The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the nation’s oldest engineering society, has been supporting Civil & Environmental Engineering students at the University of Utah since 1924. For a century, the ASCE Student Chapter has been providing students with invaluable opportunities outside the classroom, preparing them for successful professional careers.

On Thursday, September 16, 2024, the chapter celebrated its 100th anniversary by hosting a banquet with distinguished guests, including Feniosky Peña Mora, ASCE national president-elect, and Larry Magura, ASCE Region 8 director. Several notable department alumni also attended, including Blaine Leonard, former chapter president and ASCE past president, as well as Anna Lisonbee and Austin White, who revitalized the chapter in 2017. Easton Hopkins, who continued their legacy, was also present.

Dr. Christine Pomeroy, Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering and the chapter’s faculty advisor since 2015, shared insights into the chapter’s history during the event. She reflected on the chapter’s beginnings in 1924, just 21 years after the Civil Engineering Department was founded. Despite changes over the decades, the chapter has remained committed to advancing civil engineering and fostering professional growth.

Throughout its history, the chapter has achieved numerous accolades. From 1995 to 1997, the U dominated the Rocky Mountain Region’s concrete canoe competition, earning top awards in subsequent years. The chapter has consistently been recognized as one of the top 5% of ASCE student chapters, particularly during the 1950s, 60s, and 70s. They also excelled in steel bridge competitions, with first-place finishes from 1999 to 2001 and third place in 2016.

“As we reflect on our history, we feel a deep sense of pride in the accomplishments of our members,” said Dr. Pomeroy at the banquet. “As civil engineers, we have the unique opportunity to shape the world around us,” continued Dr. Pomeroy. “Our work has the power to improve lives, build communities, and create a sustainable future.”

Recent achievements include winning the Timber Strong competition in 2022, marking the first year of ASCE’s new student conferences. The chapter also took second place in this year’s Construction Competition and student Erik Bond secured second place in the Ethics Paper Contest. Additionally, Summer Stevens won the prestigious Mead Paper contest in 2022.

This year, the chapter was honored with the Region 8 Outstanding Student Chapter award, a recognition they’ve strived for since 2018. As the ASCE Student Chapter celebrates this remarkable milestone, it does so with pride in its past and optimism for its future.

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Civil Engineering Student Sayal Shrestha Earns Honors at National Symposium

In early 2024, Ph.D. student Sayal Shrestha was awarded funding by the American Concrete Institute (ACI) Intermountain Chapter to further his research in concrete and structural engineering. The funds supported his participation in the TriDurLE Annual Symposium 2024, held at the Texas A&M Hotel & Conference Center, College Station, TX. The symposium, themed “Advancements in Transportation Infrastructure: Durability, Sustainability, and Resilience,” brought together leading industry professionals and academics.

At the symposium, Sayal presented his research through a poster titled “Experimental Performance and Analysis of Corroded Precast Concrete Columns Repaired with CFRP Shell and Headed Steel Bars.” His work focuses on investigating the repair of corroded concrete columns using advanced materials, contributing to innovations in concrete rehabilitation techniques. His poster earned him one of the prizes in the “Poster and Student Solutions Driven Competitions” category.

“The symposium was an invaluable opportunity to engage with experts in the field of concrete durability and structural engineering,” Sayal shared.

Sayal, under the mentorship of Civil & Environmental Engineering Associate Professor Dr. Chris Pantelides, continues to push the boundaries of structural engineering research by improving concrete resilience.

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Dr. Abbas Rashidi’s Role in Groundbreaking NSF Research 

The intersection of technology and education is creating new possibilities for learning, and at the forefront of this transformation is a project funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Dr. Abbas Rashidi, an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, is playing a key role in a $900,000 collaborative research initiative titled “An AI-Enhanced System to Integrate Unstructured Observations with Formal Engineering Education.” 

Supplementing Learning with AI 

 A joint effort with Stevens Institute of Technology and Mississippi State University, the project aims to bridge the gap between real-world observations and formal engineering education. Civil and construction engineering students often encounter various components—such as structural elements, materials, and equipment—in their everyday environments. These spontaneous observations have the potential to enhance learning, but without expert guidance, students may struggle to connect these real-world experiences with their academic knowledge. 

Dr. Rashidi and his collaborators are addressing this challenge by developing an AI-driven mobile app designed to act as an on-demand educator. This application will allow students to use their smartphones to analyze and learn from construction projects they encounter in their daily lives or during site visits. 

The app will use Enhanced Observation Guidance to directs students’ attention to key construction components and provide real-time explanations of what they’re seeing. 

It will then link these observations to the students’ formal coursework and educational materials available on web-based platforms. Additionally, the app-to-web interface system will be able to generate detailed reports on students’ observations and performance, offering instructors valuable insights to tailor course activities. 

Innovative Technology at Work 

The AI-enhanced learning system will be built on Activity Learning Theory, which emphasizes the role of sensory, mental, and physical activities in the learning process. Dr. Rashidi’s critical role in creating the platform will be the development of the novel hybrid image-audio processing system, which will integrate imagery and audio data to recognize and classify construction components with greater accuracy. 

The innovative audio processing and signal source separation algorithms will eliminate the need for multiple microphones by enabling a single smartphone to capture and analyze audio signals from up to 100 feet away. 

By harnessing the power of AI, this research involved in this project aims to provide students with a more interactive and effective learning experience, ultimately preparing them for the complexities of the modern engineering landscape. 

Broad Implications for Education 

The impact of this AI-enhanced learning platform extends beyond construction engineering. While the initial focus is on this field, the methods and technologies developed can be adapted for use in other disciplines.  

Specifically, researchers on this project are designing the app with accessibility in mind, featuring color palettes for users with color vision deficiency, subtitles and audio narrations to ensure an inclusive learning experience—foundations which will be key to the development of similar AI-driven education tools in other fields of study. 

We look forward to seeing the transformative impact of this project and the continued contributions of Dr. Rashidi and his collaborators to the future of engineering education.  

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Incorporating physical principles into machine learning models unlocks new levels of precision in landslide prediction 

Landslides pose a significant natural hazard, causing extensive damage to infrastructure and loss of life. Traditional methods for predicting landslides often fall short due to the complex nature of terrain and the uneven distribution of landslide data. 

To tackle these challenges, researchers have utilized the Physics-Guided Machine Learning (PGML) framework. This innovative method, recently published in Acta Geotechnica by Dr. Tong Qiu, Professor and Department Chair of Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of Utah, and Dr. Te Pei, Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering at the City University of New York, enhances the accuracy and reliability of machine learning (ML) models for landslide susceptibility mapping (LSM). 

ML models typically rely on large datasets to identify patterns and make accurate predictions. However, when data is scarce or unevenly distributed, traditional ML models can yield inconsistent results that don’t align with physical laws or established knowledge of landslide behavior. The PGML framework addresses this issue by integrating physical principles—specifically, knowledge of landslide mechanics—into the ML models, resulting in predictions that are both data-driven and physically consistent. 

The study tested the PGML framework using data from over a thousand debris flows triggered by a storm event in Colorado’s Front Range. Researchers employed the “infinite slope model,” a standard method in landslide analysis, to calculate the factor of safety—a measure of a slope’s likelihood to fail. This factor was then used to guide the ML model’s predictions, ensuring they remained grounded in physical reality. 

The PGML framework’s performance was evaluated across different geographic regions with varying ecological and terrain characteristics. The results showed that while traditional ML models often produced unrealistic predictions, the PGML approach significantly improved the accuracy, consistency, and reliability of predictions across diverse regions. 

By integrating physical laws into machine learning models, the PGML framework not only enhances our ability to predict landslides more reliably but also sets a new standard for how machine learning can be applied elsewhere in geotechnical engineering research, as well as other complex geological systems. 

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Known as “forever chemicals,” per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of synthetic chemicals that have been widely used in various industrial and consumer products, such as non-stick cookware, water-repellent clothing, and firefighting foams. Their resistance to degradation combined with their potential to accumulate in living organisms has raised significant concerns about their impact on human health and the environment. While significant progress has been made in understanding PFAS, we are still unraveling the dangers they pose, including their environmental impact.

As PFAS contamination through land applied biosolids and their plant uptake continues to escalate risks to both environmental and public health, Dr. Ramesh Goel‘s groundbreaking research will be tackling this critical issue head-on, supported by a nearly $1.6 million grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

This project — one of ten grants awarded nationwide to address the PFAS crisis in agricultural, rural, and tribal communities — underscores the University of Utah’s dedication to tackling critical challenges that affect the region.

 An Urgent Concern 

PFAS chemicals in municipal wastewater has become a pressing environmental issue. Current treatment methods at wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are largely ineffective at removing or fully degrading PFAS, leading to their presence in biosolids. Biosolids, the nutrient-rich organic material generated from sewage treatment, are commonly used as fertilizers in agriculture. It is estimated that between 2,749 to 3,450 kilograms of total PFAS are present in the biosolids produced in the U.S., with half of these chemicals entering agricultural soils. In 2019, approximately 4.5 million dry tons of biosolids were generated by municipal WWTPs in the U.S., and around 2.44 million dry metric tons were applied to land.

This recent set of EPA grants is focused on developing a better understanding of “bioaccumulation,” or how pollutants like PFAS can become more concentrated in plants and animals that grow or graze on polluted ground.

A Comprehensive Approach

To address the diverse range of expertise needed and the extensive methodologies, Goel’s project brings together six researchers from different institutions, alongside industrial partners and agricultural stakeholders, to ensure a multidisciplinary approach to combatting this critical environmental issue.

The project’s collaborative action plan will lead investigations into how PFAS behave during wastewater treatment and ultimately accumulate in biosolids. By understanding these processes, Dr. Goel’s project aims to develop effective strategies to minimize the risks associated with PFAS in agricultural environments, protecting both the food supply and the health of farming communities.

The research will employ a variety of methods, including full-scale WWTP sampling, field experiments to study PFAS uptake in plants under different cover crop scenarios, and lab-scale tests on plant uptake of toxic PFAS. Additionally, the project will explore the use of modified biochar as a potential mitigation strategy.

A robust community engagement plan is also a key component of the project. This plan aims to share knowledge and findings with industrial partners, agricultural extension agents, utilities, and the public, ensuring that the research has a broad impact.

Dr. Ramesh Goel, right, and PhD student Anjan Goswami, left, perform PFAS extraction from soil and biosolids.

Setting the Stage in PFAS Management

The anticipated outcomes of this research include a deeper understanding of the relationship between WWTP processes and PFAS partitioning, the development of standard operating procedures for studying PFAS in agricultural soils and plants, identification of potential mitigation strategies to reduce PFAS contamination in agricultural systems, and educational outreach through workshops and surveys to disseminate knowledge and best practices.

Running through 2027, this groundbreaking research is poised to offer invaluable insights into the behavior of PFAS in the environment and contribute to the development of effective strategies to safeguard public health and the environment. Dr. Goel’s leadership as the Principal Investigator of this project highlights his expertise and commitment to environmental research.

PFAS analytical method development based on EPA 1633.

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