Warren Distinguished Lecture Series

Alternative dissipative mechanisms are explored to minimize earthquake-induced damage in connections and other members. A principal goal is to retain simplicity in the seismic design of steel moment resisting frames.

Henry Liu is the Director of MCity, which believes the Mcity Safety Assessment Program could serve as the blueprint for a publicly inspectable behavioral safety framework, helping industry bring automated vehicle technology to market in a manner that truly benefits society. Liu also highlights Mcity 2.0, a facility funded by the National Science Foundation, that aims to build a digital infrastructure providing researchers remote access to the Mcity mixed reality testing environment for highly automated vehicles. 

Timothy Strathmann describes the recent invention and development of a new technology for destruction of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) “forever chemicals” at the Colorado School of Mines.

Doudrick investigated the use of alkali and alkaline-earth metal additives to enhance the mineralization of PFAS in GAC and Portland cement pavement (PCP). His findings advocate for the use of catalytic additives in the thermal treatment of solid wastes contaminated with PFAS to reduce operating costs and mitigate the environmental impact associated with incineration.

Using a combination of laboratory experiments, field measurements, and numerical modeling, Yager quantifies some of the key controls on particle motion. She specifically highlights the influence of flow turbulence and bed structure in controlling particle transport and incorporates aspects of these controls into a mechanistic theory. 

Vantassel's on-going efforts continue to show that non-invasive seismic imaging methods can be used as a cost-effective means of improving geotechnical site investigation. Vantassel presents recent work to improve seismic imaging techniques for the problem of near-surface geotechnical site investigation.

Makhnenko discusses the results of a comprehensive laboratory characterization of a few shale-like materials with different porosity, permeability, and dominant grain and pore sizes. Makhnenko presents the implications of using these shales as barriers for advective and channeled fluid flow, including CO₂ injection, for representative in-situ conditions. 

Guest introduces a standardized process—Quantitative Sustainable Design (QSD)—to identify, prioritize, and pursue opportunities for innovation to advance novel technologies and infrastructure systems. Leveraging examples from non-sewered sanitation and resource recovery, he walks through the QSD process.

Models enable us to simulate and thus better comprehend the dynamics of the real world. Seongjin Choi explores two principal methodologies: Deep Probabilistic Forecasting and Deep Generative Model. Overall, Choi showcases the capabilities of both methodologies in capturing patterns and behaviors in transportation and mobility data.