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Shape Deformities in Recycled Concrete as a Substitute Aggregate in Concrete
Get PDFConcrete is a universal material that is used widely across the construction industry. Within a standard concrete mix, a fine aggregate and a coarse aggregate are added to the mix design to help with solidity and compressive strength in the mixture. The admixtures, additives, slump, and mix ratios will differ based on the compressive strength you\u27re trying to attain. This paper directly reflects the results of the differences between shapes in recycled concrete used as a coarse aggregate substitute in concrete mixes. As the construction industry grows, so does outreach towards sustainability and reusing materials anywhere the industry can. Testing concrete re-batched in a new mix is sustainable but seemingly broad. The results found in this paper will shed light on the compressive strengths of re-batched concrete but centralize the focus on the differences in rounded versus jagged pieces. The research found will educate the industry on how applicable recycled jagged concrete used as coarse aggregate could be and help continue more extensive research by industry professionals to allow for potential applications in the real world
Sustainable Living Edu
Get PDFFor my senior project, I created a virtual sustainability training program called ‘Sustainable Living Edu’ for students and employees at Cal Poly SLO. There is a lack of environmental literacy at Cal Poly and other campuses in the California State University (CSU) System. Sustainable Living Edu will educate students and employees at Cal Poly about what sustainability is and how to apply sustainable practices into their daily routines
SLO Hard Seltzer
Get PDFFor my senior project, I created an alcoholic seltzer brand called SLO Seltzer. SLO Seltzer is marketed towards young adults of all genders ranging from the ages of 21 to 26 who are either currently living in San Luis Obispo or who have a personal connection to the area. I designed a unique logo, created eye-catching packaging prototypes, and developed a cohesive social media presence which encapsulates the business’ brand, goals, and values.
To complete this project, I began by researching the current alcoholic seltzer market to find out which business strategies have created the most successful brands and use this information to guide my project forward. I also looked at successful alcoholic beverage designs to see how I could mimic their techniques in my designs.
My next steps included developing a color scheme, logos, branding mood boards, and rough prototypes of packaging designs. From there, I developed a more finalized brand and design using my skills in Adobe Illustrator, InDesign, and Dimension. I also received feedback from my peers and experts in the field of marketing to get more sets of eyes on my work and add improvements to my designs. By the end of the quarter, I have created a unique alcoholic seltzer brand that would hopefully be able to compete with popular brands in the city of San Luis Obispo if it were to be launched into production
Using Sustainable Web Design Practices: Website Redesign for The ClimateMusic Project
Get PDFSustainable practices go beyond reducing, reusing, and recycling in the physical world. In the digital world, design has a high environmental impact, so the choices designers make can eat up electricity and raise their carbon footprint. Therefore, designing low-carbon sites through UX, imagery, and color, and using a sustainability host is very beneficial for both usability and the environment. The ClimateMusic Project is a non-profit organization that aims to raise climate change awareness through music. This organization seeks to reduce their carbon footprint as well as help raise awareness through their Take Action web page. For my senior project I will help them reach this goal by redesigning their website to be more sustainable and user friendly. This will also come with a branding guide to be used across all their platforms. I will also work to increase the activity on their Take Action page by redesigning it and creating an animated logo to generate brand awareness. To check the results, I plan to track the insights and activity on these pages as well as run the new website through an ecograder/ carbon emitter for websites
8 DOF Quadrupedal Hopping Robot
Get PDFThe goal of our senior project was to fabricate an eight degree of freedom (DOF) prototypical quadrupedal robot, develop a controller than commands the quadruped to repeatedly jump 10 cm in the air, and fabricate a modular test stand to safely deploy our controller on the quadruped. The creation of a functional quadruped will bring attention to Dr. Siyuan Xing and Charlie Refvem’s research group, Cal Poly Legged Robots, and will give future Cal Poly undergraduate and graduate students a learning tool to explore dynamic control of biomimetic robotic systems.
Over the course of our senior project, we successfully manufactured the mechanical quadrupedal prototype, we fabricated a wire harness to power and communicate with the actuators in our system, we developed a controller in MATLAB/Simulink that commands our quadruped to repeatedly jump 10 cm in the air, and we fabricated a modular test stand that holds our necessary electronics and facilitates the quadruped’s dynamic motion. This hopping robot will be a platform for future Cal Poly students to develop control algorithms for future senior projects and master theses, with one such being student Patrick Ward’s Master’s Thesis in which he is developing a bounding gait simulation in MATLAB/Simulink that will be deployed onto the quadruped in a later senior project.
Our success in developing a quadrupedal prototype and verifying its functionality (durability, centered mass, manufacturability) has also drawn attention to Cal Poly Legged Robots from both students at Cal Poly and the Industrial Advisory Board (IAB). This will ensure that future students at Cal Poly are interested in becoming involved with CP Legged Robots and that funding will be available to continue researching and improving our software, electronic hardware, and mechanical system
CityEngine as a Tool for Visualizing Neighborhood Change: An Initial Study
Get PDFUrban planning is reliant upon genuine public engagement to ensure that planning and policy decisions reflect the ideas shared by the public. Because planning is a profession largely focused on the physical and built implications of more abstract planning concepts, effective graphic communication is critical to securing public support and understanding of policy decisions. ESRI\u27s CityEngine uses procedural modeling technology to render personally-tailored scenes to non-planner members of the public, and shows potential to positively change the way that planners generate graphic representations of physical impacts of policy changes. This initial study establishes a methodology for determining the efficacy of CityEngine as a tool for visualizing neighborhood change, tests the methodology, and provides a discussion on how to improve it going forward
Oceanside Angler’s Club David Pine Memorial Weight Board
Get PDFThe David Pine Memorial Weight Board was constructed for the Oceanside Angler’s Club. I was contacted by this organization, to create a weigh board in founding member David Pine’s memory. The club had a previous weight board that was destroyed due to the harsh conditions of the coast. The process of building this board incorporated many of the facets taught in the Cal Poly curriculum. I had to work with the owners in order to create a suitable design, materials had to be acquired using alternative methods, subcontractors were worked with to create components of the board, and a schedule had to be met. The board was design, constructed, and installed in the Oceanside Harbor where the Angler Club hosts its fishing tournaments, water safety awareness, and beach clean ups. The purpose of the weight board is to post of weights of fish caught by the different boats during the tournaments hosted by the club. The final product was a fully functioning and weather resistant weigh board that not only fulfills its desired function but commemorates one of the clubs’ founding members. Continuing not only his legacy but the legacy of the club
Analysis of Novel Corrosion Resistant Maraging Steels for Use in Additive Manufacturing
Get PDFStainless maraging steel has been proven to be an industry standard material for plastic injection molds. Its high hardness and corrosion resistance extend the lifetime of the tool. This alloy system is also well-suited to additive manufacturing, which can be utilized to form internal cooling channels, further increasing tool life. Using Rapid Alloy Development (RAD) Oerilkon METCO is developing a new composition of stainless maraging tool steel that has high hardness/strength, is corrosion resistant, and has additive-capable melting and solidification properties. This study tests the hardness and corrosion resistance of the new RAD alloys against the current market competitor Corrax in hardness and corrosion resistance across different heat treatments. Hardness was measured using Rockwell C (HRC) and Vickers microhardness testing and corrosion resistance was measured using a potentiostat and salt fog spray chamber. Heat treatments were conducted at four temperatures and two times: 475, 525, 575, and 600°C at both 4 and 8 hours. The form of the novel and Corrax alloys in this study is a sectioned arc-melted ingot. Following testing, the novel alloys in peak-aged condition were harder than Corrax by around 5 HRC and had comparable corrosion resistance, verifying that the novel alloys would be competitive based on these properties
Use of Industrialized Construction Within Mechanical Contractors Association of America
Get PDFIt is a constant battle in the construction industry to improve productivity and efficiency while keeping the cost and schedule as low as possible. This can be made possible through the use of industrialized construction strategies such as, prefabrication, building information modeling (BIM), and automation. In this study, the main purpose of this survey was to collect information about MCAA firms’ knowledge of industrialized construction strategies, their use of them in the past, and their willingness to use them in the future. It also aims to explore the use of industrialized construction and its viability as a path for mechanical contractors to create more work and grow construction businesses. This study also investigates and the different strategies used within industrialized construction and defines the benefits of their use. A survey was created and sent out to companies within Mechanical Contractors of America (MCAA). From the survey results, it can be concluded that there was a mix of those who used it as much as possible and those who have never heard of it, however, of the companies that have used these strategies, there was significant savings in cost and schedule on their projects
Analysis of the Retention Rate of Students in the Granite Heavy Civil Minor
Get PDFThe purpose of this paper is to analyze the retention rate of the Cal Poly Granite Heavy Civil Minor program. This program began in 2020, with the first cohort graduating in Spring of 2022. Throughout the past two years, there have been several students who have joined the program, however they have decided to no longer pursue the minor. Through personal conversations, personal experience, as well as a survey directed to both construction management and civil engineering students, it was identified that scheduling concerns seemed to be a primary factor that was creating apprehensiveness in students. The survey showed that 95% of students believe that an updated flowchart in conjunction with a class supporting document would be beneficial and would assist with scheduling conflicts. After analyzing the survey, two separate deliverables were created; these deliverables consisted of two flowcharts and a supporting classes document with information on the eight minor specific classes to be taken. It is hoped that these documents will be used as a tool for construction management students experiencing scheduling issues after joining the program. These documents will provide increased clarity and aid on these issues and will increase the retention of students in the program