The Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Essay Example

The Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers First published in the year 1837, the proceedings of the institution of civil engineers, consists of nine parts, covering the major subdivisions of civil engineering research and practice. The subdivisions being bridge engineering, civil engineering, engineering sustainability, geotechnical engineering, martime engineering, municipal engineering, structures and building, transport and water management. Of this I would like to bring out six things that I didn’t know before, six things that surprised me and six things that I feel that other civil engineer students know, as I went through various publications of the proceedings of civil engineers in the latest issues. Six things that surprised me, interested me and tempted me to share with other civil engineer students are listed below that covers a wide range and subset of civil engineering. The first thing is the London’s spectacular new 75 pound million observatory wheel – the British Airway London Eye was built only in 16 months on the bank of the river Thames. This particular piece of civil engineering excellence- widely described as technical challenge, has then flown 3.2 million passengers at altitude of 135m in its first year of operation itself. The structure of this particular piece contains capsule that is ovalised and aerodynamically devised to reduce drag and have a motorized stability system. They have achieved a light truss rib stabilized to centre hub by tensioned cables. The spindle is a large steel tube cantilevering 11 km in the river. The eye is made to turn by a set of wheels settled with their own hydraulic motor. What surprised me most was that as a conventional wisdom suggests a project of this magnitude takes at least 2.5 to 3 years, but a completion in 16 months is daunting. The superstructure contractor’s method was bold; the now-famous decision to lift the rim as a single unit and achieving the target of erecting the fourth tallest structure in London in just one day. This stands as a testimony for a very important part to be understood that civil engineering is not just about the practical side of making things but also is about the human processes of bringing that work about. The next thing of surprise is the South Downs way national trail crossing embarked by InterRoute in Sussex. The area is very hilly with rolling curves. In this adjusting to harmony of the rural setting a structural super steel truss bridge with ease and speed in the given budget was constructed. It was brilliantly constructed in line with the habitat as curves in both horizontal and vertical axes. The footbridges built in Poland are good example of modernizing civil structures while preserving its ancient tints. Eight newly constructed foot bridge over the highway assists drivers in easy identification of location and landmark. The building of natural ventilation building in UK, as an answer to green revolution is another awesome piece to be marveled. The key challenge would be to design low energy system that provides comfortable conditions by responding effectively to changes in external conditions. In this way the 12 classroom extensions done in Hagley school, Chapel field shopping mall in Norwich, 5 storey building in University of London. This has been done as a engineering marvel with working on effective ventilation model. Another interesting and intriguing factor is the trouble caused by the pigeons in London’s underground railway networks, where it roosting in grooves, their acidic and unhygienic droppings causing damage to the rail and station infrastructure by causing paintwork and steel to deteriorate, in some cases even leading to seizure of bridge bearings and failure of equipment. Many short term options as netting, spikes and slopes had been tried but of no avail leading to an expensive maintenance, with London railways spending close to 1 million pounds. As a long term soluti0on they have designed structures eliminating horizontal ledges discouraging the inhabitation of pigeons. The Wales Millennium Centre, a substantial new multipurpose cultural centre built over reclaimed land on the shores of Cardiff’s new freshwater lake, formerly a tidal bay. In it are a state-of-the-art 1852 seater auditorium and a diverse range of other smaller venues. The £106 million building opened to the public was built in a fast-track design-and construction in three years. This building was build based on continually evolving structural design innovative solutions and value engineering within budget. This site builds as a heavy building on an alluvial site, a challenge achieved in construction industry. Ghanem etal reported that generally in freezing temperature ice accumulates on exposed concrete slab of the bridge deck. The de icing salt as calcium chloride when applied to control this migrates down to the reinforcing steel and breaks the passivation layer of steel causing its corrosion. But they report that other non chloride salts may be of help. The Maureen platform, the world’s largest steel gravity platform with a 90,000 t loading column was removed, dismantled and recycled with major structural components being used to build new port facilities and 42 000 t of steel landed ashore for scrapping. This process involves a complex and delicate task of cleaning and progressively dismantling the vast structure in a Norwegian fjord. It was the final phase of a £150. million decommissioning project, which has now set a benchmark for over 200 other steel structures currently operating in the British sector of the North Sea. The diversity of estuaries, together with the management pressures that they face, illustrates the need for some estuaries to be incorporated within a strategic shoreline management framework to proactively plan flood risk management in these areas. In the UK, 86% of the import and export trade passes through ports located in estuaries. At the same time, over 76% of the UK’s estuaries and their surrounding areas are subject to some form of nature conservation designation. Over the last few centuries, the presence of high-value agricultural land and infrastructure around UK estuaries has led to the development of extensive flood defense systems, which have altered the natural form of estuaries. All of these activities and developments mean that estuaries can be subject to significant management pressures. The diversity of estuaries, together with the management pressures that they face, illustrates the need for some estuaries to be incorporated within a strategic shoreline management framework to proactively plan flood risk management in these areas. The various steps taken as influencing tidal influence, sediment exchange has worked effectively. The recycling of marine sediments from areas of natural deposition to replenish denuded frontages elsewhere and the alternative uses of otherwise waste material derived from navigation dredging activities has now become the deal of the day. Such material reuse in the marine environment can provide environmental benefits, assist in reducing risks from tidal flooding or coastal erosion if used in foreshore recharge schemes, or cost-effectively provide construction resources. There are many such steps undertaken inn the UK shorelines. A proposal to build an artificial reef has been put together for Newquay in Cornwall. The aim is to enhance surfing conditions for local surfers, to attract visiting surfers and to provide a spectacle for other tourists, particularly during the autumn, winter and spring months. The construction procedures of this reef are to be known. Another feature in recycling is that there is now period of the optimization of several mixes for the development of a new range of construction units (Bitublock) composed entirely of recycled and waste aggregates. The development of this new range of building units is driven by the issue of sustainability, in UK. Five main waste materials are considered in this optimization: crushed glass, pulverized fuel ash (PFA), incinerated bottomash (IBA), incinerated sewage sludge ash (ISSA) and steel slag. The long- term stability of Bitublock is significant in terms of construction, because its use could negate the need for—or at least reduces the frequency of—required movement joints in masonry. References: The Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers, retrieved on 2008, http://www.ice.org.uk/knowledge/library_proceedings.asp Read More