Since 2004 there have been multiple devastating tsunamis around the globe triggered by large magnitude earthquakes; with the most recent being the Tohoku, Japan tsunami in March 2011. These tsunamis have caused significant loss of life and damage to the coastal communities impacted by these powerful waves. The resulting devastation...
This thesis is comprised of two manuscripts based on a laboratory experiment conducted to examine realistic wave forcing on a vertical wall subjected to tsunami loading. The first manuscript examined tsunami force and pressure distributions on a rigid wall that was fronted by a small seawall. Six different seawall heights...
There are over 130 million wood poles supporting electrical transmission and distribution lines in the U.S. The vast majority of these poles are preservative treated to prolong their useful life. In some cases, however, the depth of treatment is relatively shallow, leaving a deep zone of moderately durable, untreated heartwood....
The Cocos Gap is a deeper portion, or saddle, of the Cocos
Ridge and forms part of the western boundary of the Panama Basing
It is probably typical of saddles within most submarine ridges, In
order to determine the mechanisms controlling sediment dispersal,
the nature and sources of the sediments...
The development of cross-laminated timber (CLT) panel technology has opened up new opportunities for wood in tall buildings. Several characteristics including seismic performance and speed of construction have raised interest among designers. As CLT gains acceptance in the industry, alternative structural solutions need to be investigated to improve performance of...
This thesis is comprised of a manuscript based on a laboratory experiment run in the Tsunami Wave Basin as part of a research project funded by the Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation called Housesmash. The purpose of the experiment was to better understand the role of the urban environment, represented...
Over the last decade the world has seen three major tsunamis strike the coasts of
Indonesia, Samoa, and Chile. These tsunamis have caused significant losses of life and
property on the coastal cities of these and nearby countries. The NEES (Network for
Earthquake Engineering Simulation) Housesmash project was created to...
Bedrock groundwater dynamics in headwater catchments are poorly understood and
poorly characterized. Direct hydrometric measurements have been limited due to the
logistical challenges associated with drilling through hard rock in steep, remote and
often roadless terrain. Here we develop and use an inexpensive, portable bedrock
drilling system to explore bedrock...
The purpose of this thesis was to evaluate orthogonal cutting as a method to determine the fracture toughness of low and high density polyethylene and wood plastic composites. A test fixture was developed to capture normal and tangential cutting forces at variable depth and rake angle. A tool interface method...
The goal of this study was to optimize a through-boring pattern that will provide adequate preservative penetration while minimizing the reduction in overall pole bending strength. Hole spacing was developed using longitudinal and transverse chemical penetration data from previous studies. Finite element analysis was used as a preliminary assessment tool...