Sustainable Infrastructure Management

Course ID: Engi 9799, Offered in: Spring, Enrollments: 20, Class hours: 3hr/wk

Major Topics

Introduction to Infrastructure Management Framework

  • Key issues in infrastructure management
  • Application of system methodology to infrastructure management
  • Development of IMS; Example of a physical airport-facility system
  • Overview of influence levels of IMS components

Introduction to Sustainability

  • Technical approaches to quantifying sustainability
  • Tenets of sustainability and relationship among major indicator categories
  • Major categories of sustainability indicators and example of measurable properties
  • Concept of sustainability index; The IPAT Equation, Ecological Footprint, Carbon Footprint, Water Footprint

Network Level Need Analysis and Priority Programming

  • Decision making framework for asset management
  • Criteria for identifying network level needs; levels of service concept; how to establish
  • Prediction models for monitoring performance of infrastructure; model types, performance trend analysis, survival analysis
  • Analysis of effectiveness of rehabilitation/treatment alternatives; identifying needs and prioritization techniques for short-term and long-term planning

Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) Frameworks

  • Introduction to life cycle thinking
  • Concept of life cycle assessment, product, functional unit, reference flow, overview of 3-phases of LCA framework
  • Materials Flow Analysis in Infrastructure Construction Projects; materials reservoir system – input and output flows
  • Efficiencies in mass flow systems; Extraction, Manufacturing, Recovery, Recycling efficiencies

Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) Methods

  • Introduction to life cycle cost analysis; benefits of LCCA
  • Steps in LCCA: Establish design alternative, Activity timing, Cost estimation, Life cycle cost, Results Analysis
  • Concepts: Analysis period; Discount rate; Salvage value; Determining of net present value of infrastructure
  • Analysis Methods to LCCA; application of LCCA method in pavement engineering

Pavement Management Systems, Models and Strategies

  • Steps in pavement management process; major components of Pavement Management System (PMS); Levels & Framework of PMS
  • A brief discussion on Pavement Condition Data needs, Major characteristics of pavement condition considered in evaluating pavement rehabilitation needs
  • Concepts of Pavement Roughness, Present Serviceability Rating, Pavement Serviceability Index
  • An overview of equipment used for measuring pavement roughness
  • Summary of pavement distresses, distress groups, and their causes; most common measures considered in distress measurement
  • Equation for distress rating and overview of distress evaluation technique; discussion of Pavement Condition Index and PCI Parameters
  • Pavement structural condition evaluation method; pavement safety condition measures and evaluation system
  • Pavement condition prediction model: deterministic and probabilistic approaches; family-based prediction and multi-variate regression approaches
  • A brief overview of pavement rehabilitation program development; various Maintenance and Rehabilitation Techniques
  • Analysis methods for selecting a program of pavement rehabilitation

Climate Change and Infrastructure Design and Management

  • Introduction to climate and weather, Impacts of climate change, Causes of climate change – Greenhouse gas (GHG) and their effects
  • Understanding the science of climate change, Concept of Albedo, Estimating average temperature of earth
  • Concept of climate forcings, Concept of global warming potential (GWP)
  • Control of climate change
  • Global Energy Balance and Surface Temperature Model, Climate Change Projections and Impacts