Civil and Environmental Research Centers, Institutes, and Laboratories The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is home to or participates in a number of research centers, institutes, and laboratories.
The Center for Contaminant Hydrology (CCH) is a nationally recognized program focused on finding innovative solutions for inadvertant release of contaminants to subsurface environments. Key attributes of the program include interdisciplinary studies, close collaboration with sponsors, collaboration with other academic programs, a focus on field scale studies, and innovation. Director: Thomas C. Sale Phone: 970-491-8413 Fax: 970-491-8224. Go to CCH website. Center for Explosive Research and Testing of Geomaterials conducts laboratory and field explosive research and testing on geomaterials. Director: Wayne A. Charlie Phone: (970) 491-5048 Fax: (970) 491-7727 Chester E. Smith Structures & Materials Laboratory. The mission of the Chester E. Smith Structures and Materials Lab is to provide high quality and technical support for classes and other educational activities involving the mechanical testing of construction materials or fairly small structural members or components. Director: Marvin Criswell Phone: (970) 491-6697 Fax: (970) 491-7727 Civil & Environmental Engineering Water Quality Laboratory. The lab is a fully-equipped water quality laboratory in the Engineering Building. It provides civil and environmental engineering graduate and undergraduate students a modern laboratory/ classroom that is equipped with state of the art analytical equipment. Director: Sandra Woods Phone: (970) 491-5049 Fax: (970) 491-7727 Colorado Water Resources Research Institute (CWRRI) provides a statewide link for the identification of priority water-related problems and coordinates research and technology transfer. Interim Director: Reagan Waskom Phone: (970) 491-6308 Fax: (970) 491-2293. Go to the CWRRI website. Computing Hydrology Laboratory supports graduate teaching and research in surface hydrology and water resources management. Director: Jose D. Salas Phone: (970) 491-8460 Fax: (970) 491-8671 Concrete Materials Laboratory supports teaching and research activities on aggregates, concrete materials, and small concrete structural units. Supports student projects in these areas. Director: Marvin Criswell Phone: (970) 491-6697 Fax: (970) 491-7727 Engineering Research Center. The ERC is an 110,000-square-foot research facility supporting faculty and student projects in civil, electrical, and mechanical engineering. Director: Christopher I. Thorton Phone: (970) 491-8394 Fax: (970) 491-8462 Environmental Engineering: Instrumentation Laboratory. Basic and routine water analyses are performed in this lab which houses the laboratory chemicals. Although the lab's primary purpose is for research, it is used in several environmental engineering graduate level courses that require lab experience and graduate projects. Director: Amy Pruden Phone: (970) 491-6670 Fax: (970) 491-7727 Environmental Engineering: Wet Chemistry Laboratory contains instruments used to measure and analyze concentrations of pesticides as well as other trace organics and inorganics, used primarily for graduate student research. Director: Kenneth Carlson Phone: (970) 491-8336 Fax: (970) 491-7727 Fu Hua Chen Geotechnical Laboratory conducts research and provides education in the areas of geoenvironmental topics, earthquakes, explosives, expansive soils, expert systems, dam safety and mine tailing. Director: Charles D. Shackelford Phone: (970) 491-5051 Fax: (970) 491-3584 GIS Engineering Design Laboratory supports several graduate courses in Civil Engineering, training sessions in support of undergraduate Civil Engineering Courses, special workshops and short courses on the application of GIs in Engineering, and graduate student research. Director: John Labadie Phone: (970) 491-6898 Fax: (970) 491-7727 Harold H. Short Civil Infrastructure Systems Laboratory. The Harold H. Short Laboratory for Urban Water Infrastructure Studies is dedicated to the study of water use management in urban areas, and research into management and uses of alternatives that will lead to better water use and reduced infrastructure costs. The lab is also a teaching lab for urban water systems analysis and urban storm water systems management. Director: Dr. Larry Roesner Phone: (970) 491-7430 Fax: 491-7727 Hydraulic Research Laboratory. A world class facility comprised of flumes and associated equipment for hydraulic model studies and hydraulic research. Supports research, trains undergraduate and graduate students and provides hydraulic testing and support services. Director: Christopher I. Thorton Phone: (970) 491-8394 Fax: (970) 491-8462 Hydrologic & Water Resources Computing Laboratory provides computer software and hardware requirements for graduate students engaged in research in the Hydrology program. Director: Jorge Ramirez Phone: (970) 491-7621 Fax: (970) 491-7727 Hydromachinery Laboratory & Turbine Research Facility developed for conducting specialized research on hydromachinery (valves, meters, turbines), on pipeline transients, and on unique piping networks. The lab is used to conduct research, support undergraduate and graduate teaching, and provides testing services in areas not available in the private sector. Director: Christopher I. Thorton Phone: (970) 491-8394 Fax: (970) 491-8462 Integrated Decision Support Group (IDS) combines advanced modeling techniques with software engineering to create Decision Support Systems for water and natural resources management. Develops decision support systems by combining software engineering and geographic information systems with advanced modeling techniques in natural resources management and civil and agricultural engineering. Promote "cross-pollination" of ideas by working with people who have different technical expertise including sponsoring agencies. Director: Luis Garcia Phone: (970) 491-5144 Fax: (970) 491-7626 http://www.ids.colostate.edu/ International School for Water Resources (ISWR) was established in 1967 to provide advanced non-degree training for engineers and managers concerned with water resources engineering and technical management alternatives. Director: Darrell Fontane Phone: (970) 491-5248 Fax: (970) 491-6787. Go to ISWR website. Jack E. Cermak Thermal Fluid Sciences Laboratory. The Thermal-Fluid Science Laboratory includes a collection of experiments and instrumentation design to compliment instruction in basic fluid mechanics, hydraulics, experimental methods, heat transfer and thermodynamics. The laboratory is equipped with a selection of flumes, wind tunnels, water tunnels, pipe flow and network experiments, engines, heat exchangers; as well as computers, data-acquisitions, equipment and software, oscilloscopes, multi-meters, and other equipment. The laboratory provides the instructor with the opportunity to demonstrate concepts or for the student to creatively inquire into mechanical principles. The Mountain-Plains Consortium (MPC), is one of 10 University Transportation Centers sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The MPC is the center for Region VIII and a national resource and focal point for the support of research and training concerning the transportation infrastructure and the movement of passengers and freight. Richard Gutowski Phone: 491-8291 Fax: 491-2788. Go to the MPC website. Nelson & Shepard-Miller Graduate Geotechnical Laboratory, Geoenvironmental Lab & Advanced Geoenvironmental Testing Center (AGENTC) serves as a center for the development and utilization of advanced testing capabilities for implementation in geoenvironmental engineering practice. The objectives are: to offer advanced testing capabilities that meet the requirements and demands of the geoenvironmental engineering industry, and to increase existing equipment and testing capabilities at Colorado State University in the areas of unsaturated and saturated flow and transport, particularly with respect to materials being used in the geoenvironmental industry. Director: Charles Shackelford Phone: (970) 491-5051 Fax: (970) 491-7727 The Rocky Mountain Regional Hazardous Substance Research Center (HSRC) for remediation of mine waste sites was formed on November 1, 2001, through funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Rocky Mountain Regional HSRC consists of a consortium of participants from Colorado State University, Colorado School of Mines, Montana Tech from the University of Montana, and several academic and non-academic participants from other regions of the U.S. and Canada.The research goal of the Rocky Mountain Regional HSRC is to develop new and to improve existing methods or technologies for remediation of mine waste sites that are cost effective and lead to clean ups that are protective of human health and the environment. The outreach activities of the Rocky Mountain Regional HSRC include technology transfer, technical outreach and service to communities (TOSC), and technical assistance for brownfields (TAB). Director: Charles Shackelford Phone: (970) 491-5051 Fax: (970) 491-7727. Go to the website. The Sedimentation Laboratory is a compilation of specialized equipment to analyze sand, silt, and clay particles associated with the transport of sediments in streams and rivers. The lab is used to support the research conducted in the Hydraulics lab and to train undergraduate and graduate students. Director: Christopher I. Thorton Phone: (970) 491-8394 Fax: (970) 491-8462 Turbulence Processing & Control Laboratory provides experimental and computational infrastructure for fundamental studies of turbulence, turbulent flow-solid body interaction and their control. Director: Bogusz J. Bienkiewicz Phone: (970) 491-8232 Fax: (970) 491-8200 Waste Water Treatment Research Pilot Plant. The Water Treatment Research Pilot Plant is located at the south end of the Hydraulic Laboratory and has a design flow of 76 L/min (20 gpm) with ten unit processes, including rapid mix/coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, filtration, ozonation, absorption, ion exchange, air stripping, and membrane filtration. Removals of contaminants can be done on any combination of unit processes or any unit processes can be isolated for more fundamental research. On line sensors include: Hach streaming current, Hach turbidimeters, Met One particle counters, and Signet pH, temperature, conductivity, and pressure. The facility is controlled by a MicroDac board with micro-relays to control pumps and valves with unit conversions of 20 mv analog signals to digital calibrations. The facility is operated by a PC computer with backup power and alarm system to provide alerts concerning problems. A break in a water line, for example, would result in an orderly shutdown. The plant can be operated continuously for indefinite periods and can be operated unattended as needed. The computer is connected to the CSU Net for transfer of data, and for remote monitoring and control. The pilot plant has been utilized on a number of research projects since it's construction in 1992, including projects sponsored by the US Army Corps of Engineers, the USEPA, and the American Water Works Association Research Foundation. The pilot plant has been used regularly in teaching design of water treatment processes. Director: Kenneth Carlson Phone: (970) 491-8336 Fax: (970) 491-7727 Water Resource Systems Computing Laboratory provides unique computer software and hardware requirements for graduate students engaged in research in the Water Resources Planning and Management program. Director: John Labadie, Timothy K. Gates, Darrell Fontane Phone: (970) 491-6898, (970) 491-5247, (970) 491-5248 Fax: (970) 491-7727, (970) 491-7727, (970) 491-6787 Wind Engineering and Fluids Laboratory (WEFL). One of the international laboratories where the foundations of wind engineering were established. This laboratory has three large meteorological and seven smaller specialized wind tunnels to simulate atmospheric flow over the surface of the earth. Specialized features and instrumentation permit measurements of velocity, pressure, concentration, and temperature. Director: Bogusz J. Bienkiewicz Phone: (970) 491-8232 Fax: (970) 491-8200 The primary locations for Civil and Environmental Engineering research are: Engineering BuildingThe Engineering Building, on the main Colorado State campus, is home to Civil and Environmental Engineering, as well as other engineering departments. Map. Glover Building (Engineering South)The Glover Building, also known as Engineering South, is home to the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, as well as several civil engineering labs and computing spaces. Engineering Research Center (ERC)The ERC is an 110,000-square-foot research facility supporting faculty and student projects in civil, electrical, and mechanical engineering. Director: Christopher I. Thorton, phone: (970) 491-8394. |
College of Engineering
Civil & Environmental Engineering
Colorado State University
Campus Delivery 1372
Fort Collins, CO 80523-1372
Ph: (970) 491-5048, Fax: (970) 491-7727
