Minimizing the impact of tsunamis on coastal regions and building sturdier bridges are just two of the outcomes a group of graduate student researchers are aiming for now that they have some top-notch new equipment up and running in the Ed Lumley Centre for Engineering Innovation.
“It’s really cutting edge,” PhD student Vimaldoss Jesudhas says of the giant flume he works with, one of two of its kind in the new engineering building.
Do truck-only lanes save time and money for transport companies? Do they improve safety?
Two research projects exploring these questions are the subject of a presentation Thursday, February 28, by University of Toronto engineering professor Matthew Roorda.
Students in Amr ElRagaby’s graduate course in bridge engineering really dug deep Thursday, as guest lecturer Biljana Rajlic discussed her work as the lead structural engineer and design team project manager of the Right Honourable Herb Gray Parkway.
The 11-kilometre, $1.4 billion project will connect Highway 401 to Interstate 75 in Michigan via a new bridge across the Detroit River.
Rajlic discussed the parkway’s design challenges, providing an overview of the roadways, utilities, geotechnical, structural, traffic management, landscaping and environmental design.
A pair of third-year civil engineering students recently found out the old adage about keeping things simple really does pay off.
Curtis Watson and Dean Rice took first place honours for the rudimentary but extremely sturdy bridge they built for the Municipal Engineers Association’s bridge-building competition held at Caesars last week.
Last year set a record for wind-energy installations in Canada and the US at an enormous: an average 100 MW terrestrial wind farm requires a $250-million investment. Wind farm owners are naturally keen to ensure that their machines operate efficiently, and that’s where Rupp Carriveau comes in.
An environmental education can give you the knowledge to:
The components for the first of two new wind tunnels to be installed in the new Ed Lumley Centre for Engineering Innovation began arriving late last week, much to the delight of the researchers who will be working with them.
Made by Industrial Metal Fabricators Ltd. of Chatham, the elevated 12 meter tunnel will run in a closed loop around the walls of a lab in the north-east corner of the CEI. With a 1.2 meter fan and a 30 horsepower motor, the tunnel will be capable of generating wind speeds of up to about 30 meters per second.
Having a massive piece of equipment used to test the strength of a wide variety of structures moved to the new Ed Lumley Centre for Engineering Innovation will give faculty and student researchers a new level of capability they were never able to enjoy in their old facility, according to one engineering professor.
Learning by practice is always the best, says civil engineering professor Amr ElRagaby.
That’s what makes a contest to design and build a bridge from popsicle sticks a valuable experience for his students.
“They can understand the principles, but when the have a chance to apply the theories, they learn something they will never forget,” he said Wednesday, as members of his class in Finite Element for Analysis and Design tested the load-bearing capacity of their structures.
These bridges are designed to fail, but it’s all in the interest of education.
Civil engineering students who have been working to build model bridges invite the campus community to watch as their projects are tested and evaluated, Wednesday in the CAW Student Centre Commons.
