolution and Needs
The seismic performance of air transportation systems is reviewed. The evolution of seismic design criteria and practices for major air transportation system elements is discussed. The...
Seismic Retrofit of Highway Bridge Structures
The California Division of Structures began its column retrofit program in 1986. This program is a supplement to the earlier superstructure retrofit program. Analysis and design concepts...
San Francisco Double-Deck Viaduct Retrofits
Following the Loma Prieta Earthquake in October 1989, six double-deck reinforced concrete viaducts in San Francisco were closed because of some isolated damage, and as a precaution for...
Retrofitting Northwest Connector for Seismic Forces
Many pre-1971 bridges in California have inadequate seismic resistance due to non-ductile components or poor connectivity of superstructure elements. Caltrans has finished the first retrofit...
Return to search