Certain names bring forth visceral associations. Alcatraz is one, but the notorious prison of the past is also a place for a Michigan Technological University alumna to use some of her civil engineering skills in the present.
Debra Campbell, a 1976 graduate, works for the National Park Service on Alcatraz, perched on an island in San Francisco Bay. She has been involved in four recent projects on the iconic island.
Water Resources Systems Analysis through Case Studies: Data and Models for Decision Making by David W. Watkins Jr., Ph.D. consists of 10 case studies suitable for the classroom to demonstrate engineers’ use of widely available modeling software in evaluating complex environmental and water resources systems. Simulation and optimization models, visualization tools, and spatial analysis tools are applied to real-life situations. Each case study includes background on the geography, hydrology, and natural resources of the area as well as relevant social, economic, developmental, and political issues. A series of active-learning exercises is provided, along with additional resources for instructors. Software is not included, but all programs and data sets are freely available online.
Primarily intended for students in upper-level undergraduate and graduate level systems analysis courses, this book may also be of interest to practicing engineers in the field of water resources planning and management.
Nuts and Bolts of Unconventional Oil and Gas Development
including all you might like to know about the technology and practice of hydraulic fracturing
Wayne D Pennington, Interim Dean, College of Engineering, Michigan Technological University
Mon Mar 24, 2014 3pm – 4pm, Dow 642
Over the past couple of decades, technology has been developed to produce oil and gas from geological formations that had been overlooked previously due to the lack of appropriate engineering techniques for those types of formations. As a result, the energy picture for the USA and for the world has been seriously modified, and the impact is being felt.
These “unconventional” deposits contain hydrocarbons in significant quantities, but they were locked up in microscopic pores that were at best poorly connected to each other, limiting or preventing flow through the rocks. Existing technologies, such as hydraulic fracturing (in use since 1948) and extended-reach horizontal wellbores were used independently, and then merged, for a highly successful, efficient, and safe method of oil and gas production.
The geologic formations, and the production techniques used in each, that are described in this presentation include: (a) “tight” gas sandstone deposits (produced through multiple-stage hydraulic fracturing in vertical wells); (b) coal deposits (methane produced by drawing down water pressure to release gas from the coal structure; also the source of many “flaming faucets” from domestic water-wells); and (c) shale deposits (generally using multiple-stage hydraulic fracturing in horizontal wells).
Michigan Tech faculty, staff members and students received awards tallying $71,175 in funding through the Michigan Space Grant Consortium (MSGC) sponsored by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Graduate students receiving $5,000 graduate fellowships are:
Daniel Cerminaro (Civil and Environmental Engineering): “Management of Geotechnical Features in Transportation Infrastructure Using Remote Sensing”
Bonnie Zwissler (Civil and Environmental Engineering): “Thermal Remote Sensing for Dust Susceptibility Monitoring of Mine Tailings Impoundments”
Faculty receiving a $5,000 seed grant is:
Zhen Liu (Civil and Environmental Engineering): “Phase Composition Curves in Frozen Porous Materials”
For other awards see Tech Today
NASA implemented the National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program in 1989 to provide funding for research, education, and public outreach in space-related science and technology. The program has 52 university-based consortia in the United States and Puerto Rico. As an affiliate of the Michigan Consortium, Michigan Tech has been an active participant in MSGC for over fifteen years. For more information, please contact Robert Warrington or Paige Hackney in the Institute for Leadership and Innovation.
Civil Engineering Graduate Seminar: Michigan DOT Research Program
Speaker: Mr. Steven C. Bower, Engineer of Research, Michigan Department of Transportation
“Michigan DOT Research Program Past Successes-Future Opportunities”
This seminar was held on March 20, 2014. Mr. Bower reviewed some of the past research successes of the Michigan Department of Transportation as well as its research priorities for the next several years. Additionally, he outlined the process that is used to develop the State’s needs and prioritization for transportation infrastructure. He is a 1984 Civil Engineering alumni of Michigan Tech.
A social hour sponsored by the Michigan Tech Transportation Institute followed at the Great Lakes Research Center.
The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering hosted an alumni reception in Bay City on March 18. The event was held in conjunction with a conference put on by the department’s Center for Training and Technology and was attended by close to 70 alumni from the conference and surrounding area.
Congratulations to 2014 Rail Transportation Program (RTP) Scholarship Recipients. $12,000 dollars in Michigan Tech Scholarships were awarded to students in the RTP program, as well as additional scholarships received from American Railway Engineering and Maintenance of Way Association (AREMA).
Railroad Night offered a relaxed dine-with-industry setting for faculty, students, industry, administration and community to meet each other and to learn more about railroads and the railroad industry. The event included hors d’oeuvres , cash bar, door prizes, and more. This event continues to draw in record numbers of participants with each year with over 165 this year. The Keynote Speaker was Lisa Stabler, President of the Transportation Technology Center Inc., Pueblo, Colorado.
The Rail Transportation Program (RTP) and the Rail Engineering and Activities Club (REAC) organized the 9th Annual Railroad Night and related Rail Day activities recently. Railroad Night’s 150-plus participants made for a full house and an exciting evening. The event drew in 15 industry company sponsors including RTP program partners Norfolk Southern, Union Pacific and CN.
Civil Engineering Graduate Seminar; 4 – 5 PM, Feb 13, 2014 in Dow 642;
Mr. Ulrich Leister of SMA Partner AG, Zurich, Switzerland, presents: Characteristics of Railway Operation and System Design
Ulrich Leister obtained a Master of Science in transportation engineering from the Institute of Technology Berlin. In 2010, he wrote his master thesis on the integration of the high-speed system in California at SMA. Today he is Manager Business Development for the US market and has been project manager for our American projects since 2012.
Abstract:
The presentation will describe the characteristics of railroads, and explain the complexity resulting from the strong interdependencies between transportation, infrastructure and equipment that are unique to railroads. Planning approaches to design and operate rail systems, both on the freight and passenger side, are presented before ideas from our recent work in the United States to improve integration of both service types are discussed.
Sponsored by Michigan Tech Rail Transportation Program