Chema de la Garza
Civil Engineering faculty are developing simulations, visualizations and animations of different mathematical models used in research and professional practice.
The following paragraphs succinctly describe uses for this space to house computational projects in seven distinct civil engineering areas. The common thread in all these applications is mathematical modeling, simulation, animation, and visualization. Furthermore, all applications envisioned for this pace take full advantage of recent technological developments for dissemination like ISDN, telecommunications, and World Wide Web services available on the internet. All spaces in this proposal are expected to be optically linked within a LAN and to the internet.
Anticipated space requirements for specific research areas include::
Anticipated space requirements for shared research areas include:
Construction Engineering
Faculty will have an opportunity to visualize and animate the mathematical algorithms governing the planning, scheduling and monitoring aspects of the building process. In this way, a constructed facility can be "virtually constructed" a hundred times before breaking ground. In addition, a Virtual Reality laboratory will enable to model the behavior of constructed facilities during the entire life-cycle. This virtual reality experience will enhance the mission execution of the constructed facility because the effects of operations, maintenance, and retro-fitting will be simulated and brought back upstream to the design phase.
Environmental Engineering
Faculty will have a unique opportunity to model and visualize the effects of pollutant dispersion in bodies of water, air, and/or soil. Similarly, the simulation, visualization and animation of new physiochemical processes for water treatment control, like flocculation, can yield new efficiencies for public work entities who manage water treatment plants.
Geotechnical Engineering
Faculty will be able to simulate and visualize soil mechanics, hence enhancing the predictability of soil behavior under specified load conditions.
Hydrosystems Engineering
Faculty will be able to simulate floods and visualize the mitigating effects of an array of flood control options. As it has been proven recently, flood control has proven to be an elusive task.
Transportation Engineering
Modeling and visualizing the behavior of airplanes as they leave runways through "high speed" exits is critical for understanding the safety and human factors issues involve in this concept. Modeling an airport's air space with respect to take-offs and landings is required before shorter spacing betweeen airplanes on the air and ground be permitted
Structural Engineering
Being able to model the behavior of steel and reinforced concrete of structural elements when subjected to loads will certainly decrease the need for expensive large-scale make-and-break experimental testing.