Research Labs

Civil Engineering

The Materials of Engineering Laboratory houses an Instron 8500 Series Universal Testing Machine. This machine is digitally controlled and capable of applying 55 kips (250 kN) dynamic loads. Supporting electronic control, data acquisition and computer software systems are available. Additional equipment for the static, dynamic and fatigue testing of materials includes testing machines for tension, compression, transverse-bending and torsion investigation. The laboratory contains hardness testing machines, impact testers, electric strain gauge consoles, and assorted peripheral equipment. Facilities for casting, curing and testing concrete are also available and include the following: walk-in variable temperature and humidity control environmental chamber, diamond tipped saw for cutting concrete, computer controlled servo-hydraulic compression test machine for 600 kip load capacity, ultrasonic pulse-velocity meter, and maturity meters. Complete facilities for nondestructive evaluation of materials and structures are also available and include: ground-penetrating radar with 400 MHz antenna, ultrasonic transmitters, oscilloscopes, function generators and accelerometers.

The Soil Mechanics Laboratory is equipped to perform standard identification tests of soils, such as grain size distribution, liquid and plastic limits, shear strength, and compaction properties. In addition, facilities to perform detailed testing of undisturbed samples (consolidation and triaxial shear) are available and used regularly. A moist room is available for long-term sample storage.

The Fluid Mechanics Laboratory is equipped for studying both compressible and incompressible fluid media. Flow rates up to five cubic feet per second of water are provided by each of three independent high-pressure systems equipped with constant-head controls. Two low-constant-head supply tanks located in the laboratory provide lesser discharge capacities. The laboratory contains a 52-foot long tilting flume, a water tunnel, a subsonic wind tunnel, an air jet, pumps, turbines, a hydraulic bench, and various units for the study of frictional phenomena involving water and oil.

A one-dimensional Laser Doppler Anemometer (LDA) is used for the study of flow velocities in pipes and near the flow boundaries. In addition, the lab has a state-of-the-art wave tank, 6 ft. wide by 4 ft. high and 40 ft. long. It is equipped with a computer controlled five-paddle wave generator. This system can produce single waves, random waves, and angle waves. A two-dimensional Laser Doppler Velocimeter (LDV) equipped with computer controlled 3-D traverse and fully automated data acquisition system is used in the wave tank for studying beach hydraulics and off-shore similitudes. The lab is also equipped with a tilting sand flume for studying flow through highly porous media and groundwater contamination. A fully automated freeze and thaw machine is also available for graduate research work.

The Environmental Engineering Laboratory is equipped for experimental evaluation of unit processes and operations in water and wastewater treatment as well as analysis of all physical, chemical and microbiological water quality parameters. The experimental facilities include settling columns, suspended and attached growth biological reactors, computer-controlled bioreactor for kinetic studies, a bench scale UV chamber, a 12-gpm 15-foot bubble contactor for ozone studies complete with ozone generator, gas and liquid phase ozone residual monitors and off-gas destructor, a 1000-ft pipe loop system for water instability studies, and all conventional experimental devices used in determination of chemical dose requirements. An environmental chamber for temperature-controlled experiments is also available.

The analytical capabilities of the laboratory include gas chromatography-mass spectrometer with purge/trap, inductive-coupled plasma spectrometer (ICP) gas chromatograph with EC and FID detectors, total organic carbon analyzer, ion chromatograph, water quality autoanalyzer, UV-visible doublebeam spectrophotometer with stopped-flow device, and phase contrast/epifluorescence research microscope. Field monitoring equipment includes water quality monitors with multiple probes and fluorometers.

The Traffic/Transportation Engineering Laboratory has both personal computers and UNIX workstations with their peripherals to provide students opportunities to work with traffic and transportation software for course work and transportation research. The laboratory has a variety of software, including SOAP84, HCS, PASSER II-90, TRANSYT-7F, NETSIM, AAP, PRIMAVERA, AutoCAD, and software for GIS. The laboratory also contains basic equipment necessary to conduct traffic engineering studies such as traffic counters and measuring wheels.

The Highway and Airfield Laboratory offers facilities for investigating the properties of the basic materials and mixtures that comprise pavements. A variety of strength and stability equipment and other apparatus are available for determining rheological and physical properties and for experiments in designing and testing bituminous mixes. The additional facilities of the Soils and Materials Laboratories make possible the study of mineral aggregates and their blends, soil-stabilization phenomena, and mix-design and properties of Portland cement concrete. Other facilities in the Chemical Engineering Department’s Materials Research Laboratory extend the capacity to conduct thermoanalytic studies on standard and composite materials.

Electrical Engineering

The Analog Communications Laboratory uses the Lab-Volt Company’s signal generators, receivers, noise generators, and spectrum analyzer for the analysis of the performance of AM, SSB, DSB, and FM communication systems.

The advanced design laboratories include Local Area Network (LAN), Photonics Engineering, and Advanced Electronics. The LAN laboratory consists of IBM Multimedia PC’s, Protocol Analyzers and several network design and simulation packages such as OPNET and COMNET. In addition, two ATM switches (2.4 Gbps) and a CISCO Router are available.

The Semiconductor Laboratory includes Si Ge diode detectors, semiconductor quantum well structure lasers (670 nm), semiconductor double-barrier tunneling diode, an HP 4145B Semiconductor Parameter Analyzer, an HP 4142 DC module and HP 4140 Pico-Amp Meter, optical power meters, optical loss analyzer as well as assorted optical components (lenses, filters, etc.).

The Control Engineering Laboratory uses the Feedback Inc. analog servo-fundamentals trainer, which consists of an analog unit and a mechanical unit. The mechanical unit has a servomotor with position and velocity sensors. The analog unit allows students to wire the servomotor in a closed look configuration and independently vary the position and velocity feedback gains. The trainer is interfaced to a PC running LabView software to acquire and display signals on a virtual oscilloscope. The six stations are networked to a printer to allow students to print the virtual oscilloscope display.

The Photonics Laboratory is designed to give a variety of laboratory experiences in optics, lasers, spectroscopy and fiber optics. Equipment includes laser diodes, a HeNe laser, a white light source, a fiber optic spectro-radiometry system, single and multimode fibers, laser power meters and a variety of optical components.

The NASA Remote Sensing Computer Laboratory is designed to provide computer resources to students involved in environmental engineering and remote sensing. Equipment comprises: 14 Dell Optiplex PII computers; 2 Dell 500 MHz PIII computers; 1 Dell 2300 network server; 24 port dual-speed internet hub; Tektronix Phaser 740P color network printers; Proxima DP 9250 LCD multimedia projector; MATLAB software (Mathworks Inc.); Arc View GIS software, DEC Visual Fortran 99 and a HP 6200 color flatbed scanner.

Mechanical Engineering

The Engineering Materials Laboratory includes extensive facilities for the preparation of specimens for metallographic examination using modern digital imaging analysis system, testing machinery for tension, compression, hardness, impact, fracture, fatigue, stress relaxation, and ultrasound characterization; equipment for heat treatment; as well as videocassette recording and projection devices.

The Mechatronics Laboratory teaches the use of various electromechanical devices, sensors and actuators. The devices include strain gauges, thermocouples, piezoelectric accelerometers, LVDT’s, instruments for signal generation, filtering and amplification, stepper and DC servo motors, linear slides, and assorted electromechanical items (such as solenoids, relays, micro-switches, infrared proximity sensors, piezoelectric buzzers, strobe lights, fans, blowers, etc.). All these devices are controlled by PC-based data acquisition, microcontrollers, and programmable logic controllers (PLCs).

The Dynamics and Control Laboratory contains equipment for static and dynamic rotor balancing, vibration testing, sound level measurement, and several feedback control units for servo- mechanisms, pneumatic-mechanical linkages, and flow-level/ temperature processing