Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Civil Engineering
Distributed long-term hourly streamflow predictions using deep learning – A case study for State of Iowa
Published: 2020-03-21
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Engineering, Environmental Engineering
Accurate streamflow forecasting has always been a challenge. Although there were many novel approaches using deep learning models, accuracy of these models is often limited to a short lead time. This study proposes a new deep recurrent neural network approach, Neural Runoff Model (NRM), which has been applied on 125 USGS streamflow gages in the State of Iowa for predicting the next 120 hours. We [...]
Urban Near-surface Seismic Monitoring using Distributed Acoustic Sensing
Published: 2019-11-27
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Urban subsurface monitoring requires high temporal-spatial resolution, low maintenance cost, and minimal intrusion to nearby life. Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS), in contrast to conventional station-based sensing technology, has the potential to provide a passive seismic solution to urban monitoring requirements. Based on data recorded by the Stanford Fiber Optic Seismic Observatory, we [...]
SediNet: A configurable deep learning model for mixed qualitative and quantitative optical granulometry
Published: 2019-08-01
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Geomorphology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
I describe a configurable machine-learning framework to estimate a suite of continuous and categorical sedimentological properties from photographic imagery of sediment, and to exemplify how machine learning can be a powerful and flexible tool for automated quantitative and qualitative measurements from remotely sensed imagery. The model is tested on a large dataset consisting of 400 images and [...]
Can barrier islands survive sea-level rise? Quantifying the relative role of tidal deltas and overwash deposition
Published: 2019-07-18
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Geology, Geomorphology, Oceanography, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
Accepted open-access publication available at: https://doi.org/10.1029/2019GL085524 Barrier island response to sea-level rise depends on their ability to transgress and move sediment onto and behind the barrier, either through flood-tidal delta deposition, or via overwash. Our understanding of these processes over decadal or longer timescales, however, is limited. Here we [...]
Information-theoretic Portfolio Decision Model for Optimal Flood Management
Published: 2019-06-27
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computational Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Environmental Health and Protection, Environmental Sciences, Geomorphology, Hydraulic Engineering, Hydrology, Life Sciences, Natural Resources and Conservation, Natural Resources Management and Policy, Operations Research, Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering, Other Civil and Environmental Engineering, Other Engineering, Other Environmental Sciences, Other Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Probability, Risk Analysis, Statistics and Probability, Sustainability, Systems Engineering, Water Resource Management
The increasing impact of flooding urges more effective flood management strategies to guarantee sustainable ecosystem development. Recent catastrophes underline the importance of avoiding local flood management, but characterizing large scale basin wide approaches for systemic flood risk management. Here we introduce an information-theoretic Portfolio Decision Model (iPDM) for the optimization of [...]
Bayesian parameter estimation for space and time interacting earthquake rupture model using historical and physics-based simulated earthquake catalogs
Published: 2019-04-25
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Risk Analysis
This paper presents a robust parameter estimation technique for a probabilistic earthquake hazard model that captures time and space interactions between earthquake mainshocks. The approach addresses the existing limitations of parameter estimation techniques by developing a Bayesian formulation and leveraging physics-based simulated synthetic catalogs to expand the limited datasets of historical [...]
Influence of dissolution on frictional properties of carbonate faults
Published: 2019-04-25
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Velocity stepping experiments have been performed on a simulated calcite gouge using an annular shear apparatus to investigate the effect of dissolution on the frictional properties of a carbonate fault. The tested material was put in contact with hydrochloric acid at different concentration in order to dissolve the grains. Particle size analysis shows that the small grains tend to disappear due [...]
Rapid and accurate estimates of streamflow depletion caused by groundwater pumping using analytical depletion functions
Published: 2018-11-13
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Sciences, Hydrology, Natural Resources Management and Policy, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Water Resource Management
Reductions in streamflow due to groundwater pumping (‘streamflow depletion’) can negatively impact water users and aquatic ecosystems but are challenging to estimate due to the time and expertise required to develop numerical models often used for water management. Here, we develop analytical depletion functions, which are simpler approaches consisting of (i) stream proximity criteria which [...]
Learning about climate change uncertainty enables flexible water infrastructure planning
Published: 2018-09-30
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Climate, Computer Sciences, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Sciences, Hydrology, Numerical Analysis and Scientific Computing, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Statistics and Probability, Water Resource Management
Water resources planning requires making decisions about infrastructure development under substantial uncertainty in future regional climate conditions. However, uncertainty in climate change projections will evolve over the 100-year lifetime of a dam as new climate observations become available. Flexible strategies in which infrastructure is proactively designed to be changed in the future have [...]
Optimising tidal range power plant operation
Published: 2017-12-11
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computational Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Engineering, Hydraulic Engineering, Oceanography, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Power and Energy
Tidal range power plants represent an attractive approach for the large-scale generation of electricity from the marine environment. Even though the tides and by extension the available energy resource are predictable, they are also variable in time. This variability poses a challenge regarding the optimal transient control of power plants. Here we consider simulation methods which include the [...]
GPS sidereal filtering: coordinate- and carrier-phase-level strategies
Published: 2017-11-14
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Other Civil and Environmental Engineering, Other Earth Sciences, Other Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Multipath error is considered one of the major errors affecting GPS observations. One can benefit from the repetition of satellite geometry approximately every sidereal day, and apply filtering to help minimize this error. For GPS data at 1 second interval processed using a double-difference strategy, using the day-to-day coordinate or phase residual autocorrelation determined with a 10 hour [...]
Using filtered and semi-continuous high rate GPS for monitoring deformations
Published: 2017-11-14
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Construction Engineering and Management, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Geophysics and Seismology, Geotechnical Engineering, Other Civil and Environmental Engineering, Other Earth Sciences, Other Environmental Sciences, Other Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Structural Engineering
Multipath is a major sidereally-repeating error affecting precise GPS positioning and deformation monitoring. Because satellite-receiver geometry repeats almost exactly every sidereal day, filtering can reduce multipath in near-static situations. Here, we investigate how sidereal filtering can be used in a switched multi-antenna array system providing semi-continuous GPS data, which may be [...]
An examination of network RTK GPS services in Great Britain
Published: 2017-11-14
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Construction Engineering and Management, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Geophysics and Seismology, Other Civil and Environmental Engineering, Other Earth Sciences, Other Environmental Sciences, Other Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
As of March 2009, network real-time kinematic (RTK) GPS surveying is available in Great Britain with the aid of two commercial service providers, Leica’s “SmartNet” and Trimble’s “VRS Now”, both of which rely largely on the Ordnance Survey’s “OS Net” network of around 120 continuously operating reference stations. With the aim of testing the performance of Network RTK under both ideal and [...]
Enhancement of the accuracy of single epoch GPS positioning for long baselines by local ionospheric modelling
Published: 2017-11-13
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Other Civil and Environmental Engineering, Other Earth Sciences, Other Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Single-epoch relative GPS positioning has many advantages, especially for monitoring dynamic targets .In this technique, errors occurring in previous epochs cannot affect the position accuracy at the current epoch, but careful processing is required, and resolving carrier phase ambiguities is essential. Statistical ambiguity resolution functions have been used to determine the best values of [...]
Computationally Efficient Tsunami Modelling on Graphics Processing Units (GPU)
Published: 2017-11-13
Subjects: Applied Mathematics, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Sciences, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Sciences, Geophysics and Seismology, Hydraulic Engineering, Numerical Analysis and Computation, Numerical Analysis and Scientific Computing, Other Civil and Environmental Engineering, Other Earth Sciences, Other Environmental Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Tsunamis generated by earthquakes commonly propagate as long waves in the deep ocean and develop into sharp-fronted surges moving rapidly towards the coast in shallow water, which may be effectively simulated by hydrodynamic models solving the nonlinear shallow water equations (SWEs). However, most of the existing tsunami models suffer from long simulation time for large-scale real-world [...]