The curriculum requires that all students obtain firsthand experience in the use of a wide range of modern experimental equipment. The purpose of the laboratory instruction is to complement the theoretical and analytical coursework and to verify the fundamentals learned in the courses. The department's laboratory facilities are located in the Civil Engineering Laboratory Building and the Civil Engineering Building, which are equipped to carry out a broad spectrum of sophisticated research and instruction in virtually all aspects of civil engineering.
Concrete Materials Laboratory. This laboratory has facilities for instrumentation and testing for failure of reinforced and prestressed long-span beams, columns, connections, and large-panel slabs. The equipment includes a 1,000,000 lb. capacity compression tester; a 650,000 lb. capacity girder and frame tester for testing simple and continuous girders; a 350,000 lb. capacity slab, pipe, and frame tester; two Hewlett-Packard 100-channel data acquisition and processing systems; a 20 x 25-foot temperature- and humidity-controlled environmental chamber; and facilities for rapid freezing and thawing tests.
Environmental Engineering Laboratory. This laboratory is equipped for performing basic and analytical work for the analysis of water and wastes and the unit processes associated with treatment. Molecular level and advanced analytical chemical measurements are available for complex environmental samples, including water and air matrices.
The equipment includes a high-pressure liquid chromatograph/mass spectrometer within trap detection (LCMS), a total carbon/total nitrogen analyzer, gas chromatographs, total organic carbon analyzer, atomic absorption analyzer, pH meters, centrifuges, constant-temperature water baths, ovens, an exhaust hood, various mixing devices, and pumps. It also includes equipment for assessment of the effect of hazardous liquids on the geohydrologic properties of soils, such as flexible type permeameters.
Fluid Mechanics and Hydraulics Laboratory. This laboratory contains state-of-the-art equipment for student instruction. Three multipurpose hydraulic benches are equipped with attachments designed to demonstrate the basic principles of mass, momentum, and energy conservation and transfer. A tilting flume is available for similar experiments and demonstrations. Apparatus to study sediment transport hydrology and water quality also is available.
Large-Scale Structures Laboratory. This laboratory features a 25 x 50-foot reaction floor having tie-down points designed to resist uplift forces of 30 kips each. A five-ton bridge crane spans the floor. "Erector set"-type fixtures are utilized to provide maximum flexibility for testing a variety of full-scale structural components. Hydraulic jacks with capacities of up to 100 tons are available for application of structural loads. An MTS Closed Loop Electrohydraulic Test System capable of more than 125,000 lb. of force and velocities of up to 350 in. per minute is available for the application of dynamic and repeated loads.
Microcomputer Laboratory. Undergraduates use this facility extensively for course and laboratory work and computer graphics. The laboratory is equipped with the latest personal computers. There is an ample number of printers and plotters. More than 40 software packages are available for computer-aided design, construction engineering, geotechnical engineering, structural engineering, and water resources. The laboratory is updated continually as computer technology advances.
Rutgers Intelligent Transportation Systems (RITS) Laboratory. Rutgers Intelligent Transportation Systems Laboratory has a cluster of Pentium PCs, a powerful file server, and various peripherals networked together. The RITS lab has recently acquired a specially built trailer called POGO instrumented with two video cameras and other equipment and a number of other automated image processing hardware. Traffic signal control and interfacing hardware for conducting hardware-in-the-loop simulations have also been recently acquired for hands-on research and education activities. A number of commercially available state-of-the-art transportation engineering software packages and several unique transportation databases are also part of the RITS lab.
Soil Dynamics Laboratory. This laboratory is equipped to study wave propagation characteristics through soil and rock, the basic dynamic properties of particulate materials, and the interaction between foundation structures and underlying soils. The equipment consists of a resonant column device, a high-strain amplitude torsional shear test apparatus, a cyclic triaxial shear system, and a miniature electrodynamic exciter used for studying the response of dynamically loaded model footings. A cross-hole apparatus and a wave analyzer are available for subsurface investigation.
Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering Laboratory. This laboratory contains up-to-date equipment for the performance of soil identification and classification tests and for the determination of physical, hydraulic, and mechanical properties. The equipment includes standard as well as back-pressured consolidometers; direct, triaxial, and laboratory vane shear strength devices; and various permeameters. An automatic triaxial testing system also is available. A large-capacity environmental chamber is available for temperature and humidity control testing.
Solid Mechanics Laboratory. This laboratory is equipped to determine the strength and physical properties of engineering materials. There are universal testing machines, with a maximum capacity of 60,000 lb. for tension and compression tests; a torsion machine; Brinell and Rockwell hardness testers; an impact machine; beam-testing rigs; and strut buckling apparatus.
