Gophers Go Underground
A major facility, Williamson Hall, was constructed to be almost entirely below grade on the East Bank Campus of the University of Minnesota. Heating and cooling energy requirements will...
Modern Concrete Structures Survive Romanian Earthquake
On March 4, 1977, 35 buildings collapsed during a severe earthquake (7.2 on the Richter scale) in Bucharest, Romania. Thirty-two of the 35 were older structures, erected before World War...
Subway Structures Good, Other Elements Need Rehab
Capital spending priorities of New York City's Transit Authority have shifted, as it postponed indefinitely the construction of all but one new line�the line from 63rd St....
Bridges and Highways � Serious Deterioration Being Attacked Aggressively
Due to years of starvation of maintenance and reconstruction budgets, New York City's backlog of road and bridge reconstruction needs is huge. The city has 5,300 miles of...
Civil Engineers are People
Historians have failed to recognize the giants among history's engineers as among our civilization's great men. Instead, great generals, politicians and artists...
New River Gorge Bridge: World's Longest Steel Arch
The world's longest steel arch bridge, spanning the New River Gorge Bridge in the south central area of West Virginia, is scheduled to be completed in Sept. 1977. The main...
Filter Fabrics in Shore-Protection Structures: Save Money, Ease Installation
Over the past decade, plastic filter fabrics have seen growing use in shore-protection structures (e.g. revetments, breakwaters, jetties), river-bank protection schemes, and other areas...
Bridge Erection by Launching is Fast, Safe, and Efficient
The construction of long prestressed concrete bridges without using formal falsework or self-supporting launching falsework is described. Using the so-called incremental launching method...
Polymerization of Concrete Fights Cavitation
The techniques and materials used for the repair of concrete are many and varied. The repair at Dworshak Dam utilized epoxy resins, dry pack mortar, fibrous concrete and a new technique,...
Concrete Bridge-Tunnel Has No Deck
Engineers solve the problem of how to economically span a single track railroad without interrupting train traffic. Highway fill was placed over post-tensioned precast concrete arch sections...
Precast Veneer Replaced By All-Precast Structure
Utilizing engineering solutions to architectural problems greatly enhanced the architectural appearance of this building. Long-span prestressed, light weight concrete beams, post-tensioned...
The Querverschub of the 2,000-ft Oberkassel Bridge
In 1976 West German bridge engineers undertook the moving of the largest structure ever moved in one piece and in such a short period of time. The Oberkassel Bridge connecting Dusseldorf...
The Field Engineer: Political and Legal Scapegoat�
The publicly-employed engineer can be in a vulnerable legal position. A case history is described in which a field engineer was indicted on criminal charges after a bridge collapse (during...
Pasco-Kenneewick Bridge�� The Longest Cable-Stayed Bridge in North America
This 2503-ft long structure, built in an earthquake zone, is only the second of its kind to be constructed in the U.S. It boasts a continuous concrete girder, supported from steel cables...
Rebar Splices: Cutting Costs, Avoiding Errors
Practical advice for cost-cutting in reinforced concrete construction suggests improvements in accepted design and specifications, procedures and specific items. Brief recommendations...
Railroads, Truss Bridges and the Rise of the Civil Engineer
The huge growth of the railroads during the nineteenth century was the direct result of herculean efforts on the part of civil engineers. Likewise, the development of the civil engineering...
James B. Eads and His St. Louis Bridge
Eads Bridge at St. Louis, a century old engineering achievement, was designed, promoted, and built by an intensely dedicated and self-educated man, James B. Eads. This structure was an...
Philadelphia Bridge Sparked Growth of Prestressed Concrete in the U.S.
Prestressing has been used for centuries. For instance, iron bands were heat-shrunk over built-up wooden wheels to increase their resistance to damage. In 1888, a man named Jackson from...
Concrete Canoe Racing Stimulates Interest in ASCE Student Chapter
Concrete Canoe construction and racing have become a very popular ASCE Student Chapter activity. Such a program can publicize a chapter's activities in general and can serve...
Nambe Falls Dam�First Mechanically Prestressed Concrete Dam in U.S.
An unusual combination of a curved earth embankment, a concrete gravity thrust block, and concrete thin arch prestressed with embedded vertical flat jacks has created Nambe Falls Dam,...
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