3D laser scanning has been used extensively in engineering reconnaissance surveys to capture perishable data in an efficient, reliable, and precise manner. Many insights on damage can be obtained from the data through various methods of post-processing; however, many of these techniques are often labor intensive. This delay reduces the...
The nature of upper plate deformation along the Cascadia subduction zone (CSZ) is poorly understood. Systematic covariation among topographic relief, geodetically determined uplift rates, decadal to millennial erosion rates, and the frequency of episodic tremor and slip (ETS) along the Cascadia forearc suggest a genetic association between forearc topography and...
Membrane based heat pumps systems have attracted the attention of many research groups as a potentially more environmentally friendly alternative to vapor compression systems that are being used for space cooling in 90\% of the buildings in the United States. Several prototypes systems have been developed, with reported claims of...
The south central Chilean margin is one of the most seismically active subduction zones on Earth, generating some of the largest earthquakes on the planet, including the largest ever recorded in 1960 near Valdivia, Chile (Mw 9.5). Using the 15 km streamer and 6600 in3 tuned seismic airgun array aboard...
Shallow foundations are extensively used to support structures of all sizes and derive their support from near surface soils. Thus, they are typically embedded up to a few meters into the soil profile. Designers of shallow foundations are required to meet two limit states: overall failure of the soil beneath...
Deep foundations, including driven piles, are used to support vertical loads of structures and applied lateral forces. Many pile supported structures, including bridges, are subjected to large lateral loads in the form of wind, wave, seismic, and traffic impact loads. In many practical situations, structures subjected to lateral loading are...
Current bridge design codes do not account for the effects of duration of mega-thrust subduction zone earthquakes. Furthermore, codes and even recent performance-based design methodologies only make use of the peak response quantities (forces, displacements, and ductility demands) and do not account for the increased number of inelastic cycles that...
Active tectonics of a deformation front constrains the kinematic evolution and structural interaction between the fold-thrust belt and the most-recently accreted foreland basin. At the Himalayan deformation front, the thrust front is blind, characterized by a broad fold (the Suruin-Mastgarh anticline (SMA)), and displays no emergent faults cutting the southern...
Seismically-induced liquefaction represents a major cause of damage to civil infrastructure and can result in significant damage following major earthquakes. Liquefaction can occur when earthquake ground motions raise pore-water pressures in loose, sandy soil, resulting in a substantial decrease of soil strength. Owing to the potential for instability following liquefaction,...