Civil Engineering Materials Laboratory

Catalog description

Laboratory investigating the physical and mechanical properties of civil engineering materials; soils, aggregates, concrete; steel; wood; and polymers. C E 337 C E 337 Civil Engineering Materials Laboratory (1) The understanding of the structure, physical and mechanical properties and behavior of engineering materials is at the very core of engineering design. A command of this knowledge is essential for all civil engineers. This 1-credit laboratory provides a hands-on experience with the testing and evaluation of civil engineering materials, including soils, aggregates, concrete, steel, wood and polymers. In addition, this lab builds on the topics of professional communication and engineering in groups that are present throughout the Civil Engineering curriculum. This course is required for all Civil Engineering majors and is a required laboratory component for ABET review. The course also may serve selected Architectural Engineering students that currently enroll in Material Science for Engineers. The laboratory will be taught every semester with an offering of 4-6 sections per semester.The Civil Engineering Materials Laboratory is directly tied to Engineering Mechanics of Soils and Material Science for Civil Engineers. It replaces the laboratory component of both of the existing courses to create a comprehensive materials laboratory experience. By creating a stand-alone course, students may schedule the laboratory separate from the lecture time, eliminating multiple course conflicts. The course meets 3 hours each week throughout the semester with an introductory lecture and training session on lab safety. Concurrent or previous enrollment in Engineering Mechanics of Soils or Material Science for Engineers ensures that the students have completed the Strength of Materials course and have a clear point of reference to the relevance of the material in the course.The Civil Engineering Materials Laboratory will incorporate the use of a variety of equipment, including universal testing machines, Charpy fracture toughness device, Rockwell Hardness device, soil compaction devices, sieves, plasticity index devices, concrete mixing equipment, electronic strain devices, direct/biaxial/triaxial shear devices and other similar equipment.