Damon R. Fick

Civil and geological engineering service-learning projects as part of a Pre-Engineering Education Collaborative

Three educational institutions in South Dakota are collaborating to develop pre-engineering courses to increase the enrollment and success of students transferring from Oglala Lakota College (OLC) to 4-year bachelor degree programs in science and engineering at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSMT) and South Dakota State University (SDSU) through a grant from the National Science Foundation Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP). In addition to the development and delivery of these courses, an aggressive summer schedule of service learning projects has been incorporated into the program. The objectives of these projects is to provide a hands-on introduction to science and engineering topics, promote community involvement and service, and to stimulate student interest and motivation to pursue these fields of study. This paper describes the activities of the OLC/SDSU/SDSMT Pre-Engineering Education Collaborative (OSSPEEC) program and two service learning projects related to civil and geological Engineering. Results indicate a high level of mentor involvement and coordination at each institution is an important component to a successful experience for the students. The first year of the program also indicates that student collaboration, variety in project related activities, and active community involvement help support student motivation and interest in their science and engineering related activities.

Performance-Based Design of Drilled Shaft Bridge Foundations

The design of deep foundations for bridge structures should ideally consider the interaction between the soil and the foundation element to properly model the side and tip resistance components. A soil-structure interaction model, such as the t-z model method, can be utilized to develop a load-displacement curve for a deep foundation subjected to axial loads. The load-displacement curve represents the behavior of the deep foundation over a range of applied axial loads. More importantly, however, the load-displacement curve can be analyzed by using performance-based design criteria, such as a tolerable displacement corresponding to the service limit state. The tolerable displacement of an individual deep foundation element can be selected to correspond to a movement that would cause adverse performance, excessive maintenance issues, or functionality problems with the bridge structure. In this paper, a performance-based soil-structure interaction design approach for the strength and service limit state axia...

The impact of project-based service learning in a native American community on Student Performance in Civil Engineering Capstone Design

Three educational institutions in South Dakota are collaborating to develop pre-engineering courses to increase the enrollment and success of students transferring from Oglala Lakota College (OLC) to 4-year bachelor degree programs in science and engineering at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSMT) and South Dakota State University through a grant from the National Science Foundation Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP). Activities of this grant have led to a partnership with the native-led Thunder Valley Community Development Corporation (TVCDC) and have provided significant opportunities for students at OLC and SDSMT in the areas of civil engineering and sustainability. The most recent opportunity includes incorporating TVCDCs plans for an 800-person net-zero regenerative community on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation into the Capstone Design course at SDSMT. The project includes sustainable design objectives in wastewater treatment, rainwater harvesting, and the use of straw bale and compressed earth walls as renewable building materials for phase I of the planned community. Four teams of students working on the regenerative community and four teams of students working on a more traditional capstone design project completed proposals and their first progress reports during the Fall 2012 semester. The Comprehensive Assessment of Team-Member Effectiveness (CATME) instrument was administered twice during the semester to evaluate team functioning. A comparison of the data for the two capstone projects is presented. Results from these surveys indicate students working on the regenerative community project were more positive and consistent with the behavioral and satisfaction categories within the peer evaluation survey.

An interactive approach to renewable energy research and education

The United States is currently pursuing renewable energy research and education initiatives. To contribute to both of these objectives, an interactive environment that provides educational opportunities related to wind energy for students in K-12, college, and the community was created. The efforts are based on an 80 ft tall 20kW wind turbine that was installed at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSMT) in 2009. This research facility is currently recording real-time wind data that is not easily accessed or understood by the public community due to the absence of an ease-of-communication environment. To increase the educational outreach of the wind turbine facility, an interactive computer kiosk in the student center at SDSMT was designed and utilized. The functionality of the kiosk includes: 1) a 24/7 searchable real-time database; 2) a 3D visual model of the wind turbine and research facility; and 3) a user-created energy consumption “sandbox”. The results of the study will be used to provide recommendations for future research and education endeavors of renewable energy in general and wind-energy in particular.

Design of Bridge Foundations using a Performance-Based Soil-Structure Interaction Approach

The design of deep foundations must consider soil-structure interaction in order to properly model the side and tip resistance components. A soil-structure interaction model such as the t-z model method allows for the settlement analysis of a deep foundation over a range of applied vertical loads. The developed load-settlement curve can be analyzed using performance-based design criteria, such as a limiting tolerable settlement and a serviceability settlement. The limiting tolerable settlement can be selected to correspond to a movement that will either cause excessive stresses in the structure or render a structure inoperable while a serviceability settlement would correspond to a movement that would cause adverse performance or excessive maintenance issues with the structure. In this paper, a performance-based soilstructure interaction design approach for axial design of deep foundations under the AASHTO Strength and Service Limit States is presented. The design approach can be integrated within the Load and Resistance Factor Design (LRFD) framework to develop an efficient methodology for satisfying these limit state criteria.