Civil and Environmental Engr
- CEE 102A/EGR 102A/MAE 102A: Engineering in the Modern WorldLectures and readings focus on bridges, railroads, power plants, steamboats, telegraph, highways, automobiles, aircraft, computers, and the microchip. Historical analysis provides a basis for studying societal impact by focusing on scientific, political, ethical, and aesthetic aspects in the evolution of engineering over the past two and a half centuries. The precepts and the papers will focus historically on engineering ideas including the social and political issues raised by these innovations and how they were shaped by society as well as how they helped shape culture.
- CEE 102B/EGR 102B/MAE 102B: Engineering in the Modern WorldLectures and readings focus on bridges, railroads, power plants, steamboats, telegraph, highways, automobiles, aircraft, computers, and the microchip. We study some of the most important engineering innovations since the Industrial Revolution. The laboratory centers on technical analysis that is the foundation for design of these major innovations. The experiments are modeled after those carried out by the innovators themselves, whose ideas are explored in the light of the social environment within which they worked.
- CEE 205: Mechanics of SolidsThis course teaches fundamental principles of solid mechanics. Equilibrium equations, reactions, internal forces, stress, strain, Mohr's circle, and Hooke's law. Analysis of the stress and deformation in simple structural members for safe and stable engineering design. Axial force in bars, torsion in shafts, bending and shearing in beams, stability of elastic columns, strain transformation, stress transformation, combined loadings.
- CEE 344/ENV 344: Water, Engineering, and CivilizationA modern view of water resources, from the physical and engineering principles appealing to CEE students to the broader historical and social aspects of sustainable development of interest to the environmental sciences and humanities. Teams of students will develop interconnected design projects on water distribution, hydrologic hazards, and sustainable use of soil and water resources, with emphasis on interdisciplinary communication among stakeholders. Guest lectures will cover some of the historical, political, and legal aspects of the works, complemented by a visit to the world-renown hydraulic infrastructure of the Catskills-NYC aqueduct.
- CEE 345/STC 345/MSE 345/MAE 327: Origami EngineeringThis class acquaints the student with the state-of-art concepts and algorithms to design and analyze origami systems (assemblies, structures, tessellations, etc). Students will learn how to understand, create and transform geometries by folding and unfolding concepts, and thus apply origami concepts to solve engineering and societal problems. In addition, using origami as a tool, we will outreach to some fundamental concepts in differential geometry.
- CEE 361/MAE 325/MSE 331: Matrix Structural Analysis and Introduction to Finite-Element MethodsThis course presents the Matrix Structural Analysis (MSA) and Finite Element Methods (FEM) in a cohesive framework. The first half of the semester is devoted to MSA topics: derivation of truss, beam and frame elements; assembly and partitioning of the global stiffness matrix; and equivalent nodal loads. The second half covers the following FEM topics: strong and weak forms of boundary value problems including steady-state heat conduction, and linear elasticity, Galerkin approximations, constant strain triangle, isoparametric quads. Modern topics, such as polygonal elements, will be introduced. MATLAB is used for computer assignments.
- CEE 366: Design of Reinforced Concrete StructuresMaterials in reinforced concrete. Flexural analysis and design of beams. Shear and diagonal tension in beams. Short columns. Frames. Serviceability. Bond, anchorage and development length. Slabs. Special topics. Introduction to design of prestressed concrete.
- CEE 374/STC 374: Autonomous Fabrication and RoboticsAn introductory course with several demonstration and hands-on components of fabrication with autonomous and robotic systems. Covers formal methods of fabrication and programming of moderately complex elements, including related fabrication platforms, extrusion platforms, various designs of material, structure, and programming of toolpath. The course is centered around lectures with laboratory/virtual studio individual and team-based assignments involving computer-controlled additive manufacturing and robotic systems, student reading, and peer-reviewed presentation and reporting assignments.
- CEE 375: Independent StudyIndependent Study in the student's area of interest. The work must be conducted under the supervision of a faculty member and must result in a final paper. Permission of advisor and instructor are required. Open to sophomores and juniors. Must fill out Independent Study form.
- CEE 467: Design and Behavior of Steel StructuresTopics in the design and analysis of steel structures are covered such as geometric properties and stresses of built-up shapes, columns, beams, and tension members.
- CEE 471/GEO 471/URB 471: Introduction to Water Pollution TechnologyAn introduction to the science of water quality management and pollution control in natural systems; fundamentals of biological and chemical transformations in natural waters; indentification of sources of pollution; water and wastewater treatment methods; fundamentals of water quality modeling.
- CEE 474: Special Topics in Civil and Environmental Engineering: The Climatological, Hydrological & Environmental Footprints of CitiesThis course examines how cities modify their environment, with a focus on the grand urban challenges of the 21st century related to climate, water, and pollution. It starts with an introduction to the challenge of urbanization and how the population and size of cities can be quantified and modeled. We then examine heat, air and water flow in cities, focusing on how they induce urban heat islands, exacerbate floods, modify power consumption, and reduce thermal comfort. We conclude the course with an examination of how buildings and cities can be designed to be more sustainable and sensitive to their climate.
- CEE 507: Independent Study IUnder the direction of a faculty member, each student carries out independent study. Prior to course registration, students must complete a departmental Graduate Independent Study form that describes the work being undertaken, and have the form approved by the supervising faculty member and the Director of Graduate Studies.
- CEE 508: Independent Study IIUnder the direction of a faculty member, each student carries out independent study. Prior to course registration, students must complete a departmental Graduate Independent Study form that describes the work being undertaken, and have the form approved by the supervising faculty member and the Director of Graduate Studies. Usually taken in the Spring semester.
- CEE 509: Directed ResearchUnder the direction of a faculty member, each student carries out research and presents the results. Directed research is normally taken during the first year of study. The total grading of the course will be 25% poster presentation and 75% submitted work.
- CEE 510: Research SeminarThis is a continuation of CEE 509. Each student carries out research, writes a report and presents the research results. Doctoral candidates must complete this course one semester prior to taking the general examination. The total grading of the course is based 25% on oral presentation and 75% based on advisors evaluation of the semester's work.
- CEE 537: Structural Health MonitoringStructural Health Monitoring is a relatively new, interdisciplinary branch of engineering. This course introduces the topic with basic definitions of measurement and monitoring, monitoring activities and entities, and with various available and emerging monitoring technologies. The fundamental criteria for applications on concrete, steel and composite materials are elaborated, and the basics on data interpretation and analysis for both static and dynamic monitoring are presented. Finally methods applicable to large spectrum of civil structures, such as bridges, buildings, geo structures, and large structures are developed.
- CEE 545/MAE 556/MSE 535: Origami EngineeringThis class acquaints the student with the state-of-art concepts and algorithms to design and analyze origami systems (assemblies, structures, tessellations, etc). Students learn how to understand, create and transform geometries by folding and unfolding concepts, and thus apply origami concepts to solve engineering and societal problems. In addition, using origami as a tool, we outreach to some fundamental concepts in differential geometry.
- CEE 566: Wind Engineering and Structural DynamicsStudents learn how to account for wind effects in structural design to ensure that the performance of structures subjected to the action of wind are adequate during their anticipated life from the standpoint of both structural safety and serviceability. Three linked topics are discussed: (1) the wind environment, (2) the relation between that environment and the forces it induces on the structure, and (3) the behavior of the structure under the action of these forces.
- CEE 567: Advanced Design and Behavior of Steel StructuresAdvanced topics in the design and analysis of steel structures are covered. These topics include local and global stability (buckling), second-order effects of combined bending and axial loads, and torsion.
- CEE 571/ENV 571: Environmental ChemistryThis course covers pollutant chemicals in the environment with a focus on water and soil. The focus is on hazardous and toxic chemicals such as benzene, trichloroethane, pesticides and PCBs. In this course, environmental chemistry serves as a vehicle for study of chemical thermodynamics. Students gain an understanding of Gibbs free energy, chemical potential, and fugacity, and the universal applicability of thermodynamics to describe equilibrium and kinetic processes such as phase partitioning.
- CEE 581: Theory of Groundwater FlowFundamental physics of fluid flow and contaminant transport in porous media; derivation of governing equations; analytical solutions for simplified equations, with applications to well hydraulics, contaminant transport, and parameter estimation; and development of simple numerical methods with applications to field problems. The course also covers flow and transport in unsaturated soils and provides an introduction to multiphase flow systems.
- CEE 586/ENV 586: Physical HydrologyThis class introduces the components of the hydrologic cycle and their interconnections in a rigorous, quantitative manner. The class focuses on exercises using observational data. There is a modeling and data analysis component using Python and Jupyter Notebooks.
- CEE 587/ENV 587: EcohydrologyThe course provides the theoretical bases for a quantitative description of complex interactions between hydrologic cycle, vegetation and soil biogeochemistry. The first part of the course focuses on modeling the water, carbon and energy dynamics within the soil-plant-atmosphere system at timescales ranging from minute to daily; the second part incorporates rainfall unpredictability and provides a probabilistic description of the soilplant system valid at seasonal to interannual timescales. These concepts are important for a proper management of water resources and terrestrial ecosystems.
- CEE 596: Extramural Research ProjectResearch project designed in conjunction with the student's advisor and an industrial, NGO, or government sponsor that provides practical experience relevant to the student's research area. A final paper is required.
- CEE 599: Special Topics in Environmental Engineering and Water Resources: Environmental Field Design and SamplingThis course discusses the strategies, designs, limitations, and sources of bias of environmental field sampling, with a focus on atmospheric emissions and concentration mapping. Students design their own field strategy for local sampling of greenhouse gases and air pollutants through stationary and mobile platforms. The accuracy of the results are discussed in the context of measurement specifications (precision, accuracy, drift, calibration methods), field sampling design, and atmospheric variability, including strategies to quantify or constrain systematic errors in the overall field design.
- ENE 267/MSE 287/CEE 267: Materials for Energy Technologies and EfficiencyAn introductory course focused on the new and existing materials that are crucial for mitigating worldwide anthropogenic CO2 emissions and associated greenhouse gases. Emphasis will be placed on how materials science is used in energy technologies and energy efficiency; including solar power, cements and natural materials, sustainable buildings, batteries, water filtration, and wind and ocean energy. Topics include: atomic structure and bonding; semiconductors; inorganic oxides; nanomaterials; porous materials; conductive materials; membranes; composites; energy conversion processes; life-cycle analysis; material degradation.
- ENE 321/CEE 321/ENV 371: Resource Recovery for a Circular EconomyThe course will focus on emerging science and technologies that enable the transition from our traditional linear economy (take, make, waste) to a new circular economy (reduce, reuse, recycle). It will discuss the fundamental theories and applied technologies that are capable of converting traditional waste materials or environmental pollutants such as wastewater, food waste, plastics, e-waste, and CO2, etc. into valued-added products including energy, fuels, chemicals, and food products.
- ENV 343/CEE 343/SAS 343/ASA 343: Inequality and Sustainability in India and USA: An Interdisciplinary Global PerspectiveThis course addresses inequality in the context of sustainability, focusing on India with comparison to the USA and global trajectories. Students will explore social inequality and inequality in access to basic services; exposure to environmental pollution and climate risks; participation in governance; and, overall outcomes of sustainability, health and wellbeing. They will learn key theoretical frameworks underpinning inequality and equity, measurement approaches, and explore emerging strategies for designing equitable sustainability transitions, drawing upon engineering, spatial planning, public health, and policy perspectives.
- GEO 361/ENV 361/CEE 360: Earth's AtmosphereThis course discusses the processes that control Earth's climate - and as such the habitability of Earth - with a focus on the atmosphere and the global hydrological cycle. The course balances overview lectures (also covering topics that have high media coverage like the 'Ozone hole' and 'Global warming', and the impact of volcanoes on climate) with selected in-depth analyses. The lectures are complemented with homework based on real data, demonstrating basic data analysis techniques employed in climate sciences.
- HUM 417/ART 408/CEE 415/HLS 417: Historical Structures: Ancient Architecture's Materials, Construction and EngineeringThe students will pursue inquiry beyond the conventional boundaries of the two respective disciplines (ART and CEE): to learn and master relevant elements of structural engineering and to understand, appreciate, and solve myriad problems of realization of large structural works, including their design, structural analysis, and construction; and, concomitantly, to pursue a fully historical contextualization of architectural structures, including the technological developments, sociological aspects, and aesthetic traditions in which these monuments find their place. Students will work in mixed groups and collaborate on their course projects.
- MSE 501/MAE 561/CEE 561/CBE 514: Introduction to MaterialsEmphasizes the connection between microscale features of hard and soft materials and their properties. Topics include crystal structures and defects, phase diagrams and transformations, polymer conformation and solutions, and mechanical and electrical properties. This course combines traditional lecture with active learning approaches like peer-peer instruction, social annotation, and discussion.