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Item Geostatistical Interpolation and Analyses of Washington State AADT Data from 2009 – 2016(North Dakota State University, 2019) Owaniyi, Kunle MeshachAnnual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) data in the transportation industry today is an important tool used in various fields such as highway planning, pavement design, traffic safety, transport operations, and policy-making/analyses. Systematic literature review was used to identify the current methods of estimating AADT and ranked. Ordinary linear kriging occurred most. Also, factors that influence the accuracy of AADT estimation methods as identified include geographical location and road type amongst others. In addition, further analysis was carried out to determine the most apposite kriging algorithm for AADT data. Three linear (universal, ordinary, and simple), three nonlinear (disjunctive, probability, and indicator) and bayesian (empirical bayesian) kriging methods were compared. Spherical and exponential models were employed as the experimental variograms to aid the spatial interpolation and cross-validation. Statistical measures of correctness (mean prediction and root-mean-square errors) were used to compare the kriging algorithms. Empirical bayesian with exponential model yielded the best result.Item State of Bridge Management in Canada(North Dakota State University, 2013) Khanzada, Kamran MajeedBridges are key elements of all horizontal transportation networks. The primary objective of this paper is to investigate and document bridge-management practices in Canada at the federal, provincial/territorial, and municipal levels. The research methods used include a literature review, data collection (surveys), data analysis, and conclusions. The survey was sent to all provincial/territorial and federal jurisdictions. Nine of ten provincial, three of three territorial, and two of nine federal agencies responded to the survey. Currently, only four provinces have computerized Bridge Management Systems (BMS). The Ontario Structure Inspection Manual (OSIM), developed by province of Ontario, is the most widely used bridge inspection system in Canada. At present, five provinces employ this system to conduct bridge inspections. This paper identified six important municipal bridge-management challenges. It is recommended that higher tier of government, i.e., federal and provincial, should play a larger role to support municipalities with bridge management.Item Contractor Prequalification Practices in Bangladesh(North Dakota State University, 2013) Molla, Mohammad Mofigul IslamLike many developing economies, the construction industry in Bangladesh is vital to its economic development and growth. However, the Bangladeshi construction industry is plagued by unethical practices, sub-standard construction work, and the inability of local contractors to partake in internationally funded (lucrative) contracts (as general contractors). A contractor prequalification process is proposed to address the problems facing the industry. In this work, an extensive literature review was used in combination with research surveys, statistical analyses of the literature and survey results, and the analytical hierarchy process to develop sets of factors and criteria pertinent to contractor prequalification/selection. A five-level framework involving regulatory verification, project-specific validation, performance evaluation, state-of-the-art best practices, and capacity assessment was developed to address the problem. This research developed innovative practices that could be used for the prequalification of contractors in Bangladesh and a method for implementing a recommended system for evaluating and prequalifying contractors.Item Insulation in Windows Using Resin & Aerogel Mixture(North Dakota State University, 2019) Pujar, Priyanka MallikarjunInsulation materials are essential in building construction; this study proposed to use one such material called silica aerogel, which is known for its excellent thermal properties, and a UV acrylate resin that has been formulated to mix with the aerogel. In this experiment, existing methods of aerogel insulation are discussed and a novel method is investigated. U- value and R- values were obtained by LHICD (i.e., Laser Heating Infrared Camera Detecting method), and K - values were calculated using an equation for 0%, 22.5% and 45% volume of aerogel. The study suggests that using aerogel and resin coating on windows could help to improve the insulating properties of windows. i.e., low thermal conductivity and high thermal resistivity. The results obtained demonstrate that as we increase the percentage volume of aerogel in window coating, the window’s thermal conductivity decreases, and the thermal resistance increases.Item Identification of Factors Contributing to Traffic Fatalities in the United States(North Dakota State University, 2015) Kaur, DharminderTraffic accidents not only cause injuries and deaths but also result in significant property and economic losses. With annual 40,000 lives lost in United States and $80 billion in economic losses, research in minimizing accidents is a major priority. This research identified and ranked factors that reduce traffic fatalities and determined their relative importance. A total of 93 factors were identified and ranked into seven major categories through a systematic literature review. A questionnaire was sent to the State Departments of Transportation, and the responses were coded and analyzed using a relative importance index, rankings and percentages. The systematic literature review and survey results indicated that agencies should direct resources toward the highest-ranking factors to achieve better safety performance. Efforts should be made to improve infrastructure and influence road-user behavior towards safer habits. Laws and policies are vital to maintaining good road-user behavior, which could leads to lower traffic fatalities.Item Achieving a Sustainable Concrete Design and Construction(North Dakota State University, 2010) Agrawal, Ankush SatishchandraConcrete is one of the key materials in the construction industry. But today, the use of concrete and its production has become a matter of environmental concern throughout the world. This statement is true especially for the manufacturing process of cement. One of the major problems is emission of CO2 gas into the atmosphere during the manufacturing of cement. Every ton of concrete produced leads to emission of one ton of carbon dioxide gas. Hence replacement of cement by alternative materials has been investigated by many researchers. In the past, fly ash has been the most common replacement. This study, however, suggests replacing all the major components of concrete to the extent that would satisfy the standard strength requirements. This paper focuses on the development of a sustainable or green concrete and proposes a set of tools for a sustainable concrete design and construction. Many researchers have been trying to replace one component of concrete to make it more sustainable. Discussion in this paper will not only give a direction to produce more sustainable concrete but also eco-friendly concrete, thus addressing the two important issues of economy and environmental friendliness simultaneously. Defining the idea of sustainability with respect to the concrete and construction industry and doing a literature search on similar grounds was the first step taken towards completion of this research. The findings in the literature search made a survey necessary. This survey was done to have an idea of sustainability from the experts in the construction and cement industry. The survey was done by sending a questionnaire to concrete experts, engineers, designers and contractors to get their ideas for green concrete and its usage in the industry. The findings of the literature survey and inferences from the survey results made the generation of the proposed sets of tools possible. The concrete and the construction industry can achieve an overall sustainability by complete utilization of tools proposed in the paper. Strict usage of these tools will not only ensure environmental sustainability but will also satisfy the ends of economic and social aspects of sustainability.Item Developing a Framework for Sustainable Design/Build/Own Buildings(North Dakota State University, 2010) Gore, Alexander KeithThe objective of the research paper was to investigate the development of a workable framework for Sustainable Design/Build/Own buildings. Research from case studies, a literature review, and a design exercise was completed to form this framework. Currently certification programs have been slow to infiltrate small-to-medium markets. In this study, it was found that the current sustainability assessment guides can be improved by reorganizing information to reflect the driving factors of time and cost as well as by increasing access to information with the abundant sources of videos, on line guides, and internet references in a more approachable manner.Item Comparing Cooling of Warm Mix to Hot Mix Asphalts(North Dakota State University, 2015) Ahmed, Syed OwaisWarm mix asphalt (WMA) is increasingly being tried in highway paving in the United States. Apart from environmental benefits, WMA is being considered useful in projects involving long haul distances and late season paving operations due to its material characteristics and the rate of cooling during field compaction. This thesis investigates whether WMA cools at a slower rate than hot mix asphalt (HMA) to offer more compaction time. Following an indirect investigative approach, comparative analysis of field observations with software predicted values for two paving projects was carried out. The results indicated that some types of WMA cool at a slower rate than HMA and would allow a longer period of compaction time to achieve the same density as HMA. The findings presented here can be informative to the asphalt paving industry in considering WMA for use in long haul, nighttime, and late season paving.Item Development of Sustainable Construction Material From Fly Ash C(North Dakota State University, 2016) Shrestha, MonishaEnvironmental issues caused by the production of Portland cement have necessitated its replacement by waste materials like fly ash which has been proven to be quite beneficial environmentally and economically. Therefore, this research project was focused on the development of sustainable construction materials using 100% of high-calcium fly ash with KOH based alkaline solution. Experimental work was conducted to determine concrete properties like compressive strength, flexural strength, setting time, and slump. In the phase I of the research, CNTs were also used to study its effect on geopolymer mortar. The results derived from the experiments show that mortar and concrete made with 100% fly ash C needs alkaline solution to reach properties established by Portland cement concrete. However increased amount of KOH generates heat making the concrete to set faster without forming a proper bond. Furthermore, the addition of CNTs makes the mortar sturdier than the one without CNT.Item Numerical Simulation and Structural Optimization of Composite Rigid Frame Bridge(North Dakota State University, 2017) Xie, YanmeiA composite rigid frame bridge replaces a certain portion of the concrete middle span of a bridge with a section of the steel girder. While the steel span improves the bending moment distribution of the rigid frame structure, it increases the stress level of certain cross-sections of the girder. There is little research reporting the effects of the addition of the steel span on the layout and structural design. This research studies the influence of the steel span on the structural behavior of the rigid frame bridge and conducts the structural optimization regarding the steel span ratio, curve order of the girder’s bottom line, and height-to-span ratio using the bending strain energy as the objective function. Finally, this study develops the computer program for structural analysis of composite rigid frame bridge structure using MATLAB, which can be used for advanced structural optimization.