CHIEF EDITOR
Dr. Devendra Mohan

STUDENT EDITORS
Aditya Kanodia, B. Tech., Part IV
Arun Kumar Singh, B. Tech., Part IV
Navin Kumar, M. Tech., IDD Part IV
 

 
 ahamanaa Pandit Madan Mohan
Ma M M
Malaviya
The Founder
Banaras Hindu
H Univversity
(25.12.18661 – 12.11.1946)

i 
 
 KULGEET

ii 
 
 IT CHORUS

Hand in hand we go together,

Hand in hand we are singing along.

Side by side we face the music,

Win or lose we always sing a song.

Wave the flag, we’ll keep it flying,

Till the sun shines o’er the land.

If the luck is good we’ll always share the cheers,

If the luck is bad, we’ll gladly bear the tears.

Till the day we turn the corner,

We’ll keep on as long as we are hand in hand.

If you keep on smiling at the rainbow,

You will never mind a shower of rain.

Keep your head on the clouds,

Don’t get lost in the crowds.

Always keep the song in your heart,

And shout hip-hip hurrah.

iii 
 
 iv 
 
 v 
 
 vi 
 
 vii 
 
 viii 
 
 ix 
 
 x 
 
 EDITORIAL
Civil Engineering may be considered to have started namelessly from the day, when primitive
caveman made modifications to caves and the surroundings to convert these into more
comfortable and protected places to live. In Indian subcontinent, Civil Engineering has been in
very developed form from the ancient time. Confirmation of this reality arises from the
marvelous planning of large cities in the Civilizations of Harappa, Mohan-Jo-Daro, Dholavira,
port of Lothal and many other related places.

Since Civil Engineering has always been closely associated with the day-to-day activities of all
human-beings directly or indirectly, it can be obviously comprehended that this ever-youth
discipline of engineering is related to the profession, which is never going to fade. In fact, there
seems to remain a very high potential for research and development in this field in near as well
as distant future.

As described earlier, many instances can be cited to establish that the residents of Indian
Subcontinent accomplished very advanced levels of scientific and technological progress in Civil
Engineering in ancient time and this discipline keeps expanding very fast at present also. The
word used to describe science and technology (in general) in Sanskrit is ‘Shilpa-Shāstra’ and this
discipline has always occupied such an elevated and central position in public-life that it has
been regarded as an ‘Upaveda’, i.e., indispensable component of ‘Veda’ and in importance, just
next to them.

The name of this mega-event, being held at the second time, has been borrowed from this
Sanskrit phrase and thus, SHIP ’09: The Second National Conference on Recent Advances in
Civil Engineering (RACE) and All India Civil Engineering Festival is being organized in the
year 2009. A group of six major activities has been methodically prepared for an efficient
implementation in the period of three days, i.e., March 27-29, 2009 during SHIP’09.

Just preceding to this mega-event, there has been SHIP’07: The First All India Civil Engineering
Festival and National Conference on ‘Civil Engineering and Technology: Emerging Frontiers’.
It was organized as the first and foremost national activity by Civil Engineering Society in the
year 2007. Other such events are supposed to follow in this series on biennial basis at national
level. An array of eight important activities had been meticulously planned and successfully
carried out in the period of two days, i.e., January 27-28, 2007 during SHIP’07.*

Keeping the longstanding majestic traditions of the place (Kashi) in view and also, to ensure
further the catalytic role to be played by the Civil Engineering Department in nation-building in
future, another mega-event, namely SHILP’09, has been planned carefully to be organized (in
sequence after SHILP’07) countrywide for much higher targets to be attained in near future by
the Civil Engineering fraternity. Six important activities taking place during this mega-event are
to be conducted in a very well-planned manner so that the associated profession is augmented
further to meet successfully different demanding responsibilities in near as well a bit far-fetched
time in future.

*A workshop was also conducted by Dr. Devendra Mohan on a topic of high relevance, i.e., ‘Research Paper
Writing’ on January 28, 2007 for the benefit of the participants from various institutions all over.
xi 
 
With the advancement of human civilization, many new problems have been cropping up and
such emerging and tough challenges require much better-trained Civil Engineering-Professionals
and also, more in number. As a matter of fact, a strong motive to provide feasible solutions to
such diverse and emerging challenges has been one of the sole grounds behind the
conceptualization and implementation of an array of activities in the form of the Biennial Event,
i.e., SHILP.

The main objective of this biennial event is to concentrate on feasible engineering solutions to
numerous difficulties, which may also be quite recent to the related profession in 21st century. It
is not intricate to understand that in a quite foreseeable future, specially-skilled Civil
Engineering- Professionals may be required to execute large-scale projects even on some extra-
terrestrial objects like the Moon and the Mars.

In the National Conference (RACE) being conducted as a part of SHILP’09 at All India Level,
various facets in connection with the begetting trends in Civil Engineering are planned to be
taken up for discussion by way of erudite speeches by distinguished academicians and
professionals. The students will also get an opportunity to make presentations related to the
papers, which have already been submitted by them and then, examined rigorously by the
Review Committee and the Editorial Board. Lively discussion after every presentation will be
held to assess and also, help in improving the overall understanding and analytic abilities of
various participants.

Numerous technical papers, which have been listed for presentation during the three days of the
Event, are linked to various subdivisions of Civil Engineering like Environmental Engineering,
Geotechnical Engineering, Hydraulics and Water Resources Engineering, Structural
Engineering, Surveying (including Remote Sensing, Geographical Information System,
Geographical Positioning System and other sub-disciplines) and Transportation Engineering.

This National Conference (RACE) will also provide a highly stimulating environment because of
advanced learning-possibilities for students. In addition, it will also offer an elevated stage for
exchange of brilliant ideas amongst distinguished academicians, planners, managers, field-
engineers, engineering scientists and the students. To augment further certain specialized skills
of the participants, a Workshop is also being conducted on March 29, 2009 by Dr. Devendra
Mohan** on a very important theme, i.e., ‘Interdisciplinary Research in Civil Engineering’
during the SHILP’09.

This Proceedings presents a record of some of the Key-Note Lectures delivered by renowned
experts in their respective fields. It also includes edited papers, which were contributed by the
participants from various prestigious academic institutions, spread all over the country. I expect
that the Proceedings will keep providing a very valuable service also in future as an important
reference-material for anyone working in different fields related to Civil Engineering and also,
for others in some related disciplines.

I strongly believe that active participation in various activities being conducted under the
auspices of SHILP’09 will inspire the participants to get themselves equipped with desired skills
in a superior and professional manner to encounter successfully a number of tough challenges,

**In association with Dr. S. Mandal, Dr. Rajesh Kumar and Dr. Pankaj Kumar
xii 
 
which are fairly diverse in nature and may be anticipated to come up in the fields connected to
Civil Engineering in the twenty-first century.

Further, I trust that a number of activities conducted during SHILP’09 will infuse in the
participants a sense of indefatigable spirit of innovation and consequently, this mega-event will
be able to inculcate certain traits of distinctiveness in them to face various practical problems
with skillful vigor and thus, attain a definitive and superb conquest, even in the matter of
encountering seemingly insurmountable situations, many times arising in field-practice in the
professional life.

As the concluding-remark, it is stated that a general disclaimer is applicable for the findings and
conclusions presented during the SHILP’09 and those mentioned in various papers included in
the Proceedings. The sole responsibility for these papers lies with the author(s) of the papers. It
is also worth-mentioning that the Civil Engineering Society, Department of Civil Engineering,
I.T., B.H.U., Varanasi or the group involved in organizing the SHILP’09 cannot be held
accountable in future for any adverse implication of various presentations made during the
SHILP’09 and/or the papers included in this Proceedings.

Date: March 27, 2009. (Devendra Mohan)

Place: B.H.U., Varanasi. Convener, SHILP’09

   

xiii 
 
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I put on record my profound sense of gratitude and heartfelt thanks to Professor S. N. Upadhyay,
Director, Institute of Technology, Banaras Hindu University for providing the financial support
and sagacious guidance to organize SHILP’09: The Second National Conference on Recent
Advances in Civil Engineering (RACE) and All India Civil Engineering Festival during March
27-29, 2009. Also, I am highly obliged to Professor V. Singh, Dean, Faculty of Engineering and
Technology, BHU for the valuable help and encouragement provided by him at different
occasions.

I express my heartfelt feelings of thankfulness and gratitude to the academic and financial
administration of BHU for the financial and other types of support provided for organizing
SHILP’09. I also feel profoundly obliged to Dr. C. S. P. Ojha, Professor, Department of Civil
Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee and a renowned academician and
researcher of international repute, for sparing his precious time to grace the Inaugural Ceremony
of SHILP’09 as the Chief Guest and also, for delivering an enlightening Key-note Lecture.

I express my heart-felt gratitude and a deep sense of thankfulness to all the Key-Note Speakers,
who delivered enlightening lectures during the progress of the National Conference (RACE).
The names of Professor S. N. Upadhyay, Director, Institute of Technology, BHU; Prof. V.
Singh, Department of Civil Engineering, IT, BHU; Professor V. Kumar, Head, Department of
Civil Engineering, IT, BHU; Professor C. S. P. Ojha, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT,
Roorkee; Prof. P. K. Singh, Department of Civil Engineering, IT, BHU; Professor P. S. Tripathi,
Faculty of Management Studies, BHU; Dr. K. K. Pathak, Scientist E-1, Advanced Materials and
Process Research Institute, Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh); and Shri Shambhu Sharan, Deputy Chief
Engineer, South Eastern Coalfields Limited, Bilaspur (Chattis Garh) may be cited distinctively
for making presentations of very high educational values. I also express my feelings of
appreciation and gratefulness to Dr. S. Mandal, Dr. Rajesh Kumar and Dr. Pankaj Kumar for
extending very valuable support in effectively conducting a Workshop on March 29, 2009 on a
topic of crucial importance, i.e., ‘Interdisciplinary Research in Civil Engineering’ during the
progress of SHILP’09.

I express my strong feelings of indebtedness and thankfulness to Professor V. Kumar, Head,

Department of Civil Engineering and the Chairman, SHILP’09, for all the support and guidance
extended by him at all critical junctures. As a matter of fact, it would have not been possible to
organize this grand event (involving multiple dimensions) without his valuable help and
encouragement at various stages of preparation. I also feel obliged to Professor P. K. Singh,
Vice-Chairman, SHILP’09 for all the help and guidance provided by him. I am also thankful to
all the sponsors for providing the financial support, without which organization of SHILP’09
could have not been feasible.

I express my feelings of thankfulness to Dr. S. N. Singh, Training and Placement Officer, IT,
BHU for extending the help and support in various ways for ensuring the success of SHILP’09. I
also feel thankful to Dr. P. Ghosh, Mechanical Engineering Department and his team for doing
the needful to ensure the attachment of the web-page of SHILP’09 with the website of IT, BHU.

xiv 
 
I am grateful to all my colleagues of Civil Engineering Department, IT, BHU for providing help
at various occasions. Also, I express my feeling of thankfulness to the office staff of Civil
Engineering Department and the staff members of IT Finance Branch, BHU for the help
provided by them, whenever required.

I appreciate sincerely the efforts of all the participants and delegates, who have traveled a long
distance to be present here during SHILP’09. They are supposed to contribute enormously in
making the interaction in all the Technical Sessions quite lively. Four student-conveners of this
mega-event, namely Mr. Aditya Kanodia, Mr. Arun Kumar Singh, Mr. Naveen Kumar and Mr.
Chaudhary Ashish Vinoy Kumar deserve my special thanks. Mr. Ankur Agrawal also deserves
my special thanks for the help provided by him in various activities at different stages of
preparation for SHILP’09. In addition, all the student-volunteers involved in various activities
are worthy of my sincere thanks for the support provided by them at various stages encountered
in the process of enabling SHILP’09 achieve an impressive success.

At the end, I realize that I can not enumerate the individual names of all the persons, who have
been directly or indirectly associated to SHILP’09. Therefore, I express my feeling of gratitude
to everyone, who has contributed directly or indirectly towards the successful organization of
SHILP’09.

Date: March 27, 2009. (Devendra Mohan)

Place: BHU, Varanasi. Convener, SHILP’09

xv 
 
 CONTENTS

1. Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya: The Founder of the University i

2. Kulgeet of University ii

3. IT Chorus iii

4. Message from the Honourable Vice-President of India iv

5. Message from the Honourable Vice-Chancellor, B.H.U. v

6. Message from the Honourable Rector, B.H.U. vi

7. Message from the Director, I.T., B.H.U. vii

8. Message from the Dean, Faculty of Engineering & Technology, B.H.U. viii

9. Message from the Chairman, SHILP ‘09 ix

10. Message from the Vice-Chairman, SHILP ‘09 x

11. Editorial xi

12. Acknowledgements xiv

Keynote lectures
1. Potential of River Bank Filtration and Relevant Research Needs in India 2
Dr. C.S.P.Ojha, Professor, CED, IIT, Roorkee.

2. Cracks in building: Prevention and Remedies 9

Dr. Veerendra Kumar, Professor and Head, CED, IT, BHU, Varanasi.

3. Earthquake Resistant Confined Brick Masonry Building for the Gangetic Plain 23
Dr. P. K. Singh, Professor, CED, IT, BHU, Varanasi.

4. Global Warming: Some Contentious Issues 38

Dr. Devendra Mohan, Reader, CED, IT, BHU.

xvi 
 
 Technical Papers
1. Use of Fly Ash in Construction 48
Ankush Agrawal and Vibhu Goel

2. Particle Packing Theory in Concrete Mix Proportioning – A Review 53

Anuradha, Dharankar Dhananjay

3. Durability Studies on SCC and NSC Cubes Exposed to Nitric Acid 61

C. Shilpa Patnaik, Sri. S. Adiseshu and Prof. P.S.N.Raju

4. Blast Loading on Structures and its Mitigation 68

Raghavendra Doneriya and Akshat Sinha

5. Use of SAP Technique in Seismically Isolated RC Building 79

Parik Garg, Himanshupanwar and Praveen Bhatt

6. Sustainable Development Concepts for Civil Engineers 88

Raja Sekhar Mamillapalli

7. Global Warming 96
Ankit Mathur, Mariyam and Ankana Dey

8. Green Roof 105

Hussain Singapurwala and Rajeev Garg

9. Industrial Waste Management 117

Ashish Singhal, Nikhil Bansal and Ashish Gupta

10. Modelling of Fluid Flow by Boundary Element Method 128

Anirban Datta and Rayan Chatterjee

11. Model for Prediction of Pressure Drop in Slurry Transport Pipeline 142
Chandra Prakash Shukla, Parikshit Verma and Dr. S.K. Gupta

12. Bandra Worli Sea Link Project: A Case Study 152

Ritunj Garg and Prathmesh Gargava

13. Remote Sensing and GIS Applications for Mapping and Spatial Model of Invasive
Species 168
T.R.Pradeep, T.Anand, N.V.Deepak and R.Kalaiselvan

14. Emerging Aspects in Remote sensing, GPS and GIS and their Applications in Civil
Engineering 175
Syed Murtuza Abbas and Mohd. Adnan Khan

xvii 
 
 Keynote Lectures

1 
 
 POTENTIAL OF RIVER BANK FILTRATION AND RELEVANT
RESEARCH NEEDS IN INDIA

Dr. C.S.P. Ojha

Professor, Department of Civil Engineering

Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee

1. INTRODUCTION

Indian independence in 1947 from the colonial rule of British Empire has led to a great scientific
and technological development in the last five decades. However, this development is also
diluted by a tremendous growth in the population of the country. Irrespective of this dilution in
the development, Indian rivers, traditionally known for their piousness and divine qualities and
along whose banks Indian civilization flourished from its inception, are losing their ability to
dilute the injected huge quantities of untreated or partially treated municipal and industrial
influents. Glaciers in Himalaya, which contribute intensively to the discharge of many rivers
including Ganga and Yamuna, are also at an alarming stage because of increasing global
temperatures, which are also caused by irresponsible human attitude to conservation of forests.
Huge sediment load in rivers is also frequently encountered in Indian streams as these are
subjected to run off from bare lands. Thus, problems in India are not the same as in many
developed nations. River bank filtration technology has its strong foot holds in developed nations
and its potential can be also utilized in India. However, in order to achieve this, an intensive
program of research is necessary. This article expresses the relevant research needs for the
successful implementation of this technology. It also addresses various issues relevant to the
river bank filtration.

2. HYDRO-GEOLOGICAL SETTINGS

As river bank filtration is an induced flow towards a cone of depression created by a nearby
pumping well, properties of the underlying material below and in the region of river bank filtrate
movement must be known. This is essential to quantify the contribution of river bank filtrate.
Normally, information about aquifer parameters is available for various regions in the country
and Central Ground Water Board, India is the organization responsible for having such
information. However, to suit local conditions, estimation of these parameters may be necessary.
Visit to certain sites (Well no. 18 run by Uttranhal Jal Sansthan, Dehradun) in Haridwar
indicated the use of large diameter wells close to river bank. Also, these wells were found to be
partially penetrating. Information about aquifer parameters was also missing at this site. This
indicates that full potential of river bank filtration is not yet being utilized. In fact, geological
profiles are also not available in many places including the site of river bank filtration in
Haridwar. Similar is the situation in Varanasi. .

Geological profiles for certain places in Patna, a city along the bank of river Ganga, indicate that
pumping wells trap essentially the bulk of ground water flow in many cases unless one has an
indication of the leakage from the river bed. In alluvial rivers, the sediment is normally

2 
 
composed of sand, silt and clay and deposition of these materials on the adjoining land and in the
flood plain coupled with shifting of river course needs a concentrated effort to understand very
well the connectivity of the river to the aquifer.

3. WATER QUALITY

In river bank filtration, quality of water as it travels from river to the pumping well is expected to
improve. However, quality in itself is a very broad term and it refers to a broad spectrum of
physical, chemical and bacteriological parameters. Many river bank filtration sites are not well
equipped to characterize the water quality. Again, a visit by one of us to nearby areas indicated
that a perception exists that the river bank filtration is very effective in providing a good quality
water. This is indeed a positive aspect of this process which does prevail in water organizations,
such as Uttranchal Jal Sansthan. In Agra city, which is also famous for Taj Mahal, water supply
is based on extraction of ground water in the vicinity of river Yamuna. This supply is further
supplemented with a part of treated surface water derived from river Yamuna. This is considered
essential as many areas around Agra experience a saline ground water which is not fit for human
consumption. This indicates possibilities for using river bank filtration in combination with the
ground water. In fact, the state of Rajasthan, which is well known for its poor rainfall, extraction
of water from the river through a very near located intake is being practiced by Kota Fetilisers
Limited, to meet its daily requirement of water. It is worth mentioning that this plant is located
nealy forty kilometers from the main city of Kota (Khare et al., 2004). Nevertheless, Fertiliser
plant has its own water treatment facilities.

In areas with poor rainfall and non-availability of surface waters, increased pumping has led to
decline of ground water table in many parts of the state of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh. Thus,
energy expenditure to extract water in such areas has forced to go for rainwater harvesting and
discharge of waste waters to infiltration basins and then to the underlying aquifers. Nema et al
(2004) describe the results of such an investigation in the state of Gujrat. This study indicates
that municipal wastes could be effectively treated through soil aquifer treatment (SAT)
technology. In fact, SAT highlights few things which merit further attention. First of all, a simple
treatment achieved through infiltration basins is able to improve significantly the quality of
waste waters. The travel by effluent of waste water coming from the infiltration basins by
distance of tens of meters is observed to produce a quality which is fit for irrigation purpose.
Thus, even if the discharge of effluents coming from infiltration basins is flowing in rivers, water
extracted as a part of river bank filtration is likely to improve in quality when compared with the
the river water quality containing the discharge of infiltration basin based treated waste waters.

In fact, rivers have been subjected to such effluents which have led to anoxic conditions in
certain regions. A river, known as Kali and which also happens to be a tributary of the river
Yamuna, shows almost no trace of dissolved oxygen and is marked with high BOD loadings
along with non-point pollution (Jha et al., 2005). Of course, river bank filtration will lose its
charm and attraction if one is concerned about its potential for drinking water. However, it is
observed that farmers use tube wells in the vicinity of the river to extract water for irrigating
adjoining lands close to the river course. In fact, Kali river represents a situation in which the
river water represents an extreme condition of poor quality Understanding of the efficacy of the
potential of river bank filtration is certainly needed for such extreme conditions.

3 
 
Coming to important rivers such as Ganga, water is being extracted in a major part of its stretch
in various cities. Also, the river is being threatened many times by the discharge of partially or
poorly treated effluents. Nevertheless, quality of this river is much better when compared to Kali.
A study from Patna, as reported by Thakur and Ojha (2004), does indicate the presence of E-
Coli in the water of river Ganges. The removal of E-Coli during the passage of river bank
infiltration corroborates the similar findings in developed countries. In western countries,
research is also geared to understand the fate and removal of other microorganisms, such as,
Cryptospordium and Giardia Lambia. However, there is not much reported evidence of
monitoring other types of micro-organisms either in surface water or in the pumped waters, as far
as India is concerned.

Grischek et al. (2005) also indicate that undesirable effects of bank filtration on water quality can
include increase in hardness, ammonium, dissolved iron, manganese and arsenic concentrations.
It is worth mentioning that the view that that the arsenic may increase due to bank filtration is not
precisely supported. In an article published on Arsenic in Down To Earth magazine (March,
2005), a case study from Ballia located in the state of UP is reported. In fact, many stretches in
Eastern UP, Bihar and Bengal are suffering from toxication due to Arsenic. Rural population in
Ballia now realizes the importance of the consumption of river water in comparison to the
polluted ground water. Nevertheless, very little has been done to alleviate the problem and it is
expected that extraction of river bank filtrate will be able to lower the level of arsenic
concentrations in the drinking water to be supplied to the people in the arsenic affected areas.

Problem of arsenic does indicate the importance of geochemical reactions which may occur
within the flow field of interest. Depending on the percentage of clay present in the flow path,
mineralogical composition can play a very important role on exchange of ions. Presence of ions
of various types can influence the solubility, their precipitation, formation of complexes, changes
in pH, redox reactions, etc. to name a few. The role of geochemists is certainly important and
they should works towards understanding geochemistry of the river bank filtration sites
considering the quality of surface as well as ground water and chemical composition of the
material forming part of the river bank filtration path.

4. STREAM GEOMOPRPHOLOGY

Occurrence of huge quantities of sediment load is observed as the river Ganges arrives in
Haridwar. In fact, sometimes this sediment load becomes so excessive that it leads to the closure
of Ganges canal (Garde and Ranga Raju, 2000). As per fundamentals of sediment transport,
every river has a certain ability to transport the sediment load. Any deviation from this is likely
to influence the stream morphology. Although, river Ganga does not exhibit such
geomorphological changes in Haridwar, such changes are progressively seen as one proceeds in
the downstream. One of the important rivers in northern India, known as Brahmaputra, is famous
for its braiding characteristics and the river width may vary in kilometers. Singh et al. (2004)
provide many pertinent details about this river. One may question the utility of river bank
filtration in case of river Brahmaputra because of its geomorphological variations. However,
extracting the water from the river bank filtration can turn out to be still cheaper in certain
locations where it is difficult to go for a full fledged water treatment pant. Even in the case where

4 
 
water treatment plant is located far from the bank, a partially treated water from the river bank
filtrate extracted using tube wells can still be used as the pumping cost for extraction of such
waters might still trade off with the transportation cost of such waters to the treatment plants.

Certain rivers, such as, Kosi in Bihar is notoriously known for its changing course. Of course,
going for river bank filtration can be still a challenge unless the river is levied to stabilize its
path. Many rivers in Europe are stabilized. For example, at Dusseldorf in Germany, the success
of river bank filtration is simply because of the fact that river reach is stable. In India,
interlinking of rivers is a burning issue. If this interlinking can lead to controlled measures to
regulate the river course, flow as well as sediment loadings, it will be an advantage towards
promotion of river bank filtration technology in India.

5. SPECIFIC SITE CONDITIONS

The terrain in south India is comprised of hard rocks. Wells in such areas exhibit very low
transmissivity of underlying aquifers. Normally, for water supply, extraction of surface water is
done. Also, water requirement is met through storage ponds and tanks of small sizes. Using the
potential of river bank filtration in such areas has to be seen. Although the network of rivers in
South India is not as vast as in North India. Many states in south India have water crisis and the
dispute between the state of Karnataka and Tamilnadu over the sharing of Cauvery river water
finds focus from time to time. It is our personal view that even in hard rock terrains, the river
bank filtration can find attraction.

India has a very large coast line. There is an equilibrium between sea water and the ground
water. Many places along sea coast are facing the intrusion of sea water because of going down
ground water levels. It is expected that linking of rivers in the country and use of induced
recharge through river bank or canal bed filtration may help in restoring ground water tables and
thus, pushing sea water interface.

India is also blessed with many lakes. These lakes are source of water supply in many places in
addition to being a place of attraction for tourists. Many of these lakes have been a subject of
discussion in National Parliament and from time to time, attempts have been made to restore the
quality of these lakes. During a personal visit to Dal lake in 2000, untreated wastes were
discharged in the lake which led to excessive phytoplankton growth. The lake lost much of its
storage because of this excessive growth. While preservation of the quality of lake is vital, the
filtration of water induced due to pumping in the vicinity of lake is equally relevant. Das et. al
(2005) observed that such a filtrated water was much better in comparison to the lake water
quality. Thus, study towards induced filtration in the proximity of lake may offer much potential
and certainly, a lot of work is needed in this regard.

India has also many hilly terrains and people live in these areas. Source of water in such terrains
is mountain streams, artesian wells and springs. Many villages in Uttranchal are located in such
remote areas that construction of water treatment units may not be feasible. Under such a
situation, river bed or bank filtration can be very effective. At a place Kalsi, Uttranchal, well
koops have been used just below river beds. These koops essentially offer a travel of few meters
by the infiltrating water below the river bed and the infiltrated water is collected by gravity. In

5 
 
fact, such as water is reported to be safe for drinking purposes. Thus, it can be seen that hilly
terrains can also extensively benefit from the potential of river bank filtration.

6. FACTORS ADVERSLY AFFECTING IMPLEMENTATION OF RBF TECHNOLOGY

Clogging is one of the important aspects in RBF system. As the stream water travels towards the
pumping well, impurities get trapped in. As a consequence, the resistance to flow starts building
up and may influence the rate of infiltration. Clogging is often perceived a factor detrimental to
efficacy of RBF process. However, study by Bernhardt (2005) indicates that dynamics of flow-
related clogging appears as self-adjusting protection mechanisms against local flow peaks and
channeling of the infiltration flow. Kesri (2005) indicates that the type and extent of clogging in
the infiltration areas will be determinative in the water flow as well as contaminant exchange
dynamics. Certainly, there is a need to do more work so that a better understanding of the
clogging phenomenon can be perceived.

Kesri (2005) also indicates that in RBF system, mixing of infiltrated surface water may take
place with ground water and this may pose threat to ground water resources, and the ground
water resources at a larger scale may be at the stake of hydrogeological risk. Since, there is no
physical barrier within the ground water regime, hydraulic control and channelisation of
groundwater movement are warranted. In the light of such speculation, there is a need to have
extensive surveys to assess whether RBF system has led to deterioration of ground water quality
in the places where it is already in use.

The meandering of channels also affects the filtration mechanism. Clogging may be also
influenced depending whether it is located on concave or convex side. The sediment load in
rivers is mainly increasing due to reduction of vegetated cover in runoff contributing watersheds.
Under Indian conditions, stability of river banks is often endangered in many reaches. At a site
Gumi in Brahmaputra stretch, Singh et al. (2004), have demonstrated a sequence of breaching
of bank. Thus, in many stretches, rivers do not seem to be in a established regime condition.
Thus, there is a need for identifying suitable sites for location of RBF sites in Indian conditions.

7. CONCLUDING REMARKS

Thomas et al. (2005) mention a variety of advantages of bank filtration. This includes removal of
bacteria, viruses, parasites, pharmaceutical wastes and other exotic organics, particulate matter
and turbidity. Equilibration of temperature changes as well as concentration of dissolved
constituents in the bank filtration, partial elimination of adsorbable compounds and decline of
mutagenic activity are also reported. There is also evidence that during floods that have
sufficient hydraulic transport energy, the river bed can be reworked and the colmation layer gets
eroded. In general, a higher proportion of infiltrated water in the pumped raw water is expected
due to removal of the clogging layer. Considering these benefits, RBF can be very useful to
India.

At the moment, RBF is being used at selected places in India, it appears that the use of this
technology lacks proper scientific evaluation. There appears arbitrariness in placing the wells
close to the river banks and the placement of the screens of the vertical wells. Similarly, the

6 
 
technology for the design and construction of collector wells is not well developed in India
although potential exists for constructing these wells in various regions of the country. The
Ganga and Brahmaputra basins have tremendous potential for the employment of RBF to
provide water to millions of people. However, there is need to address the functioning of river
bank filtration systems since many of these rivers carry heavy silt load and this disturbs the
normal course of the river. This can affect the performance of RBF systems. Thus, there is a need
to address the siltation problems in these rivers and to have nearly stable reaches where RBF
systems can be developed. Rigorous analysis of water quality in distribution systems and the
source is not practiced by most Indian cities. This can be attributed to lack of instrumentation,
skilled personnel, and funding. The quality improvements offered by RBF are so reliable that
municipalities can safely use this technology in a big way to provide safe drinking water to the
Indian people.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Author would like to acknowledge the input given by Prof. C.Ray,
Univ of Hawaii, USA. Much of the material presented in this lecture is based on a precursor
article on the topic by C.Ray and C.S.P.Ojha. in a special report on Potential of River Bank
Filtration in India, edited by C.Ray and C.S.P.Ojha and published from Univ. of Hawaii Press.

REFERENCES

Dash, R.R., P. Kumar, I. Mehrotra and H.P.Uniyal (2005). “Bed Filtration: Water quality
evaluation at Kalsi”, J. of Indian Water Resources Society, Vol. 25(2), pp. 31-38.

Grischek, T., D. Schoenheinz, C. Sandhu and K.M. Hiscock (2005), “Riverbank Fitration- Its
worth in Europe and India”, J. of Indian Water Resources Society, Vol. 25(2), pp. 25-30.

Jha, R.K., C.S.P.Ojha and K.D.Sharma (2005). “Evaluation of river bank filtration potential for
selected cities in the Ganges plains”, J. of Indian Water Resources Society, Vol. 25(2), pp. 39-54.

Jha, R.K., C.S.P.Ojha, and K.K.S.Bhatia, Estimating non-point pollution in Kali river
catchment, J.Env. Engrg. ASCE , Dec. 2005.

Kesri, A.K., (2005). “Environmental management plan for river bank filtration”, J. of Indian
Water Resources Society, Vol. 25(2), pp. 1-7.

Khare, D., U.C.Chaubey, and C.S.P.Ojha (2004). Report on Water Harvesting Potential at Kota
Fertilisers Limited.

Nema, P., A. Chelani, C.S.P.Ojha, A.Kumar, and P.Khanna (2004), “Utility of column lysimeter
for design of SAT system for waste water renovation using Artificial Neural networks”, J. Env.
Engrg., ASCE, Dec. 2004, 130(12), 1534-1542.

Singh, V.P., Sharma, N., and C.S.P.Ojha, “Brahmaputra Water Resources System”, Kluwer
Publishers, Feb. 2004

7 
 
Thakur, A.K., and C.S.P.Ojha (2004), “Present scenario of water quality in river bank filtration
at Patna”, International Workshop on River Bank Filtration, March 1- 2, Published Abstracts,
(Editors: C.S.P.Ojha and C. Ray), IIT Roorkee, pp. 17

Wett, B. (2005). “Infiltration rate as a key parameter for water quality of river bank filtrate”, J. of
Indian Water Resources Society, Vol. 25(2), pp. 8-15.

8 
 
 CRACKS IN BUILDINGS: PREVENTION AND REMEDIES
Dr. Veerendra Kumar

Professor and Head, Department of Civil Engineering

Institute of Technology, BHU, Varanasi-221005.

ABSTRACT: The development of non-structural crack in the buildings is a common

phenomenon and almost all buildings constructed in the last five decades are associated with it
in some form or other. This paper deals with the reasons of the formation of such cracks and
suggests preventive and remedial measures to control these cracks and also the method of repair
along with materials suitable for the same.

1. INTRODUCTION

There have been rapid advancements in almost every technological filed and civil engineering is
no exception. There has been remarkable progress in the use of new materials, new design
techniques, improved provisions, codal awareness, construction methods and user needs. Inspite
of all these developments and advancement the construction industries performance has not been
satisfactory because it utilizes different types of materials combined and moulded together by
skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled labourers under the direction of several expert agencies. In
such a situation it is difficult to pin-point the responsibility of a particular activity.

Human beings have their limitations and also there are variations in the level of human skill and
understanding. Hence, the structure produced may have some shortcomings which are basically
human induced. Also several materials are used in structures without required awareness for
short and long term behaviour and compatible Environmental combination of the materials.

Another contributing factor for the poor performance of the structure is the participation of
different professionals – architects, engineers and contractors with a communication gap between
them. Also clients play their own role in this collective malfunctioning by forcing mid stream
changes and demanding early completion(1).

This combination of workmanship, materials and supervision results in a structure which is a

compromise. Formation of cracks in the buildings is a by-product of this compromise and results
into ugly appearance and a feeling of insecurity to the occupants. The cracks in the building
components develop wherever stress exceeds the strength. The stress in the building may be due
to externally applied forces such as dead, live, wind or seismic loads or foundation settlement
or due to thermal movement, moisture change, chemical action etc (2-4).

These cracks can be broadly classified as structural or non-structural. Structural cracks form due
to incorrect design faulty construction or over loading and may endanger the safety of the
buildings. Non-structural crack are mostly due to internally induced stresses in building materials
and generally do not directly result in structural weakening in short duration.

9 
 
This paper deals with the causes and prevention of non structural cracks as well as methods of
repair alongwith materials suitable for the same.

2. CAUSES OF NON-STRUCTURAL CRACKS

Internally induced stresses in building components lead to dimensional changes and where ever
there is restraint to movement as in generally the case cracking occurs. The dimensional changes
in some of the building components results in the development of tensile compressive or shear
stress in other building component. Most of the building materials that are subjected to cracking
namely masonry, concrete, mortar etc are weak in tension and shear. Since modern structures are
comparatively tall and slender, design for higher stresses at a fast pace using a variety of
materials having different properties are more crack prone when compared with old structures
of less height with thick walls, lightly stressed and built at slow pace using limited number of
materials (1).

The major reason for the dimensional changes in the building are Moisture change, Thermal
variation, Elastic deformation and Creep(1-4).

2.1 Moisture Change

Most of the building materials have pores in their structures in the form of intermolecular space
e.g. concrete mortar, burnt clay buildings bricks, stones, timber etc. which expand on absorbing
moisture and shrink on drying. These movements are cyclic in nature and the extent of
movement depends on the molecular structure and porosity of the material. Apart from reversible
movement certain materials also undergo some irreversible movement due to initial change in
moisture content after their manufacturing or construction e.g. shrinkage of cement and lime
sand materials on initial drying and expansion of burnt clay bricks on removal from kiln.
Irreversible movement which occurs in the initial phase of a construction will be elaborated in
this section of the paper.

2.1.1 Plastic cracks in cement concrete and mortar

Hardening process of cement based products depends on chemical action in which moisture
plays an important role. Initial shrinkage in cement products is about 50% greater than that due
to subsequent wetting and drying i.e. reversible movements. So, most of the cracking in the
concrete mortar occurs due to shrinkage / settlement at time of initial drying.

Initial shrinkage / settlement in cement concrete and cement mortar depends on a number of
factors, namely water cement ratio, cement content, maximum size, grading and quality of
aggregate, use of admixture, duration method and temperature of curing, relative humidity of
surroundings etc.

Plastic cracks occurs in concrete before it hardness, say one to eight hours after placing. The
causes are settlement or shrinkage of concrete when it is plastic.

10 
 
Most plastic settlement cracks appear in deep sections but plastic shrinkage cracks are most
common in flat slabs exposed to a high rate of evaporation. Both types are governed in
contradictory ways by the phenomenon of the bleeding(5).

2.1.1.1 Plastic settlement cracks

They occur only where there is a high amount of bleeding and settlement and there is some form
of restraint to the settlement. They occur directly over reinforcement placed near the top of the
section, in narrow columns and walls where settlement is restrained due to wedging of the
concrete or by a mushroom head to a column and at a location of change of depth of section as
shown in Fig. 1

The plastic settlement cracks can be reduced / eliminated by reducing the bleeding of concrete,
hence settlement by reducing the restraint or by the re-vibrating the concrete after their cracks
have formed. However, re-vibration should not be applied too soon or very late or can be
assessed by trial at site (5).

2.1.1.2 Plastic Shrinkage Crack

It occurs within a few hours of placing concrete / mortar, although it is often not noticed until at
least the next day. It is most common in slabs / plasters i.e. on exposed surface. Cracks take the
form of a diagonal at approximately 450 to the edge or random map pattern or follow the pattern
of reinforcement or other physical features such as changes of section.

It also forms up to the edge of a slab which has been cast against previous pour, specially if there
is continuity of steel which acts as restraint (Fig. 2)

The only way to avoid these cracks is to reduce the rate of evaporation by means of early curing.

2.1.2 Initial Expansion in Bricks

Un-burnt clay bricks are fired at 900 to 10000C to get the burnt bricks. Due to this high
temperature even the water which forms a part of the molecular structure of clay is driven out.
As the temperature of bricks falls down after burning, it starts absorbing moisture from the
environment and undergoes gradual expansion. Bulk of this expansion is irreversible and the
extent of this depends upon the type of soil used and the maximum temperature of burning. This
irreversible expansion of bricks occurs only once in the life cycle and does not depends on the
extent of wetting and its rate cannot be increased by immersion in water. This expansion
continues for many years its rate being very high in the beginning and rapidly drops down after a
few weeks.

So to avoid cracks in brick work due to initial expansion, it is advisable to store the brick in the
open for at least two weeks after removal from the kiln point before using it(6).

11 
 
2.1.3 Shrinkage in Building Component

Shrinkage in building components induces tensile stress when there is some restraint to its
movement, as is generally the case. When the stress exceeds strength, cracking occurs thus
reliving the stress. Cracks in wall due to shrinkage generally get localized at weak sections such
as over doors and windows opening or staircase walls. An example of such cracks is shown in
Fig. 3.

Shrinkage cracks in buildings below lintels can be minimized by using precast lintels or by
delaying masonry construction over cast in-situ lintels. Shrinkage cracks in masonry can be
reduced by avoiding rich cement mortar and delaying plaster work till the masonry has dried
after proper curing so that most of the initial shrinkage has taken place. Also to limit the cracks
in plaster the adhesion of plaster with wall should be uniform and good (9 ).

2.2 Thermal Movement

All materials expand on heating and contract on cooling. However this magnitude of expansion /
contraction depends upon the molecular structure and other properties of materials. Restraint to
movement of a component of a structure results in development of internal stress causing cracks.
Generally thermal variations in the internal walls and intermediate floors are not much and thus
do not cause cracking. It is mainly the external walls which are subjected to substantial thermal
variation and are thus liable to cracking. In case of load bearing structures when a roof slab
undergoes alternate expansion and contraction due to temperature variations in day and night
horizontal cracks may occurs in cross walls as shown in Fig. 4. In case of framed structures, roof
slab, beams and columns move jointly causing diagonal cracks in walls which are located
parallel to movement and horizontal cracks below beams at right angles to the movement as
shown in Fig. 5. The formation of horizontal cracks at the support of brick parapet wall over
RCC cantilever slab due to thermal variation has been noticed as shown in Fig. 6.

To prevent horizontal cracks in cross walls and load bearing structures, slab should be properly
insulated on top, span of the slab should be small and slip joint should be introduced between
slab and supporting cross walls. Also, the slab should project for some length from the
supporting wall or should bear only on part width of the wall. However, it is better to project the
slab for some distance beyond the wall. Provision of adequate insulation or protective cover on
the roof slab is important also in case of framed structures. There is no simple solution to prevent
cracks in brick masonry parapets over RCC slab but severity of such cracking can be reduced by
deferring the construction of brick masonry parapet over RCC slabs by at least a month so that
drying shrinkage takes place in concrete. Also the bond between masonry and concrete should
be good and plaster work on masonry should be deferred as much as possible and expansion joint
should be provided at corners.

2.3 Elastic Deformation

Structural components of a building undergo elastic deformation due to load and the amount of
deformation is dependent upon the elastic modulus of the material, magnitude of the loading and
the dimensions of the component resulting into the cracking in some portions of the building.

12 
 
In case of unevenly loaded walls with wide variations in stress in different parts results in the
cracking in the walls as shown in the Fig. 7. Cracks also occur at supports due to bending
deflection of a large span slab and beam. Such type of cracks occurs mostly in the upper one or
two stories where load on the wall is small.

In the first case where cracking occurs due to uneven loading on walls can be minimized by
proper designing of load bearing walls. In the second case when the large spans cannot be
avoided, the depth of beams or slabs should be increased to reduce deflection. Also adoption of
proper bearing arrangement will help in reducing cracks as shown in Fig. 8. It is also essential to
delay the laying of masonry for some time after removal of centering for in-situ RCC slabs and
beams so that deflection due to self weight takes place prior to laying of masonry over it(2-4 ).

2.4 Deformation due to Creep

Creep is a slow and time dependent deformation and also known as plastic strain. Creep in
concrete depends on a number of factors, such as W-C ratio, cement content, temperature,
atmospheric humidity, admixtures, type of cement, age of concrete at the time of loading, size
and shape of the component as well as surface to volume ratio(3, 8) and in the case of brick
masonry it depends on the stress / strength ratio. Creep in brick masonry is approximately 20 to
25% of that in concrete. Due to this reason the RCC structural members may deform 2 to 3 times
the initial elastic deformation causing cracks in brick masonry of framed and load bearing
structures.

Cracking is more sever when deformation due to elastic strain and creep occurs in conjunction
with shortening of RCC member due to shrinkage. Cracks due the combined effect of elastic
strain, creep and shrinkage are shown in Figs. 9 to 11. Sometimes cracking in masonry partition
walls occurs due to excessive deflection of support(9). The location and pattern depends upon
height-length ratio and opening for the door. The cracks are vertical when the ratio is large and
horizontal when the ratio is small.

Although, it not possible to eliminate cracking altogether, it can be minimized by adopting

certain preventive measures e.g.(2,3,4,7).

• By using low shrinkage and low slump concrete and proper compaction.
• Slow rate of construction.
• By doing brick work over flexural RCC member after 2-3 weeks of removal of centering
in case of simple supported / continuous member.
• Masonry work should be deferred as far as possible after removal of shuttering in case of
a cantilever.
• Plastering over RCC brick work combination should be deferred as far as possible.
• In case of frame work masonry work of cladding and partition should be done from top
storey to bottom storey.
• Horizontal movement joint between top of brick and soffit of beam should be provided.
• Central opening should be provided in place off center openings in partition wall over
slab / beam.
• Provide proper expansion joints / contraction joint.

13 
 
3. METHODS OF REPAIR

“Prevention Is Better than Cure”, but sometimes it becomes difficult to prevent or for that matter
avoid that causal agents of cracking, treatment becomes necessary to cure it. The treatment to
cure the cracks depends upon the type and cause of cracking.

The main purpose of carrying out repairs to non structural cracks is to restore normal appearance,
minimize the possibility of cracks causing further damage to the building and to remove the
feeling of insecurity in the occupants.

The properties of repair materials used depends upon the type, nature and cause of cracking. The
repair material should be more resistant to the formation of cracks. It should be extensible with
low modulus of elasticity, shrinkage value and high creep(10).

Before repairing the cracks in masonry it is necessary to ensure whether the cracks are dormant
or active. In case of dormant cracks, mortar is used for repairing while for active cracks or cracks
due to thermal movement sealant i.e. flexible component are required for repair. However, care
should be taken in the selection of type and grade of sealant to suit local atmosphere condition.

Cracks up to 1.5 mm width in burnt clay brick masonry generally need no repairing. However, in
case of cracks wider than 1.5 mm, it should be raked in the form of a ‘V’ groove to a depth of 10
mm to 25 mm and refilled with mortar or sealant depending upon the type of crack and then
repainted or re-plastered (11). When the affected wall is built in strong mortar the bricks adjoining
the cracks should be cut and replaced by new bricks. A similar procedure has to be followed
when bricks are cracked and for binding replaced bricks mortar type M1 is to be used.

In case of rendering on concrete hair line cracks may be left untreated or cement grout may be
filled in it by brushing. If the cracks in the rendering is due to lack of bond, affected portion
should be removed and re-plastering it to be done(3). In case of wide cracks in slabs due to
shrinkage and thermal movement, deep grooves should be cut in the slab and filled with mastic
compound or any other material of low modulus of elasticity and shrinkage value with high
creep along with extensibility.

4. CONCLUSIONS

Factors responsible for the development of non-structural cracks in building due to

shrinkage, creep, thermal and moisture movements have been identified in an attempt to suggest
suitable measure to prevent them at an initial stage of construction or to repair them after
formation of these cracks to help construction / maintenance engineers to tackle these problems
with confidence. However, it is advisable to take precautionary steps so suggested during
construction stage to avoid the formation of the non-structural cracks altogether. It is also
advisable to know the properties of all the new building materials before their use to avoid the
formation of cracks in buildings.

14 
 
5. REFERENCES

Jagadish, R. “Structural failure case history” Oxford and IBH publisher Co. Pvt. Ltd. Delhi,
1995.

Chand, S. “Cracks in building and their remedial measures” ICI Vol. 53 Oct. 1979 pp. 268-272.

SP: 25(1984), “Hand book on causes and preventions of cracks in building” Bureau of Indian
Standard, New Delhi, 1985.

Dey, S.K., “Cracks in building a study on remedies and repairs” Proc. Of the National
Conference on Civil Engineering Materials and Structures, Jan 19-21, 1995 Osmania University,
pp. 457-463.

“Plastic Cracking” Concrete, Jan/Feb. 1994, pp. 21-24.

Handisyde, C.C. and Haseltine, B.A. “Bricks and brick work” The Brick Development
Associaiton, London, 1974.

Lenczner, D. “Movements in building” Pergamn Press Oxford, 1973.

Neville, A.M. and Brooks, J.J. “Concrete technology” Longman Singapore, 1994.

Saha, G.C. and Sevgupta, B. “Cause of distress in brick partition walls over flat slab floors”,
I.C.J. Vol. 66 April 1992, pp 209-214.

Vaysburd, A.M., Emmons, P.H. and Sabins, G.M., “Minimizing cracking The key to durable
concrete repairs” I.C.J. Vol. 71 Dec. 1997, pp. 652-657.

15 
 
  

a) Over reinforcing bars

(b) Columns

c) Through and Waffle

Fig.1: Plastic settlement cracks

16 
 
 a) Cracks due to rapid loss of water

b) Diagonal c) Random

c) Restrained Bay

Fig.2: Plastic Shrinkage cracks

17 
 
 Fig.3: Horizontal cracks below R.C.C. Lintel.

Fig.4: Cracking in top most storey of a Load Bearing Structure.

18 
 
 Fig.5: Cracking in cladding and cross walls of a framed Structure

Fig.6: Horizontal Crack at the Base of Brick Masonry Parapet Supported on a Projecting R.C.C.
Slab

19 
 
 Fig.7. Cracks in Load Bearing Walls Due to Elastic Deformation.

Fig.8. Bearing at the support for a roof slab of large span.

20 
 
 Fig.9. Horizontal crack in masonry supported on a cantilevered canopy slab.

Fig.10. Vertical cracks at junction of R.C.C. column and masonry wall.

21 
 
 Fig.11. Horizontal cracks in brick panels of a framed structure.

22 
 
 EARTHQ
E QUAKE REESISTAN
NT CONFIINED BRIICK MAS
SONRY
BUILDIN
B NGS FOR THE
T GANNGETIC PLAIN
P

Dr. Pram
mod Kumar Singh

Professsor, Departm
ment of Civiil Engineerinng
Institute of Technoloogy, BHU, Varanasi-
V 221005

1. INTRODUCTION
N

As per Euro
E Code 8, a constructtion system where plainn masonry walls
w are connfined on alll four
sides by reinforced concrete
c meembers or reeinforced maasonry is caalled confineed brick massonry
(cbm). Inn case of cbm
m buildings the design philosophy
p a
adopted is thhat neither thhe brick massonry
nor reinfo
forced concreete gets dam
maged duringg earthquake condition.

A confined brick masonry constrruction is seeen in progresss in China in

i Fig.1.

Fig
F 1: A confined masonnry wall housse under connstruction

Euro Coode 8 limits the construuction of cbbm houses located

l in seismic
s zonees having design
d
ground acceleration
a (ag)
( greater than or equaal to 0.3g to four storey (Table
( 1).

23 
 
 Taable 1: Reco
ommended maximum
m heiight of buildding (H) and number of storeys
s (n).

design grounnd acceleration ag < 0.2 [g]] 0.2 - 0.33 [g] ≥ 0.3
0 [g]
Unreinforceed masonry H [m] 12 9 6
n 4 3 2
Confined Masonry
M H [m] 18 15 122
n 6 5 4
Reinforced masonry
m H [m] 24 21 18
n 8 7 6

Accordinng to report submitted to World Housing

H Enccyclopedia wide
w usage ofo base isollation
technologgy in brick masonry buuildings (Fig.2) indicatess that the era of strong earthquake-pproof
buildingss is coming in
i China. Thhis signifies potential off brick masonnry buildinggs in the Ganngetic
plain alsoo.

Fig 2a:
2 Brick Maasonry builddings in Chinna

Fig 2b:
2 Brick Maasonry builddings in Chinna

24 
 
1.1. Comparison of B.M. and R.C.C. Buildings

Brick manufacture and building construction using bricks is part of a rural industry in the
Gangetic plain. During the lean agricultural periods, it provides job opportunity to the rural mass.

In the recent time, it is observed that there is a shift from brick masonry buildings to the R.C.C.
framed buildings. One of the reasons for this is said to be safety of the R.C.C. framed buildings
in earthquake conditions.

Gangetic plain, where sufficient soil cover is there, is not only good for brick manufacture, but
earthquake characteristics of the region are ideally suited for the stiff brick masonry buildings.
Safety of the brick masonry buildings in seismic zones II, III & IV of the Gangetic plain can be
guaranteed by using confined brick masonry (cbm).

On cost comparison of a 4-storey residential cbm building with a corresponding R.C.C. framed
building, it has been found that cost of the cbm building was 3/4th of the cost of the R.C.C.
framed building.

Therefore, cbm buildings not only provide more employment opportunity to the rural mass but
also are economical in comparison to R.C.C. framed buildings.

2. TECHNICAL DETAILS

According to Euro Code 8 the cross-sectional area of rebars for tie-columns can be selected in
dependence of seismicity of the location and number of storeys in the house. In composite
confined brick masonry buildings the column shall be of 230 mm x 230 mm having 4 bars of 12
mm diameter as longitudinal reinforcement and 6 mm diameter stirrups at the spacing of 150 mm
centre to centre. The details of column are shown in the Fig. 3.

230 mm

4x12 dia bars

M20
Concrete
230 mm

4x12 dia
150 mm

bars 6 dia stirrups @

85 c/c

230 mm
6 dia stirrups @ 150 c/c

a) Column details b) Band details

Fig3: Details of composite column and Lintel level band

25 
 
The founndation detaails correspoonding to alllowable bearing capacitty of 100 kN N/m2 is givven in
(Fig.4). The
T width of strip footinng for brickk masonry shhall be 12000 mm and thhe dimensionns for
column footing
f shall be 1200mm m x 1200 mm m. The colum
mn footing shhall be reinfo
forced with 6 bars
of 10 mmm diameter inn both the diirections.

230 mm
m
4x12 dia
bars
6 dia stirrups @
150 c/c

M20

250 mm
Concrete
0

Lean Concrete
100 mm

1200
0 mm
6x10 dia
d bars
eitherr way

Fiig4: Details of foundatioon for a fourr storey CBM

M building

2.1 Site Effects

E

Seismic effect
e of locaal soil condiitions on peaak ground accceleration arre shown in fig. 5.

Fig5
5: Effect of loocal soil connditions on peak
p ground accelerationn.

26 
 
From thee figure, it is clearly seenn that maxim
mum seismic accelerationn is considerrably lower in
i the
alluviumm deposit in comparisonn to the rocck mass. Thherefore, earrthquake forrces in the deep
alluviumm deposit areeas of Gangetic plain arre consideraably lower. This effect for the Ganngetic
plain is also
a seen in the t seismic mapm of the Inndia.

Fig6: Reelationship between

b the natural
n periood of soil andd alluvium depth
d

It is cleaar from the figure

f that, as
a the depth of soil depoosit increasees, fundamenntal period of
o the
deposit also
a increases. Due to plastic defoormation annd cracking of the soil,, high frequuency
content ofo the earthqquake wavess can not be supported byb the soil, and
a it quicklly dies out in
i the
soil. Theerefore, in deep alluviaal soil depoosit area onnly low freqquency andd high ampllitude
earthquakke waves aree experienceed at the grouund level.

Fig7:: Relationship between damage

d and the natural period
p of thee soil in the 1967
1 Caracuus
eaarthquake.

27 
 
As reported for the 1967 Caracus earthquake , buildings up to 3 to 5 storeys constructed at places
having soil cover more than75 meters suffered minimal damage, and suffered considerable
damage at places having soil depth less than 75 meters. Similarly, buildings up to  10 to 14
storeys suffered considerable damage at places where soil cover was more than 75 meters and
suffered minimal damage at places where soil cover was less than 75 meters.
 
Therefore, if a four storey confined brick masonry building having high natural frequency is
founded on compressible soil media, which transgresses high frequency earthquake waves; there
is negligible chance of resonance and amplitude build up leading to damage of the building.

2.2 Structural Action of CBM

Some structural actions of CBM are presented here for its clear structural understanding.

2.2.1 Load sharing

In the CBM building, flexible nature of the slab and the lintel level band, helps the brick
masonry wall and the reinforced concrete column to act together to support all the vertical loads
in direct compression. Load redistribution between reinforced concrete column and brick
masonry wall mainly at the offsets, ensures equal strain in the reinforced concrete and the brick
masonry at their interface (Fig. 8).

Approximately 1 mm

RC Column

Brick Masonry

a) From column to wall b) From wall to column

Fig8: Load redistribution between reinforced concrete column and brick masonry wall

28 
 
2.2.2 CBM action under In-Plane static loading

Singh et al. conducted experiment on three models, namely; (i) Reinforced concrete frame
without infill (ii) Brick masonry infilled reinforced concrete frame having no shear connection,
and (iii) Brick masonry infilled reinforced concrete frame with shear connection. The Load
Deflection Curves for the tested models are given in Fig. 9. 

300

250

200 Frame without infill

Infilled frame without

shear connection

150 Infilled frame with

Load (kN)

shear connection

100

50

0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 13

Deflection (mm)

Fig9: Load deflection curves for static loading

According to them, in-plane strength of CBM wall may go up approximately 10 times in

comparison to unconfined brick masonry.

2.3 Continuous Lintel Band Action

In case of cbm building continuous lintel band is provided all around the building. This lintel
band breaks the wall height and thereby increases stiffness of the wall and results in its reduced
deflection to about one fifth (Fig. 10).

29 
 
 slab slab
w

lintel band
w
w

slab slab

Fig10: Deflection of BM wall with and without lintel band

Deflections of the wall for the two cases are compared below.

wh 4
Deflection without lintel band action, ∆ = 384EI
wh 4 4
⎛2⎞
Deflection with lintel band action = 384 EI ⎜ ⎟ ≈ ∆/5
⎝ 3⎠

Thus, out of plane deflection of the wall reduces to about 1/5th due to the continuous lintel band
where the wall is assumed to be supported.

3. COST EFFECTIVENESS

Brick masonry in cbm technology carries all the vertical load, and against the horizontal load it is
made safe by using the cbm technology in which about 10 % extra cost is involved.

In comparison to cbm buildings R.C.C. framed buildings are designed to carry load of the brick
masonry also, and thereby do not employ structural potential of brick masonry. As a result this
type of building is approximately 33 % costlier than the cbm buildings.

In the Gangetic plain, where bricks are economically manufactured and brick masonry buildings
are traditionally constructed, cbm building construction is logically a better option. Soil cover
and earthquake conditions of seismic zones II-IV of the Gangetic plain ideally suit to cbm
buildings which are stiff and have high natural frequency. On the contrary, high rise RCC framed
buildings may prove to be a disaster under resonance condition in this region.

4. IMPACT ON THE RURAL AREAS

The CBM technology is best suited for seismic zones II-IV of the Gangetic plain where soil
cover is more than 75m deep. A map of the area where soil cover is more than 75m deep is
shown in fig. 12.

30 
 
Accordinng to censuss report, appproximately 25 crore peeople reside in this areaa which is about
a
1/4th of the
t total Indiian populatioon.

As housee constructio
on is one off the costliesst affairs in ones life, thhe technologgy will have very
high sociio-economicc impact.

By usingg the CBM technologyy, not only economical

e houses can be provideed to the middle
class peoople, but it will
w also proovide much needed job opportunitty to the rurral masses.

Fig11: Seismic
S zonees II, III & IV
V of the Ganngetic plain (UP,
( Bihar & West Benggal) having more
m
than
n 75m soil coover, for whiich cbm techhnology is iddeally suited.

31 
 
5. EXPE
ERIMENTA
AL FINDING
GS

Brick Masonry build ding modelss of CBM and

a UBM haave been tessted on the horizontal shake
s
table shoown in Fig.12
2

Fig. 12:
1 Mounting of model on
o shake table
32 
 
5.1 Cracck Pattern and
a Mode off Failure forr The UBM
M Model

Near faillure, initial cracks

c were seen
s at the base
b in horizzontal directiion due to fllexure (fig 13). A
crack inittiation at miid height of window
w opeening also toook place duee to less cross- sectionall area
at this levvel.

Fig113: Flexural crack in the UBM modeel

Then craacks develop

ped suddenlly near midd-height of window
w opeening. The model
m ultim
mately
failed at mid
m height of
o window opening
o due to
t sliding in shear (figurre 14.).

Fig144: Ultimate failure

f of thee UBM moddel

33 
 
5.2 CBM model

5.2.1 Time and amplitude at roof slab level

Time vs. amplitude plot for the CBM model are shown in figures 9 and 10. The CBM model was
subjected to 486 cycles and maximum amplitude at the top level of model was ±9mm with base
amplitude of ±5mm. Thus, maximum top storey drift was recorded as 4mm.

6
5
4
3
amplitude in mm

2
1
0
-1
-2 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1011121314151617181920212223242526272829
-3
-4
-5
-6
Time in sec

Fig15: Time vs amplitude plot for CBM model ( 0-27sec)

10
9
8
7
6
5
amplitude in mm

4
3
2
1
0
-1
-2111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121
-3
-4
-5
-6
-7
-8
-9
-10
Time in sec

Fig16: Time vs amplitude plot for CBM model (111- 120sec)

34 
 
5.2.2 g- level
l calcula
ation

Maximum
m acceleratio
on at the basse level = -a ω2
= 0.005 * 45.2422 = 10.23 m/ sec2 = 1.04g

Maximum
m acceleratio
on at the topp slab level = -a ω2
= 0.009 * 45.242 = 18.442m/ sec2 = 1.88g

5.2.3 Craacking patteern and moode of failure of UBM model

m

Initial cracks develop ped in UBM M model at thet base in thet horizontaal direction due to flexuure at
117th cyycle. Then shear cracks were seen near sill levvel and midd height of window w opeening.
Final faillure took plaace due to sliiding of upper part (Figuure 17).

From thee mode of faailure of the UBM buildiing model, it is inferred that this moode of failurre can
be successsfully preveented by prooviding adeqquate verticall steel in the corner coluumns, as provvided
in the CB
BM buildings.

5.2.4 Moode of failurre and crack

k pattern off the CBM model
m

The CBM M model didd not fail up to

t the maxim
mum practicaally possiblee frequency of
o the shake table
for the seet ± 5mm am
mplitude, whhich was 7.2H
Hz.

Fig17: CB
BM model affter test

35 
 
After the test no cracks were seen anywhere and there was no damage to the model. The CBM
model could not be tested beyond this g-level because shake table became unstable. A photo
graphical view of the model after the test is seen in figure 17.

6. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The discussed results include g-level, time vs amplitude plot, total number of cycles subjected to
the models, crack pattern, mode of failure, energy absorbed in half cycle of the vibration and
ductility of the models.

6.1 Maximum Amplitude and g- level at Failure

The UBM model failed at 2.8Hz frequency, with maximum amplitude at the top slab level of
±12.5mm, and with fixed base amplitude of ±10mm. The maximum storey drift was measured as
±2.5mm. Hence, the g-level at failure of UBM at the base level was 0.32g, and at the top slab
level it was 0.39g.

7. CONCLUSIONS

• The following silent conclusions are drawn from the experimental study.

• Due to very stiff nature of the buildings, both the UBM and CBM models vibrated only in the
first mode during the shake table test.

• In the UBM model after nearly 117 cycles, initial cracks due to flexure appeared at the base
in the horizontal direction at a frequency of 2.82Hz which lead to final failure. Therefore,
there is need for sufficient vertical reinforcement in the corner columns to prevent this type
of failure.

• In the CBM model no separation of the brick masonry and RC at the interface was observed.
Therefore, it is concluded that for the CBM buildings, there is no necessity to provide offsets,
as given in Euro code 8.

• The CBM building model, tested without bond beams, exhibited no deficiency during the test
even at 1.88g level. Therefore, it is concluded that in CBM buildings provision of bond beam
below the slab level as given in Euro code 8 is not necessary.

• The UBM model failed at the maximum shake table frequency of 2.82Hz. Fixed amplitude at
the base level was ±10mm, and the observed maximum amplitude at the roof slab level was ±
12.5mm which was achieved in 87 seconds after 122 cycles. The maximum storey drift was,
thus, ±2.5mm. The corresponding g-level at the base was 0.32g and at the roof slab level it
was 0.39g.
• The CBM model was subjected to maximum practically possible frequency of 7.2Hz at ±
5mm base amplitude in 486 cycles, but no damage to the model was observed, and the model
remained intact after the test.

36 
 
• In case of CBM, the shake table amplitude of vibration was fixed at ±5mm, and maximum
roof slab amplitude of the model was observed to be ±9mm. The corresponding g-level at
maximum possible frequency and amplitude was 1.04g at the base, and it was 1.88g at the
roof slab level.

• Comparing the maximum g-levels at the roof slab level for the UBM and CBM models, it is
inferred that CBM building model is more than 4.8 times stronger than that of UBM building
model.

• Thus it is concluded that confined brick masonry buildings up to 4-storey are very safe and
well suited for the Gangetic plain, which covers about 1/4th population of India.

37 
 
 GLOBAL WARMING: SOME CONTENTIOUS ISSUES
Devendra Mohan

Department of Civil Engineering

Institute of Technology, B. H. U., Varanasi - 221 005.

E-Mail: devmohan9@rediffmail.com; devmohan9@yahoo.com 

1. INTRODUCTION
Any organic matter, after complete combustion, gives oxides of its constituents like CO2, H2O
and other compounds as combustion-products in addition to energy. Above the Earth’s surface or
into the atmosphere, these carbon sources make a cycle with two prime stages – (I). Formation of
carbon sources by the addition of oxides and energy with the liberation of oxygen and then,
(II). Combustion of these carbon sources using oxygen, resulting into oxides and energy. First
phase of this cycle is mostly executed by plants.
Fossil fuels are the prime energy sources for the present developmental scenario. It is estimated
that respiration of vegetation worldwide accounts for about 60 bikllion metric tons (BMT) of
carbon, while burning of fossil fuels accounts for approximately 6.5 BMT every year. Thus, such
fuels account for a little more than 10% of the CO2 produced by vegetation, but these sources
lead to very high atmospheric and other environmental damages due to localization (Patrick,
2000).
Global releases of carbon have been rising steadily since late eighteenth century and more
rapidly since 1950s. In fact, yearly emissions at present have quadrupled since 1950 (Earth
Policy Institute, 2004). CO2 levels have increased significantly since the Industrial Revolution
and are supposed to continue like this in near future also. It is logical to consider that activities of
the mankind has been mainly accountable for much of this enhancement because the mankind is
liberating carbon from beneath the Earth's surface and putting it into the atmosphere (Robinson
et al, 1998).

After Industrial Revolution, composition of the atmosphere has been undergoing significant
changes in terms of both, quality and quantity. One of the first indications that human beings
have led to modifications in composition of the global atmosphere comes from measurements of
the atmospheric carbon dioxide at Mauna Loa, Hawaii, USA; which have indicated an increase
in the CO2 level from 316 ppm in 1959 to 373 ppm in 2002. This rise in CO2 concentration is
closely associated with enhancement in consumption of fossil fuels (Keeling and Whorf, 2004).

2. GLOBAL OBSERVATIONS

For some time-period, average tropospheric temperatures has shown downward trend by about
0.05ºC per decade, but average global surface temperature is going upward by about 0.1ºC per
decade. Not like tropospheric temperatures, surface temperatures are subject to larger and more
uncertainties for several reasons, including the urban heat island effect (Robinson et al, 1998).

38 
 
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has made a forecast that global average
surface temperatures may rise from 1.4 to 5.8ºC (above 1990 levels) by 2100 AD. If the world’s
carbon sinks reach their saturation points, it is feared that actual rise in temperature could be
even greater (Earth Policy Institute, 2004).
Greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the use of fossil fuels and other human activities are
supposed to upset the Earth’s natural temperature-regulation mechanism, which may disturb the
natural (environmental) conditions and consequently, many important human activities.
Greenhouse gases occur naturally in the atmosphere and they absorb more than 90% of the
infrared waves emitted by the Earth. Concentration of CO2 has increased by more than 25% since
pre-industrial times. More than one-half of the global warming is supposed to be caused by CO2
in the atmosphere and the remaining less than half by the other greenhouse gases. Therefore,
many of the potential policy responses to climate change have focused on CO2 emissions. This is
also because much more is known about the sources, sinks and life cycle of CO2 than about most
of the other green house gases (GHGs). About 20 countries contribute about 80% of CO2
production and most of these are developed countries. Therefore, it is evident that industrialized
nations are largely responsible for increase of GHGs in the atmosphere and the resulting risk of
climate change (Molla, 1997).
Such undesirable changes have led to adverse impacts at local, regional, national and
international levels. Long term effects on weather systems, i.e., climate changes are also
supposed to be the consequences of enhancement in air pollution, caused mainly by a set of
gaseous pollutants commonly known as GHGs. These gases are carbon di-oxide (CO2), methane
(CH4), tropospheric ozone (O3), nitrous oxide (N2O) and a number of chlorofluorocarbons
(CFCs). In addition, water vapor in troposphere also acts as a GHG.
GHGs can influence the heat content of atmosphere. Heat is one of the most important elemental
properties of atmosphere and so, all the weather systems can be directly or indirectly influenced
by its content. Changes in the heat content can lead to alterations in the temperature of Earth’s
surface as well as that of atmosphere. These can lead to even climate changes.

3. EFFECTS ON ENVIRONMENT

A renowned columnist, David Nyhan, has written in July 1996 Issue of the Boston Globe,
describing the connection between air pollution and the global changes. He mentioned, “Wind,
rain and radioactivity do not stop at the border for passport control, but go where they will.
Pollution is coming soon to a place near you. We are all Downwinders now”.
The world at present is facing various problems due to air pollution. The problems at micro-scale
(10 square kilometer or higher) may be like heat island effect, alterations in rainfall and dust-
dome formation in urban areas. Meso-scale problems (100 square km or more) can also be
observed in different pockets of world. At the largest scale, i.e., 1000 sq km or larger
geographical area, at continental or sub-continental levels, prevailing issues like (stratospheric)
ozone layer depletion, global warming may be mentioned. (Hill, 1997; Masters, 1998; Peavy et
al, 1986; Sincero and Sincero, 1999).

39 
 
4. PHYSIOLOGICAL IMPACTS
Because of excessive release of carbon into atmosphere, there may be changes in conditions of
extreme heat and cold, floods and droughts, and the profile of air pollution, which can influence
health of the exposed population. Other health effects may be due to changes in incidence of
infectious diseases and food production, which can result in under-nutrition and various health
consequences of population-dislocation and economic disturbances. Also CO2 causes some plant
and animal lives to flourish upto certain levels in terms of concentration (Mcmichael and
Githeko, 2001).
Recent facts reveal that inter-annual and inter-decadal climate variations have a direct influence
on epidemiology of vector-borne diseases. The related data facts have been studied at continental
level in order to determine the possible consequences of probable changes in the climate. By
2100 AD, it is feared that average global temperatures-rise will increase the likelihood of many
vector-borne diseases in colder geographical regions. Effect of climate changes on the diseases is
likely to be observed at extreme range of temperatures at which the transmission may occur. For
many diseases, these lie in the range of 14–18oC at the lower end and about 35–40oC at the upper
end. Malaria and dengue fever are amongst main vector-borne diseases in the tropical and
subtropical zones. Lyme disease may be the most common in USA and Europe, while
encephalitis may also become a public health concern with further rise in global temperature
(Githeko et al., 2000).
Global warming has also contributed some new toxins to hydrosphere with the passage of time.
Abundant growth of various types of phyto-planktons has recently been detected in many
freshwater bodies in some geographical areas (Sharma, Mohan and Rai, 2009). Many of these
water bodies might have served earlier as reservoirs used for raw water supply for production of
drinking water. In fact, entire range of the number of metabolic products of these micro-
organisms is yet to be determined, though some compounds amongst these products have already
been identified to have adverse effects as hepatotoxins, neurotoxins, etc.. Amongst the products
already discovered, a considerable number of toxins are yet to be understood fully so far as their
adverse impacts on human-health are concerned. Thus, the present state is that of an inadequate
knowledge-level with respect to the number as well as physiologically important characteristics
of most of such toxicants.
 
5. CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES
As mentioned earlier, the rise (still controversial in terms of magnitude) in average surface
temperature of Earth is due to a phenomenon, commonly referred to as green house effect
(GHE). This process is also supposed to be resulting in various changes in climate of this planet,
though such changes have been characteristic features of the Earth for quite long in geological
time-scale. As a matter of fact, Europe has suffered something like Ice Age from 1500 to 1800
AD. For long, GHE has caused desirable warming of the globe due to which water exists on it at
triple point, i.e., in all three phases of matter – solid, liquid and gas. Due to this reason only, the
life on Earth could originate or/and evolve upto the present state of existence. Without such a
phenomenon, the Earth might have been a totally frozen ball of different rocks (Masters, 1998).

40 
 
At present, a big controversy also lies around as to what extent anthropogenic activities can lead
to alterations in climate. The gaseous culprits, being named at present responsible for this
phenomenon, are CO2, CH4, N2O, tropospheric O3, water vapour and various
chlorofluorocarbons. It has been observed that atmospheric level of CO2 has continued to
increase in historic times and keeps on following the same trend with enhanced rate prevailing
now.
It has been estimated that every year, the surface ocean and atmosphere exchange an estimated
90 gigatons of carbon (GTC); vegetation and the atmosphere, 60 GTC; marine biota and the
surface-ocean, 50 GTC and the surface ocean and the intermediate and deep oceans, 100 GTC.
Sizes of these reservoirs and the rates of exchange between them are so enormous, and the
uncertainties involved so large (in estimation) that the most effective cause of the current rise in
atmospheric carbon dioxide could not be decided with permissible limits of error. A common
hypothesis is that about 3 GTC rise per year in atmospheric carbon dioxide is the result of
approximately 5.5 GTC release per year of carbon dioxide from human activities (Robinson et al,
1998).
It may be noted that the Earth has undergone warming in the near past and the most recent
climate models predict that the rise in temperature may be between 1 and 3.5oC (274.16K and
276.66K respectively) in the foreseeable near future. This increase will be very significant as the
average temperature of global surface is about 15oC (around 288K). It is very important to note
that during the last major Ice Age (ending about 10,000 years ago), the prevailing surface
temperature of the Earth was only about 5oC (around 278K) lower than that of today and since
then, the temperature–variation has been only about 2oC (around 275K).
Studies conducted on air-bubbles trapped in cores of Arctic ice (dating back around 1,60,000
years) have clearly indicated that glacial and interglacial periods in the Earth’s geological history
have been associated with lower and higher CO2 levels. But, the cause (increase in CO2 levels)
and associated effect (rise in temperature) is yet to be fully established and understood. It is also
noticed that water level in sea has gone up as recorded in (at least) the past two centuries. But, it
is yet to be proved beyond doubt that the increase is not due to natural land movements. Many
glaciers, located in different continents, have also either totally disappeared or been retreating for
a long time. In about the last 150 years of measurements, temperature of the Earth’s surface has
been recorded to rise significantly from 1920-1940 (20 years period) and from 1979-1994 (15
years). Whether this rise still continues, will persist or not is also a matter of central controversy?
Very complex general circulation (computation) models (GCMs) include data regarding
concentration of green house gases, their sources and sinks, atmospheric and ocean circulation,
etc.. Huge number of variables (most of which are beyond human control) can lead to many
types of uncertainties related to various intriguing issues involved in global warming and the
consequent climate changes.
GCMs have been employed to make a forecast that the temperature rise should have been about
0.25oC every decade, but actually observed increase has been about 0.09oC per decade. This
difference may be supposedly due to release of huge quantities of SO2 in the atmosphere from
natural as well as man-made sources. This SO2 is ultimately converted into sulfate-aerosol,
which reflects the incoming sun-light to Earth and consequently, helps in bringing down the
temperature.

41 
 
 Some contentious issues regarding global warming and climate changes may be mentioned in
brief as below (Anderson and Andrews, 1999; Comisco, 2000; Joughin and Tulaczuk, 2002; Lin,
Curry and Martinson, 2004; Lomborg, 1998; Parkinson, 2002; Thompson and Solomon, 2002;
Vyas et al, 2005).
(i). Atmospheric CO2 levels have not invariably been higher during the recorded inter-glacial
periods.
(ii). Increased evaporation due to global warming will lead to higher cloud cover and
consequent counteractive action to temperature-rise. Other group of scientists is of the
opinion that enhanced cloud-cover may also aggravate the global warming.
(iii). Skeptics point out that the GCMs which have been employed to forecast global warming
are developed with very little data. They believe that the rise in temperature will be
slower than the predicted results and so, it will be gradual enough even for higher forms
of life to undergo adaptation successfully.
(iv). A large number of climatologists have the opinion that 0.3-0.6oC increase in temperature
(observe to date) may be due to natural variability and may not be related to
enhancements in concentrations of different GHGs, specifically CO2.
(v). Some scientists argue that making major changes (before conclusive evidence) may be
very expensive and even, counter-productive.
(vi). Other groups of scientists have the opinion that another Ice Age (thousands of years away
in future) will be preceded by significant warming in the coming centuries.
(vii). Many experts believe that if afforestation is carried out at a large scale around the melting
glaciers, their retreating trends may be reversed.
(viii). From 1986-2000, Central Antarctic valleys have undergone cooling at a rate of 0.7oC per
decade and it has led even to an ecosystem-damage from cold. It has also been observed
that in a relatively small geographical region known as Antarctic Peninsula, melting of
ice and calving of huge iceberg has been continuing for a long time. Measurements at
ground-stations and also data from satellites reveal that there is a mild cooling at
Antarctic for more than about the last 20 years. But, the latest reports have revealed a
frightening fact that western part of the continent has also started warming up.
(ix). Some radar measurements have exhibited that in West Antarctic, ice has been increasing
at the rate of 26.8 gigatons (GT) every year. Enhancing quantitative trend in sea-ice-mass
at Antarctic is being observed since 1979 and the rate may even be accelerating in near
future. It presents a reversal of trends, observed in the last 6000 years. Though ice-
shelves at Antarctic have retreated, sea-ice has been increasing.
(x). During the last four interglacial periods (in about 4,20,000 years), the Earth has been
warmer than it is at present and relatively less amount of ice has melted now than what
has happened earlier.
(xi). Larger part of Antarctic undergoes a longer (about 21 days) sea-ice season than that
occurred in 1979.
(xii). It is commonly believed that as a consequence of climate changes, there may be ever-
increasing occurrences of extreme weather-conditions, hurricanes, tornadoes, tsunamis
and cyclones in near future. Thorough scientific studies have demonstrated that there is
no evidence for such claims. On the other end, it has been observed that there has been
no rise in the number of hurricanes recorded so far in the United States of America.

42 
 
Rise in average temperature of Earth’s surface has been recorded since early 1880s and may be
continuing from the last Ice Age. Thus, industrialization which is held responsible for increasing
carbon dioxide levels can not be considered solely responsible for all this because it seems to be
also a part of the natural trend. It is noticed from 1940 to 1970 that the carbon dioxide levels
have increased continuously, but the temperature has decreased to the extent of causing damage
due to incidence of frost in summer and also resulting in some European glaciers to move
forward. Moreover, data from satellites (in orbit about five miles high) recorded since 1979
have revealed that upper atmosphere is warming much less in comparison to surface of the
Globe.
In addition, other sets of data reveal that there has been no abnormal rise in South Pacific sea
levels for over the last thirty years. The sea level has definitely been going up, but this has been
tasking place for about the last 6000 years, dating from the Holocene era. The sea level has been
increasing at a rate of 10 to 20 centimeters in a period of every hundred years and no irrefutable
proof exists to ascertain that the present rate of increase in sea-water level is faster than that
observed earlier.
At present, there are about one hundred sixty thousand glaciers in the world. There are extensive
mass-balance records extending for a time-span of five years or more for only seventy nine
glaciers at the Earth. Some glaciers like that at the mountain of Kilimanjaro have been quickly
receding since the 1800s, earlier than the recorded global warming. This has happened despite a
constant temperature at the altitude of the mountain. This has happened because the rain forests
at base of the mountain has been destroyed and consequently, the air blowing upward carries
very little moisture-content with it a present. Many experts feel that if the afforestation is done,
the glacier may start growing again.
To complicate the phenomenon of temperature-rise further, there may be another significant
feature, popularly recognized as ‘heat-island’ effect. This is a phenomenon which makes crop-
lands and villages, towns or cities warmer than the nearby forest areas. Mostly, human-
settlement or urbanization and related activities lead to rise in temperature. Consequently, at
most of the weather-stations, relatively higher temperature has been being recorded due to this
effect in comparison to the (earlier) situation, when the same stations were located in rural areas
and presently, these are surrounded by various structures in urban areas. If one compares the
prevailing trends of the temperature records in case of cities with those areas where no
urbanization has occurred, e.g., Death Valley, one can observe that the regions without
urbanization have demonstrated practically no significant enhancement in temperature. As a
matter of fact, certain smaller cities have even shown cooling trend on the whole.
To being down the impact of various hazards which may arise on account of particularly the
global warming, Kyoto Global Warming Treaty has identified a number of actions to be taken.
This Treaty has been opposed by both the USA and Australia. As a matter of fact, the 1997
Leipzig Declaration described this Protocol as ‘dangerously simplistic, quite ineffective and even
economically destructive to jobs and standards-of-living.’ Some forecasts have exposed that the
effect it would have produced, had it have been provided total cooperation, would have been to
decrease the warming by only 0.04oC in the year 2100 AD, but this might have been
accompanied with an exceptional economic cost (Henriques, 2006).

43 
 
Though such uncertainties and controversies may continue to exist in the world of science for a
significantly long time in future also, there is a growing agreement amongst scientific
community in connection with exercising control on enhancement in concentrations of different
GHGs, especially CO2. In 1995, IPCC constituted by United Nations reported its first assessment
of climate change since 1990. The report was prepared by 500 scientists and then, reviewed by
another 500 experts in the field. The consensus reached has been that “the evidence suggests that
there is a discernible human-influence on global climate.” The IPCC report estimates a warming
of 1-3.5oC in the next 100 years, if atmospheric levels of GHGs continue to increase. They have
also stated that GHG (CO2) levels need to be brought down 50% in the next 50 years because
life-time of CO2 in the atmosphere is 50 to 200 years. At present, huge utilization of fossil fuels
is confined to relatively smaller regions (maximum upto meso-scale limits) related to the large
urban agglomerates or megacities. But, the resultant pollution has shown quite perceptible
macro-scale effects also.

6. CONCLUDING REMARKS

Present level of understanding in the realm of climate-related sciences can enable none to
conclude exactly as to what is going on currently at large and what may come in future, near or
far. There are pools of data, which can be used to support both sides of the debate or most of the
inferences can be straightforwardly disputed by another rival school of thought, to draw
contradicting conclusion. Keeping these facts in view, it may be mentioned that everyone in the
human-society should take precautionary measures to adopt a type of life-style to achieve the
goal of sustainable development for protection of the life on the Earth in longer run.
Even though there are many uncertainties and controversial issues related to global warming and
the ensuing climate changes, many steps being proposed to mitigate these phenomena are worth
taking at the earliest because measures like improved fuel-economy, maintaining and re-
establishing the forests, stabilizing the world population etc. have many other desirable
consequences, which may be directly unrelated to global warming.

Acknowledgements

The author expresses sincere thanks to Mr. Ankur Agarwal, B. Tech., Part III; Mr. Vineet Singla,
Mr. Vivek Singh and Mr. Aayush Agarwal, B. Tech., Part I, Civil Engineering Department, I.T.,
B.H.U.; and Mr. Umesh Dhuldhaj, Research Scholar, Department of Botany, B.H.U., Varanasi
for typesetting various parts of the manuscript of this paper.

REFERENCES

Anderson, J.B. and Andrews, J.T. (1999), Radiocarbon constraints on ice sheet advance and
retreat in the Weddell Sea, Antarctica, Geology, 27, 179.
Comsico, J.C. (2000), Variability and trends in Antarctic surface temperatures from in situ and
satellite infrared measurements, Journal of Climate, 13, 1674.
Earth Policy Institute (2004), detailed report available at http://www.earth-
policy.org/Indicators/CO2/2004.htm.

44 
 
Githeko A. K., Lindsay S. W., Confalonieri U. E. and Patz J. A. (2000), Climate change and
vector–borne diseases: A regional analysis, detailed report available at
http://whqlibdoc.who.int/bulletin/2000/Number%209/78(9)1136-1147.pdf.
Henriques, R (2006), Earth! I’m gonna make you sweat!, Physics News, 36 (1 – 2), 8 – 11.
Hill, M. K. (1997), Understanding Environmental Pollution, Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge, UK.
Joughin, I. and Tulaczuk, S. (2002), Positive mass balance of the Ross Ice streams, West
Antarctica, Science, 295, 476.
Keeling C. D. and Whorf T. P. (2004), Atmospheric CO2 records from sites in the SIO air
sampling network, in: A Compendium of Data on Global Change. Carbon Dioxide
Information Analysis Center, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy,
Oak Ridge, Tenn., USA.
Liu, J., Curry, J.A. and Martinson, D.G. (2004), Interpretation of recent Antarctic sea ice
variability, Geophysical Research Letters, 31:10.1029/2003GL018732.
Lomborg, C. (1998), Global warming reductions are small, 0.08o-0.28oC, Nature, 22, 395741.
Masters, G. M. (1998), Introduction to Environmental Engineering and Science, Prentice-Hall of
India, New Delhi.
Mcmichael, A. and Githeko, A. (2001), Human Health and Climate Change - 2001: Impacts,
adaptation and Vulnerability of Carbon dioxide sink, detailed report available at
http://www.grida.no/climate/ipcc_tar/wg2/348.htm.
Molla, M.S.A. (1997), Air Pollutants and its probable transmutation in the Ionosphere,
Renewable Energy, 10 (213), 321.
Parkinson, C.L. (2002), Trends in length of the southern oceans sea-ice season, 1979-99, Annals
of Glaciology, 34, 435.
Patrick, J. H. (2000), NOWCC Senior Environmental Employee Program, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, detailed report available at http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/hazwaste/
test/pdfs/final00d.pdf.
Peavy, H. S., Rowe, D. R. and Tchobanoglous, G. (1986), Environmental Engineering, McGraw-
Hill Book Company, International Edition, New Delhi, India.
Robinson, A. B., Baliunas, S. L., Soon, W. and Robinson, Z. W. (1998), Environmental effects
of increased atmospheric carbon dioxide, detailed report available at
http://www.oism.org/pproject/s33p36.htm#Message44.
Sharma, N., Mohan, D. and Rai, A. K. (2009), Predicting phytoplankton growth and dynamics in
relation to physico-chemical characteristics of water body, Water Air Soil Pollution,
available online with reference number - DOI 10.1007/s11270-009-9979-x.
Sincero, A. P. and Sincero, G. A. (1999), Environmental Engineering: A Design Approach,
Prentice Hall of India, New Delhi, India.

45 
 
Thompson, D.W.J. and Solomon, S. (2002), Interpretation of recent southern hemisphere climate
change, Science, 295, 476.
Vyas, N.K., Dash, M.K., Bhandari, S.N., Khare, N., Mitra, A. and Pandey, P.C. (2005), On the
trends in sea ice extent over the Antarctic region based on OCEANSAT-1 MSMR
observations, International Journal of Remote Sensing, 24, 2277.

46 
 
 Technical Papers

47 
 
 USE OF FLY ASH IN CONSTRUCTION

Ankush Agrawal and Vibhu Goel

Department of Civil Engineering, NIT, Durgapur.

ABSTRACT:Fly Ash is one of the important residues generated in the combustion of coal. Fly
ash is commonly used to supplement Portland cement in concrete production, where it can bring
both technological and economic benefits. Fly Ash based cement is environment friendly as it
reduces Green house gas emission, solves serious waste disposal problems faced by power
generation industry, conserves natural raw materials and reduces energy requirements. In
addition to economic and ecological benefits, the use of fly ash in concrete improves its
workability, reduces segregation, bleeding, heat evolution and permeability, inhibits alkali-
aggregate reaction, and enhances sulfate resistance.

We have thoroughly investigated on the above topic and we have also collected the data
concluding that blended cements are essential for enhancing durability and service life of a
structure and fly ash is a great product for mixing with cement.

This technology offers a large scale consumption of Fly Ash that can translate to improve
economics to the utilities as well as to cement manufacturers.

1. INTRODUCTION

Fly Ash is a residue resulting from combustion of pulverized coal or lignite in Thermal Power
Plants. About 80% of total ash is in finely divided form which is carried away with flue gases
and is collected by Electrostatic precipitator or other suitable technology. This Ash is called (dry)
Fly Ash or chimney Ash or Hopper Ash. Fly Ash consists of inorganic materials mainly silica
and alumina with some amount of organic material in the form of unburnt carbon. Its fineness is
comparable to cement, however, some particles have size less than 1 micron in equivalent
diameter. It possesses pozzolanic characteristics.

On the basis of their chemical composition resulting from the type of coal burned; these are
designated Class F and Class C. Class F is fly ash normally produced from burning anthracite or
bituminous coal, and Class C is normally produced from the burning of sub bituminous coal and
lignite (as are found in some of the western states of the United States) (Halstead 1986). Class C
fly ash usually has cementitious properties in addition to pozzolanic properties due to free lime,
whereas Class F is rarely cementitious when mixed with water alone.

From our research we found that bricks, Portland pozzolana cement, sintered aggregates, tiles,
light weight aggregates and hollow blocks can be produced using these flyash as raw material.
The properties of the materials made from flyash have been found to be better than conventional
materials for use in construction work. Besides these uses, flyash can be utilised for backfilling
of mines, lining irrigation canals, agriculture, aggregates in road construction etc.

48 
 
Fly ash-lime-gypsum is a technological renaissance of age-old pozzolanic chemistry proven for
its longevity for thousands of years. A process of blending flyash, lime and calcined gypsum for
making a useful product, has been developed.

In no way, it is inferior to conventional red bricks in terms of crushing strength, water

absorption, mortar and plaster saving & thermal insulation. In fact is shade better in every way.

2. BENEFITS OF FLY ASH AND ITS USE

2.1 As a Cement Replacement

The use of coal fly ash as a cement replacement in concrete is the most attractive one because of
its high volume utilization and widespread construction. . However, the replacement of cement
with coal fly ash in Portland cement concrete usually increases the setting time and decreases the
early strength of concrete. The addition of chemical activators such as Na2SO4 or CaCl2
accelerates pozzolanic reactions and changes pozzolanic reaction mechanisms between fly ash
and lime, which results in decreased setting time, accelerated strength development, and
increased strength of materials containing fly ash, especially with a high percentage of fly ash.
Thus chemical activation of reactivity of fly ash is an effective method to increase the use of fly
ash in concrete. There is entrapped heat in fly ash and for that matter even in sand. This micro
heat proves to be a source of sound cement chemistry, facilitating sustainable micro structure
growth in concrete towards densification, impermeability and durability

2.2 Fresh Concrete Workability

Use of fly ash increases the absolute volume of cementitious materials (cement plus fly ash)
compared to non-fly-ash concrete; therefore, the paste volume is increased, leading to a
reduction in aggregate particle interference and enhancement in concrete workability. The
spherical particle shape of fly ash also participates in improving workability of fly ash concrete
because of the so-called "ball bearing" effect.

2.3 Bleeding

Using fly ash in air-entrained and non-air-entrained concrete mixtures usually reduces bleeding
by providing greater fines volume and lower water content for a given workability. Although
increased fineness usually increases the water demand, the spherical particle shape of the fly ash
lowers particle friction and offsets such effects. Concrete with relatively high fly ash content will
require less water than non-fly-ash concrete of equal slump.

2.4 Time of Setting

All Class F and most Class C fly ashes increase the time of setting of concrete. Time of setting of
fly ash concrete is influenced by the characteristics and amounts of fly ash used in concrete. For
highway construction, changes in time of setting of fly ash concrete from non-fly-ash concrete
using similar materials will not usually introduce a need for changes in construction techniques;
the delays that occur may be considered advantageous.

49 
 
2.5 Factor of cost reduction

Use of fly ash reduces cost factor by 8%..Almost 10-20% fly ash is used to gain strength which
results in reduction of cost by 6-7%.According to the recent research carried out in order to find
out the maximum utilization of fly ash in form of concrete, bricks, etc any type of construction
can be completed in almost 8-10% lower the exact cost of construction

2.6 Strength and Rate of Strength of Hardened Concrete

Strength of fly ash concrete is influenced by type of cement, quality of fly ash, and curing
temperature compared to that of non-fly-ash concrete proportioned for equivalent 28-day
compressive strength. Concrete containing typical Class F fly ash may develop lower strength at
3 or 7 days of age when tested at room temperature. However,fly ash concretes usually have
higher ultimate strengths when properly cured. The slow gain of strength is the result of the
relatively slow pozzolanic reaction of fly ash.

Table1: Showing variation in strength of concrete of different grades

% of fly ash M33 M28 M35

0 70.60% 68.50% 71%

10 64% 62% 65%

20 60.60% 58% 61.51%

30 58.25% 55% 60.20%

40 57.50% 53.75% 58.75%

50 57.50% 53.50% 58.75%

3. EXPERIMENT

The studies regarding to the fly ash in construction are very less. so in order to determine the best
percentage of fly ash which can be used in fly ash in order to get good strength workability and
also reduction in cost factors. To do this experiment three most common design mix M33, M28 ,
M35 were selected in our experiment we have selected 3 mix M33 ,M28,M25 the values
33,28,25 show there characterstic (fck) compressive strength values and for our experiment we
have taken their standard values as 100% and then recorded other readings w.r.t standard values
In order to check the strength of various design mix on using different % of fly ash is being
observed and also the best is selected. In 7 days results in M33, M28, M25 were not found to be
to encouraging but after sum weeks (i.e. 28 days) results were quiet encouraging and one most
common thing that is being obtained in all the 3 mix is that after addition of more than 20-30%
of fly ash strength of mix started decreasing so in almost all the best range of mixing obtained
was 10-20% of fly ash.

50 
 
 70%
percentage 7 days compressive strength at room 
60%

50%

40%
temperature

30%

20%

10%

0%
10 20 30 40 50
percentage of fly ash

Fig1: Residual 7-Day Compressive Strengths with Different Fly Ash Percentages
percentage residual 28 days compressive strength 

140%

120%

100%
at room temp

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%
0 10 20 30 40 50
percentage of fly ash
 
Fig2: Residual 28--Day Compressive Strengths with Different Fly Ash Percentages

51 
 
 Table 2: Showing variation in strength of concrete of different grades

% of fly ash M33 M28 M35

0 100% 100% 100%
10 124.5% 110.6% 107%
20 119.6% 108.5% 106%
30 98% 97.29% 85.4%
40 88.75% 90.25% 79.75%
50 87% 87.25% 78.25%

4. CONCLUSIONS

Finally we can conclude that results that we obtained in 7 days were not so encouraging as
compared to normal mixture is due to the reason that in cement mixture a gel is formed which
starts wrapping over the surface of the fine aggregates but in case of the fly ash the cement does
not get any type of such base till fly ash hardens itself to provide base that’s why result are much
more promising and beneficial in 28 days .Therefore we can say that Fly ash is bone of modern
construction and it can be used to utilize in various types of places where concrete construction is
not possible due to cracks and less strength but all this can be minimized by using fly ash
mixture.

REFERENCES

Wikipedia.

Fly ash for use in concrete (journal by ee berry , vm malhotra)

Experimental results obtained from our experiment

Data of ntpc regarding use of fly ash.

52 
 
PARTICLE PACKING THEORY IN CONCRETE MIX PROPORTIONING
– A REVIEW
 
Anuradha1 and Dharankar Dhananjay2
1
Geetai Girls hostel, Amrut Dham, Panchavati, Nashik.
2
C/o Baburao S. Jathe, Amardham road, Kazi gadhi, Dwarka, Nashik.

ABSTRACT:Concrete is one of the most widely used man-made construction material. The
mixture proportioning of concrete requires thorough understanding of the properties of
materials to be used in the concrete. The behavior of concrete in fresh and hardened state
largely depends of the packing characteristics of the ingredients. Thus, knowledge about the
concept of particle packing is highly essential to select a suitable proportion for the concrete
mix. The commonly used concrete mix proportioning methods indirectly incorporate the packing
concept by deciding the aggregate proportions from an ideal gradation curve and empirical
relations and also on the finer ingredients such as cement, silica, fly ash, etc. Owing to this,
these conventional mix design methods might not produce the concrete of desired specifications.
Usually, High Strength Concrete (HSC), Very High Strength Concrete (VHSC), High
Performance Concrete (HPC), Reactive Powder Concrete (RPC), etc are produced at cement
content more than 450 Kg/m3. It is well known that the entire cement quantity in the mix does not
take part in the hydration process. Some of the cement particles work as filler material. In such
cases the part of cement that work as filler material can be replaced with cementitious materials.
However, to arrive at a suitable proportion of the cement replacement materials, the
conventional methods may require a large number of trials. The concept of particle packing
theory is an efficient alternative to design a concrete mix that satisfies desired specification at
lower cement content. The reduced cement content of the concrete not only reduce the cost of
concrete but also help to make concrete eco-friendly as the cement production is one of the
major contributor to global warming.

In the present paper, the review of the particle packing concept and its use in concrete mix
proportioning has been presented.. The scope of the present paper is restricted to the study of
latest developments in the field.

Keywords: concrete mix proportioning, particle packing.

1. INTRODUCTION
Concrete is one of the most widely used man-made construction materials in the world and
studies indicate that it will continue to be so in the coming years and decades. Concrete is
composite mixture containing a binding phase and aggregate with their own distribution of
particle size. The paste, composed of hydrated Portland cement and water, coats the surface of
fine and coarse aggregates. Through a chemical reaction, i.e. hydration, paste hardens and gains
strength to form the rocklike mass, the concrete. Compared to the other construction materials,

53 
 
concrete has numerous advantages such as abundant resources, easy operation, mechanical
properties, durability, and low cost of production. These characteristics enable concrete to be
widely employed in the field of civil Engineering. Apart from such advantages, concrete has
some disadvantages such as high energy and raw material consumption, environmental pollution,
etc. which hampers the image of the concrete as a sustainable material.

The common ingredients of the concrete are cement, aggregate and water. However, nowadays,
the fourth ingredient known as admixture is commonly used in the concrete mixes to modify
certain specific properties of concrete in fresh and hardened state.

1.1 Need of Particle Packing Concept

Design of concrete mixes involves determination of the proportions of the given constituents,
namely, cement, water, coarse and fine aggregates and admixtures, if any, which would produce
concrete possessing specified properties both in the fresh and hardened states with the maximum
overall economy. Workability is specified as the important property of concrete in the fresh state;
for hardened state compressive strength and durability are important. The mix design is,
therefore, generally carried out for a particular compressive strength and durability with adequate
workability so that fresh concrete can be properly placed and compacted. In special situations,
concrete can be designed for flexural strength or for any other specific property of concrete.

Design or proportion of a concrete mix is a prime interest of all the consultants dealing with
concrete. Proportioning the available materials to produce concrete of required strength, that too,
at minimum cost is very important. Concrete proportioning often involve selection of materials
as well as their relative proportions. One of the major objectives of the mix designing of concrete
is to minimize the aggregate voids, which in turn minimizes the amount of a paste required to fill
these voids, maintaining workability and strength. In the past, concrete mix proportioning used to
be an art. However, it is now transferring to the science with the advent of concrete technology.
Newer and newer methods are being attempted with an objective to achieve a dense concrete
with optimized mix proportion for desired workability and strength.

In recent years, research in concrete technology is focused on achieving higher strengths. The
production of HSC i.e. the concrete of characteristic strength higher than 55 MPa generally
requires the use of a low water/cementitious materials ratio and high cementitious materials
content. The use of a low water/cementitious ratio would decrease the workability of the
concrete mix, while the use of high cementitious materials content would increase the thermal
expansion/contraction during strength development and the drying shrinkage in the longer term,
i.e. would decrease the dimensional stability of the concrete. Hence, a HSC tends to have a lower
workability and a lower dimensional stability. Taking these attributes into consideration, a HSC
is not necessarily a HPC, which satisfy all the desired properties.

Nowadays, engineers are demanding HPC that have not only high strength but also all round
high performance in terms of other attributes such as workability, dimensional stability and
durability. Because of the conflicting requirements of these performance attribute (e.g. increase
in strength often leads to decrease in workability and increases in both strength and workability
may have to be achieved at the expense of lower dimensional stability etc), HPC is much more

54 
 
difficult to produce than HSC. High dosages of chemical and mineral admixtures may have to be
added and mix optimization is needed in order to achieve all the desired properties. The
conventional mix design methods may not be that effective to optimize the concrete mix for
desired performance. Explanation for this lies in the inefficient packing of the ingredients due to
missing finer particles in the gradation used for deciding the relative proportions of the
ingredients of the mix.

To overcome the flaw in commonly used mix design methods, a concept of particle packing is
introduced for mix proportioning of concrete.

2. CONCEPT OF PARTICLE PACKING THEORY

According to the concept of particle packing, voids in coarser particles are filled by small
particles. Small particles in turn contain smaller voids that are filled with finer particles and so
on. The concept of particle packing is playing increasingly important role in modern concrete
technology. Particle packing has been a subject for almost 100 years because of its importance to
scientific research and industrial applications. After Second World War, the awareness grew that
the material structure exerted a major influence on mechanical behavior of concrete. Particle
packing plays an important role in determining the mechanical behavior of particle assembly.
Particle packing has its applications in geotechnical engineering, mineral engineering, powder
technology, concrete technology, etc.

Almost all the mix design methods, indirectly, use the concept of particle packing as they
basically aims to minimize the voids in the aggregate assembly. However, as these methods do
not consider packing of cement and micro fine particles along with coarse and fine aggregate, the
optimum packing is not achieved in case of mixes proportioned by these methods. On the other
hand, the proposed theory of particle packing considers gradation of the coarsest and the finest
ingredient particle size of the mix while deciding their relative proportions in the mix.

Use of concept of particle packing would result in such a relative proportion of coarse and fine
aggregates that the mixture would have minimum voids to be filled by binder and water. This
will not only reduce the amount of cement paste thereby reducing overall cost of concrete but
will also avoid segregation, bleeding and air entrainment. With reduction in cement content
durability problems owing to high heat of hydration, drying shrinkage will also be minimized.

Particle packing theory can be applied to concrete construction at micro level (optimization of
aggregate composition), macro level (dealing with packing structure of binder material) and
meso level (simulation of crack development). Maximization of packing density by adjusting the
grading of whole range of solid particles, including the coarse aggregates, fine aggregates and
cementitious particles, can improve the overall performance of concrete. Mix design of HSC,
HPC and Reactive Powder Concrete (RPC) is typically based on particle packing approach. In
case of Very High Strength Concrete (VHSC) used in the constructions for nuclear shielding,
blast resistant structures etc. use of particle packing theory is highly beneficial.

55 
 
 Fig1: Concept of Particle Packing (After Johansson) [1, 2]

The basic concept of particle packing was extended further to incorporate various parameters
affecting packing characteristics of particle assembly, which led development of different
packing theories.

2.1 Particle Packing Theories Can Be Described By Two Different Approaches [1]:
2.1.1. Discrete approach
Discrete approach is characterized by a small number of discrete particle sizes. Discrete
distribution contains Monodispersion only. Monodispersion is a system in which all particles are
of exactly same size. According to discrete approach of particle packing coarser particles are
packed to their maximum possible density. Then pores left are filled by smaller size particles and
finally finer particles fill up the pores in coarse and medium particles and so on. The diameter
ratio of adjacent particle size should be at least 100:1, greater is better. The basic principle of
discrete approach is that each class of particle size packs to its maximum possible density. Also,
each particle size should be added to mix one after another without disturbing packing of
previous size class. This procedure will produce dense mix consistent with discrete approach.
The approach does not allow to move or to stir system once it has been packed. Stirring or
random distribution of particles is not possible as per discrete approach. All of the discrete rules
are routinely bent and stretched and presently it is almost a continuous distribution [1, 2].

2.1.1.1 Discrete packing models

Particle packing models developed on the basis of discrete approach are classified in three
categories:

2.1.1.1.1 Binary mixture model

These models illustrate the packing structure of mixture containing two aggregate sizes.

56 
 
2.1.1.1.1.1. Furnas model:

Wall Effect: When an isolated coarse particle is in the matrix of fine aggregates, it disturbs the
packing density of fine aggregates. There exist increased voids near the region of direct contact
between the particles. This is termed as wall effect.
Loosening Effect: When the fine particle is in the matrix of coarse particles and is too large to fit
into the interstices between coarse aggregate, it disturbs the packing density of coarse particles.
This will increase the voids ratio of the mixture and is termed as loosening effect. Figure is
given below showing wall effect and loosening effect [1, 2].

Fig2: Wall Effect and Loosening Effect

The designation of the different sizes of particles into “coarse”, “medium” and “fine” is an
outcome of the Furnas model

2.1.1.1.1.2. Aim and Goff model:

2.1.1.1.1.3. Powers Model:

2.1.1.1.2. Ternary mixture model:

2.1.1.1.2.1. Toufar model:

2.1.1.1.2.2. Modified Toufar model:

2.1.1.1.3. Multicomponent mixture model:

2.1.1.1.3.1. Linear Packing Density model (LPDM):

2.1.1.1.3.2. Solid Suspension Model (SSM):
2.1.1.1.3.3. Compressible Packing Model (CPM):

57 
 
2.1.2. Continuous approach:

Continuous distribution of particles is that one in which all-possible particle sizes within the
range are represented.

2.1.2.1 Continuous packing model:

2.1.2.2. Fuller and Thompson model:

According to Fuller and Thompson model,

n
⎛ d ⎞
Q =⎜ ⎟ …. (1)
⎝ d max ⎠
 Where: Q: cumulative (volume) percentage finer than
d: size of particle
dmax: maximum size of particle
n: exponent governing the distribution of sizes

The author observed that the maximum density of the mix was obtained when n=0.5. Fuller and
Thompson carried out work using spherical particles. Wig et al. (1916) suggested that the results
presented by Fuller and Thompson may not be necessarily true in case of non-spherical particles.
Also, it was shown that the fuller curve might not always give the maximum density and
maximum strength. Talbot and Richart (1923) developed the equation similar to fuller equation.
The dense mixes obtained using the equation, however, were observed to be very harsh and very
difficult to place [1, 2].

2.1.2.3. Andreasen Model:

Andreasen packing theory was based on the similarity condition. Zooming into the fractal picture
reveals that particle size variations and packing arrangements will continue to be similar. This is
similarity condition. According to Andreasen packing qmodel [1, 2]:

CPFT = ⎜
⎛d⎞
⎟ …. (2)
⎝ ⎠
D
Where: CPFT: cumulative percent finer than
d: particle size under consideration
D: maximum particle size
q: exponent (distribution coefficient or modulus)

Andreasen plotted CPFT against particle size on log-log scale. Above equation produces straight
line on log-log axis.
Andreasen assumed smaller particle of distribution to be infinitesimally smaller. Dinger and
Funk later recognized that the finest particle in the distribution is finite in size. The actual
Andreasen model was then modified incorporating the minimum finite particle size.

58 
 
2.1.2.4. Rosin-Rammler model

3. CONCLUDING REMARKS

Through the extensive literature survey certain conclusions were drawn and presented below as
comments on literature review.

3.1 Comments on Literature Review

Use of concrete is ever increasing all over the world. Previously used ordinary concrete is now
replaced by modern concrete with increasing number of components. Increasing number of
components has made mixture proportioning of concrete more complex. Awareness about
utilizing higher strengths of concretes raised many research studies spanning over the century to
the date. HSC, HPC, self compacting concrete (SCC), RPC, ready mixed concrete (RMC) are
commonly used special concretes.

All special concrete needs to be proportioned very carefully. Mostly, lower w/c ratios are used
for producing mixes of higher strengths. Such lowered w/c ratios leads to use of higher quantity
of cement to satisfy requirement of strength. Excess quantity of cement than required from
viewpoint of strength is used to impart the workability to the mix, only. It is observed that entire
cement particles are at all not being hydrated and that much cement quantity is as good as a
waste.

Use of excess cement for the sake of workability, only, can never be advised as the required
workability can also be achieved with some other cheaper filler materials. Besides higher costs,
excess cement content causes several durability problems of concrete such as thermal cracking
due to high heat of hydration, drying shrinkage, etc.

As conventional methods have certain flaws, the concept of particle packing was introduced to
improve the mechanical behavior of concrete. The packing density of materials characterizes the
concept of particle packing.

Maximization of packing density of particle at macro level, meso level and micro level is very
useful to improve the performance of concrete. Densely packed aggregate mass requires less
amount of binder paste to fill the interstices. This reduces the cement content of the concrete
mix. The necessary workability can be achieved by using micro fines such as fly ash, rise husk
ash, silica fume, etc. As far as possible cement content of mix should be estimated to satisfy the
strength requirements only. This will not only cut down the cost of concrete but it will also
reduce the environmental hazards, as cement manufacturing is major contributor to global
warming.

Among all micro fines or cement replacing materials silica fume is the most expensive (much
expensive than cement). Although, it is well known that, silica fume is beneficial owing to its
fineness and pozzolanic effects, applicability of other fillers and cementitious materials such ash
fly ash, rice husk ash should be tested to cut down the cost and also to solve the problem of

59 
 
disposal of by-products. Fly ash is largely available in this part of world and its disposal is a
challenge for the concerning authority. It is observed that almost 50% replacement of cement
with fly ash is feasible, under proper conditions. Use of fly ash and rice husk ash in concrete
mixes proportioned with particle packing approach may be helpful to produce economic and
ecofriendly concrete.

Even with developed concept of particle packing theory, the systematic mix proportion method
for design of HPC is still lacking. The Three Tier System described earlier seems to be suitable
for design of HPC. Its applicability may be checked for practical application.

Literature reveals that it is possible to provide normal structural use concrete with cement
content as low as 140 kg/m3, whereas Indian Standards still recommend minimum cement
content in concrete mix to be 300 kg/m3.

A mix design method based on particle packing approach considering all the particle sizes in the
mix needs to be formulated so as to produce concrete of desired specifications that too at lower
cement content.

REFERENCES

Kwan, A. H. and Wong, H. C., (2005) “Packing density: A key Concept for
Mix Design of High Performance Concrete”, pp. 1-10.
Kawai, T., (2005) “State-of-the-Art Report on High Strength Concrete in
Japan”- Recent Developments and Applications, pp. 1-9.
Mehta, P. K., (2003) “High Performance High Volume Fly Ash Concrete for
Sustainable Development”, pp. 6.
Rajamane, N. P., Shivaranjani, I., (2004) “Optimization of Relative Proportions
of Coarse and Fine Aggregates Using Particle Packing Theory”, , pp. 1-6.
Pande, S.G., (July 2007) “Study of concrete Mix Proportioning Based on
Modified Andreasen Particle Packing Model”, Dissertation Report, , pp. 1-130.
Rajasekaran, I. and Santhanam, M.,(2005)“Application of Particle Packing to
Produce Roller Compacted Concrete”, ICJ, , pp. 23-28.
Senthil, K. V. and Santhanam, M.,et al
a). (2003)“Particle Packing Theories and Their Application in Concrete
Mixture Proportioning: A Review”, ICJ, pp. 1324-1330.
b). (2004) “Use of Particle Packing Model to Produce HPC at Optimum
Cement Content”, ICJ, pp. 22-28.

60 
 
 DURABILITY STUDIES ON SCC AND NSC CUBES EXPOSED TO
NITRIC ACID

C. Shilpa Patnaik1, S. Adiseshu2 and P.S.N.Raju3

1
Research Scholar, 2Associate Professor, 3Professor, Department of Civil Engineering,
Andhra University College of Engineering, Visakhapatnam
 
 
ABSTRACT:An attempt has been to study the influence of dilute Nitric acid on two types of
concretes, i.e. self compacting concrete (SCC) and Normal strength concrete (NSC) at different
concentrations. The mechanical properties and deterioration were studied of different types of
concrete. Important structures like bridges, roads, water and sewer pipes, dams, parking
garages, and runways etc. are to be designed to withstand and serve for long years to meet the
present demand in infrastructure and development. Self compacting concrete (SCC) can be used
instead of Ready mix concrete (RMC) to overcome traffic problems during construction. In the
present study the effect of HNO3 on SCC and NSC was investigated and the effect of Nitric acid
(HNO3) on Compressive strength, loss in weight (%) and acid consumption (liters) of self
compacted concrete (SCC) and Normal strength concrete (NSC) of grade M35 made with
Ordinary Portland cement (OPC) for applications in field i.e. bridges, roads, water and sewer
pipes, dams, parking garages, and runways etc. The structures mentioned above deteriorate due
to contact with salt water, fuel spray, heat, air, offshore air etc. The test samples that were cured
for 28 days were exposed in an aggressive environment (with 0.1 % and 1 % HNO3 content,
respectively) for 112 days. Tests were conducted on cube specimens with dimensions 150 mm X
150mm X 150mm. The amount of acid consumed and loss of weight were measured at an interval
of 3 days. Later the specimens were tested for Compressive strength of cube specimens. Results
were analyzed for the effect of Nitric acid (HNO3) on self compacted concrete (SCC) and Normal
strength concrete (NSC) on compressive strength. Similarly comparison was done for loss in
weight (%) and acid consumption (liters/m2) with their respective parameter. SCC performance
is better when compared to NSC. The experiments demonstrated that surface corrosion caused
by HNO3 solution strongly affects the Compressive strength.

1. INTRODUCTION

Concrete is a mixture of cement, aggregate and water. Cement is an important and critical
constituent in concrete and provides the binding force and durability to concrete. The factors to
be considered in dealing with concrete durability include the constituent materials, construction
process, physical properties of the concrete, and type of loading and the nature of the
environment to which the concrete structure is exposed.

In this study self compacting concrete made with OPC, Silica fume, fly ash and admixtures have
been exposed to sulfuric acid of different concentrations. The amount of acid consumed by
concrete per unit surface area with time, strength and weight reduction in concrete and depth of
deterioration of concrete for a given amount of acid consumed. These calculations are useful to

61 
 
estimate the life expectancy of the structure and to take necessary steps to protect the concrete by
providing additional cover or by applying protective coatings etc.

2. TECHNOLOGY FOR SELF COMPACTING CONCRETE

The design of S.C.C is totally different from conventional concrete. The major difficulty, which
was faced in development of S.C.C, was on account of contradictory factors that the concrete
should be fully flowable but without causing bleeding or segregation. It is therefore required that
the cement and mortar of the S.C.C should have higher viscosity to ensure flowability while
maintaining non sedimentation of bigger aggregates.

Type of SCC 

Powder Type  Viscosity – Agent Type 

Combination Type 

Fig1: Showing the three different concepts for production of S.C.C

3. EXISTING TESTS FOR FRESH SCC MIXES

No single method has been found which characterizes all the relevant workability aspects and
hence, each mix design has been tested by more than one test method for the different
workability parameters. Following are the existing tests for fresh SCC.
• Slump flow test
• L-box test
• U-box test
• Orimet test
• J-Ring test

4. STRUCTURAL PROPERTIES

The basic ingredients used in SCC mixes are practically the same as those used in the
conventional HPC vibrated concrete, except they are mixed in different proportions and the
addition of special admixtures to meet the project specifications for SCC.

62 
 
 Structural Properties of SCC
Items SCC
Water-binder ratio (%) 25 to 40
Air content (%) 4.5-6.0
Compressive strength (age: 28 days) (MPa) 40 to 80
Compressive strength (age: 91 days) (MPa) 55 to 100
Splitting tensile strength (age:28 days) (MPa) 2.4 to 4.8
Elastic modulus (GPa) 30 to 36
Shrinkage strain (x 10-6) 600 to 800

5. BENEFITS OR ADVANTAGES

• Speed of placement, resulting in increased production efficiency.

• Ease of placement, requiring fewer workers for a particular pour.
• Better assurances of adequate consolidation.
• Reduced wear and tear on forms from vibration.
• Reduced wear and tear on mixes due to reduced shearing action.
• Improved surface quality and fewer bud holes, requiring fewer patching or beautification
efforts.

6. PROPOSED MIX DESIGN

SCC can be made with standard available raw materials, however, in order to achieve the unique
rheological properties of SCC, special attention must be paid to mix design process.
In designing a concrete mix for SCC, the following requirements were proposed in this research:
• Air content not used
• Coarse aggregate (>4 mm) <50% by weight of total aggregate
• Fine aggregate (from 0.125 – 4 mm) >50% by weight of total aggregate
• Paste around 38% of the mix volume
• Superplasticisers (Conplast SP430) around 1.0 to 3.0 liters/100kg cement (high workability
and high strength)
• Cementations content 400-500 kg/m#

7. ACID CONSUMPTION:

HNO3 NSC SCC(UC)

0.10% 1% 0.10% 1%
7 0.042 0.25 0.03 0.28
14 0.084 0.5 0.06 0.555
28 0.147 0.875 0.105 0.975
56 0.294 1.75 0.2 1.96
90 0.483 2.875 0.3 3.25
112 0.588 3.5 0.355 3.82

63 
 
8. VARIATION OF WEIGHT

HNO3 NSC SCC(UC)

0.10% 1% 0.10% 1%
7 1.00689 1.256 1.00089 0.9899
14 1.00956 1.278 1.00189 0.9864
28 1.06253 1.236 1.00258 0.984
56 1.0625 1.389 1.00449 0.968
90 1.0148 1.3489 1.00556 0.9487
112 1.147 1.456 1.00618 0.9404

9. VARIATION OF COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH:

HNO3 NSC SCC

0.10% 1% 0.10% 1%
7 44.87 43.78 45.33 47.75
14 45.78 42.45 46.67 45.25
28 46.36 40.26 47.25 44.03
56 45.69 34.23 46.12 37.67
90 44.23 30.24 45.5 31.12
112 42.47 26.76 44.75 28.25

10. CONCLUSIONS

• For 0.1% and 1% concentrations, SCC and NSC cubes consumed 0.355 and 3.5 lt/m2 of acid
at the end of 112 days, this indicates that Self-compacted specimens consumed less amount
of acid implies that the permeability is low when compared to Normal strength concrete.

• Compared to SCC and NSC specimens, show less consumption of acid and less loss of
weight. This indicates that Self-compacted specimens show better performance than the
Normal strength specimens.

• Self compacted concrete cubes exposed to 0.1% concentration of Nitric acid shows 0.5%,
0.7%, 5.9%, 5.7%, 0.9%, 13% decrease in weight of after 7, 14, 28, 56, 90 and 112 days
when compared to Natural strength concrete. Self- compacted concrete when exposed to 1%
concentration of Nitric acid shows 20.3%, 30%, 29%, 35% decrease in weight for 28, 56, 90
and 112 days when compared to Natural strength concrete.

• The compressive strength of SCC cubes increases by 2%, 0.93%, 2.8%, 5.3% at the end of
28, 56, 90 and 112 days. Self-compacted concrete cubes of 1% concentration the

64 
 
 compressive strength of SCC cubes increases by 9%, 10%, 3%, 5.5% at the end of 28, 56, 90
and 112 days.

• In all the specimens exposed to different acid concentrations, after compressive strength, dry
surface is observed in the core of the specimens. This indicates the impermeability of
concrete, which offers good resistance against acid penetration.

• The Self-compacted specimens exhibited better performance in acid consumption, weight

loss and compressive strength compared to the NSC specimens. This indicates that no
compaction is required for Self-compacting concrete. 

GRAPHS:
ACID CONSUMPTION

FIG 5.5 VARIATION OF V WITH AGE FOR NSC AND SCC

SPECIMENS IN 0.1% ,1% CONCENTRATION OF HNO3 ACID
5
consumed in lt/m2
Variation of acid

4
0.1% NSC
3
1% NSC
2
0.1% SCC
1
1% SCC
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120
Age in days

Fig 1

VARIATION OF WEIGHT

FIG 5.10 VARIATION OF WEIGHT WITH AGE FOR NSC AND SCC
SPECIMENS IN 0.1% ,1% CONC OF HNO3 ACID

2 0.1% NSC
1.5 1% NSC
Weight

0.1% SCC
1
1% NSC
0.5

0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120
Weight in days

Fig 2

65 
 
VARIATION OF COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH

FIG 5.15 VARIATION OF COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH WITH AGE FOR NSC

AND SCC SPECIMENS IN 0.1% AND 1% CONCENTRATION OF HNO3 ACID
Variation of compressive

60
50
0.1% NSC
strength

40
30 1% NSC
20 0.1% SCC
10 1% SCC
0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Compressive strength in days

Fig 3

REFERENCES

Hajime Okamura, “Self Compacting High Performance Concrete Ferguson Lecture for
1996”, Concrete International, Vol. 19, No. 7, July 1997, PP. 50-54.

Ozawa, K., “Development of High Performance Concrete based on the Durability of Design
of Concrete Structures”, EASEC-2, Vol. 1, PP. 445-450, 1989.

Bartos, J. M., “Measurement of Key Properties of Fresh Self-Compacting Concrete –Time

Development of the Material Properties and the Bond Behavior”, LACER No.5, PP. 115-123
(2000).

Ouchi, M., M. Hibino, “Development Applications and Investigations of SCC”, International

Workshop, Kochi, Japan (2000).

Ouchi, M., M. Hibino and H. Okamura, “Effect of super plasticizers on Self Compacting of
Fresh Concrete”, TRR 1574, PP. 37-40 (1996).

Debashis Das, V.K. Gupta and S.K. Kaushik “Effect of Maximum Size and Volume of
course Aggregate on the properties of SCC”, The Indian Concrete Journal, March (2006).

Dieb and Hooton “Water Permeability Measurement of High Performance Concrete using a
High Pressure Triaxial Test”, Cement and Concrete Research, No.6, Vol.25, 1995.

Mehta, P.K., “Concrete Structure: Properties and Materials”, Prentice hall, PP. 367-378,
1986.

66 
 
 Biczoc, Imre, “Concrete Corrosion- Concrete Protection”, 8th edition, Akademial Kiado,
BudaPest, 1972,PP 545.

ACI Materials Journal (ACI Mater. J.) ISSN 0889 – 325X – John Strieder Woods, H. 1968.
“Durability of Concrete Construction”, ACI, Monograph No. 4, Detroit, MI. Mehatha. P.K.
and Hayness. H, “Durability of Concrete in sea water” , Materials Journal of ASCE
structures division, No.ST 8, Vol.101,1978,PP 1679-1686.

O.E. Gjorv and Vessenland, “Effect of condensed silica fume on steel Corrosion in
Concrete”, Cement and Concrete Research, No.6, Vol.92, Nov-Dec 1995.

“Concrete Technology: Theory and Practice” by Prof. M.S. Shetty in 1982.

"The Effects of Calcium Nitrite and Mix Design on the Corrosion Resistance of Steel in
Concrete", N. S. Berke, Part I: Paper #273 in Corrosion '85, Boston, 1985

Part II: Paper #132 in Corrosion '87, San Francisco, 1987

” Self-Compacting Concrete” By Dean A. Frank, P.E, NPCA Director of Technical

Services in MC- Magazine 2001 concrete.

“Technical Review of Calcium Nitrite Corrosion Inhibitor in Concrete” by Berke,NS;

Rosenberg,A in 1989.

“Cement And Concrete Research “ by D.M. Roy, P.Aurgunan and M.R.Silsbee, Vol 31,
December 2001,pages 1809-1813.

“Durable Concrete Structures Design Guide” by S.Rostam 1st Aug 1992.

67 
 
 BLAST LOADING ON STRUCTURES AND ITS MITIGATION
Akshat Sinha and Raghavendra Doneriya

Department of Civil Engineering

Institute of Technology, BHU, Varanasi 221005.
 

ABSTRACT: The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effects of blast load on the structure
and the response of the structure to the blast wave. Following the bombing attacks in Gujarat,
Delhi, Rajasthan and several major cities during recent years, and WTC attack on 9/11, blast
analysis becomes necessary. The analysis and design of structures subjected to blast loads
requires a detailed understanding of blast phenomena and the dynamic response of various
structural elements to such loadings. An explanation of the nature of explosions and the
mechanism of blast waves in free air is discussed in this paper. To analyze their impact on
structures, modeling of blast loading is discussed. Experimental studies can accurately produce
considerable data that aids validation of numerical models. The reliability of computer modeling
in highlighting areas of over-stressing in the structure and minimizing the extent, and hence cost,
of testing and investigation of the structural damage is discussed. Mitigation measures and
various techniques are also discussed. 

1. INTRODUCTION
 
The events of 9/11 continue to have a lasting effect on the US and the world. The use of vehicle
bombs to attack city centres also has been a feature of campaigns by terrorist organisation around
the world, e.g. attack on The Hotel Marriott, Islamabad, Delhi bomb blasts. A bomb explosion
within or very near a building can have catastrophic effects destroying or severely damaging
portions of the building’s external and internal structural frames, collapsing walls, blowing out
large expanses of windows, and shutting down critical life-safety systems such as fire detection
and suppression, ventilation, light, water, sewage and power systems. Loss of life and injuries to
occupants can result from many causes, including direct blast effects, structural collapse, debris
impact, fire and smoke. The indirect effects can combine to inhibit or prevent timely evacuation
thereby contributing to additional casualties. In addition, major catastrophes resulting from gas
chemical explosions or nuclear leakage result in large dynamic loads, greater than the original
design loads, of many structures. Owing to the threat of such extreme loading conditions, efforts
have been made during the past three decades to develop methods of structural analysis and
design to resist blast loads. Implications of the vulnerability of the nation’s infrastructure to
terrorist attack are a concern that should be shared by all engineers. If bridges and other
structures may be subjected to severe loads from explosions or other sources, then it is the
engineer’s responsibility to prepare for them. The analysis and design of structures subjected to
blast load requires a detailed understanding of blast phenomena and the dynamic response of
various structural elements.

68 
 
This paper presents a brief and concise overview of the blast wave-structure interaction and its
effect on the structure. This paper also introduces different methods to estimate blast loads and
structural response and practical measures that should be taken in the design of future building
structures in order to reduce the extent of damage and loss of lives under such loading.

2. NATURE OF BLAST LOADING

2.1 Blast phenomena [1-3]
 
Large scale rapid release of energy characterizes an explosion. Detonation of an explosive
generates hot gases under pressures of 300 kbar and temperatures of 3000 to 4000 ⁰C .These hot
gases expand, forcing out the volume it occupies, forming a column of compressed air called
‘blast wave’ to radiate out from the source of the blast at hypersonic speeds (2700m/s to
7500m/s). The pressure front or shock wave which is generated imposes a high-pressure, short-
duration pulse on any object which it meets. This is referred to as side-on overpressure. After a
short time, the pressure behind the front drops below the ambient pressure, producing a partial
vacuum that sucks the air in. This is also accompanied by high suction winds that carry debris for
long distances away from explosion.

The pressure variation at a fixed point in space as the wave passes it, has the form;

Fig 1: Blast wave pressure- Time history

 
As the shock front travels away from the source, the shape of the pulse remains the same, but the
size of the initial peak pressure reduces, and the duration of the pulse increases, as shown below:

69 
 
 Figure 2: Blast wave propagation 

3. BLAST WAVE-STRUCTURE INTERACTION

 
As the shock wave encounters an object or structure, the incident peak overpressure Pso is
amplified by a reflection factor. These reflection factors are typically greatest for normal
incidence (a surface adjacent and perpendicular to the source) and diminish with the angle of
obliquity or angular position relative to the source.

Throughout the pressure-time profile, two main phases can be observed; portion above ambient
is called positive phase of duration td, while that below ambient is called negative phase of
duration. The negative phase is of a longer duration and a lower intensity than the positive
duration. As the stand-off distance increases, the duration of the positive-phase blast wave
increases resulting in a lower-amplitude, longer-duration shock pulse. Charges situated
extremely close to a target structure impose a highly impulsive, high intensity pressure load over
a localized region of the structure; charges situated further away produce a lower-intensity,
longer-duration uniform pressure distribution over the entire structure. Eventually, the entire
structure is engulfed in the shock wave, with reflection and diffraction effects creating focusing
and shadow [1].
 
3.1 Structural Response to Blast loading

The response of a structure to a blast load can be summarized as follows:

i) If the positive phase duration of the blast pressure is shorter than the natural period of vibration
of the structure, the response is described as impulsive. In this case, most of the deformation of
the structure will occur after the blast loading has diminished. 
 
ii) If the positive phase duration of the blast pressure is longer than the natural period of
vibration of the structure, the response is defined as quasi-static. In this case, the blast will cause
the structure to deform whilst the loading is still being applied.

iii) If the positive phase duration of the blast pressure is close to the natural period of vibration of
the structure, then the response of the structure is referred to as dynamic. In this case, the
deformation of the structure is a function of time and the response is determined by solving the
equation of motion of the structural system [2i].

3.1.1 Elastic single DOF system

In this idealization scheme, the actual structure is discretized into an equivalent system of one
point load and one mass less spring having same stiffness as the structure, as shown below:

70 
 
  

Figure 3: (a) SDOF system and (b) blast loading

The blast load is idealized as a triangular pulse given by the function:

Where, = peak force of blast wave …..(1)

= duration of positive phase of blast wave

Blast-impulse is given by area under force-time curve:

…... (2)
Equation of motion of single dof system will be:

…… (3)
General solution of above equation is:

…… (4)

….. (5)
Where ω is natural circular frequency of vibration of structure and T is natural period of
vibration of structure, given as:

….. (6)

71 
 
By setting 0 in equation (5) and substituting time ‘t’ in equation (4), we obtain maximum
displacement . The dynamic load factor, DLF, is defined as the ratio of the maximum
dynamic deflection ym to the static deflection yst which would have resulted from the static
application of the peak load Fm, which is shown as follows:

….. (7)

The structural response to blast loading hence, depends on ratio   or . Three cases of blast
loading are possible:

3.1.2 Elasto-plastic single DOF systems

Blast loading tends to produce large deflections on structures. Such dynamic response can be
analyzed by non-linear numerical techniques. The acceptability of results from such methods are
only possible when compared to deformations in equivalent ideal elasto-platic single dof system.

4. Material Behavior under Blast loads

4.1 Concrete [2-4]:

 
Concrete show strength magnification of up to four in compressions and up to six in tension
under dynamic loading with strain rates above 10 when compared to quasi-static loading.
The marked increases in stress-carrying capacities under impact loading is due to the effects of
strain-rate hardening and the strong pressure-dependence of the response of concrete.

Fig 4: Stress-strain curves of concrete at different strain rates (Ngo et al., 2004) 
72 
 
4.2 Reinforcing Steel [1-5]:
 

Fig 5: Stress-strain curves of steel at quasi-static and impulsive strain rates (Ngo et al., 2004)
 
During dynamic loading, the rate of change in the applied force is very large, having strain rates
on the order of 10    10 . Because of the large rate of strain, waves of deformation rather
than evenly distributed deformation pass through steel.

Norris et al. (1959) tested steel with two different static yield strength of 330 and 278 MPa under
tension at strain rates ranging from10  0.1 . Strength increase of 9 - 21% and 10 - 23 %
were observed for the two steel types, respectively. Dowling and Harding (1967) conducted
tensile experiments using the tensile version of Split Hopkinton's Pressure Bar (SHPB) on mild
steel using strain rates varying between10  2000  . It was concluded from this test series
that materials of body-centered cubic (BCC) structure (such as mild steel) showed the greatest
strain rate sensitivity. It has been found that the lower yield strength of mild steel can almost be
doubled; the ultimate tensile strength can be increased by about 50%; and the upper yield
strength can be considerably higher. In contrast, the ultimate tensile strain decreases with
increasing strain rate.[1]

5. MODELLING OF BLAST LOADING

The dynamic response of blast-loaded structures involves the effect of high strain rates, the non-
linear inelastic material behaviour, the uncertainties of blast load calculations, the time-
dependent deformation and natural period of vibration of the structure.

5.1 Experimental Modeling  

 
Experimental Blast tests are often required to assess performance of protective structures. Full
scale tests are generally very expensive. Small scale tests however, cost less than one-tenth of
 
full scale tests. Previous results from small-scale tests are then “scaled-up” to predict full-scale
response. Cube Root scaling 

In this scheme, all three length dimensions are scaled up according to following scaling principles:

73 
 
• Scale all length parameters equally.
• Scaling factor between large and small sale test =k
• Length s1/s2=k
• Explosive mass: W1/W2=k3
If all lengths are scaled equally, the peak blast pressure will be the same in the full and small scale tests.

5.1.1 Complications
 
Time related parameters are not equal in the different scaled scenarios:
• Arrival time of blast pressure
• Load duration (and hence, impulse)
• Material strain rate effect
• Gravity effects

Small-scale testing can be a very cost-efficient way to validate the physical processes being
modelled. If the physical processes scale up, the model can be used with confidence at full-scale
[6].

5.2 Computer Modeling For Blast Loading and Its Effect

Computational methods in the area of blast effects mitigation are generally divided into those
used for the prediction of blast loads on the structure and those for the calculation of structural
responses to the loads. Computational programs for blast prediction and structural response use
both first-principle and semi empirical methods. Programs using the first-principle method can
be categorized into uncouple and couple analyses. The uncouple analysis calculates blast loads
as if the structure were rigid, and then applies these loads to a responding model of the
structure. The shortcoming of this procedure is that, when the blast field is obtained with a rigid
model of the structure, the loads on the structure are often over predicted, particularly if
significant motion or the failure of the structure occurs during the loading period.

For a coupled analysis, the blast simulation module is linked with the structural response
module.

In this type of analysis, the computational fluid mechanics (CFD) model for blast-load
prediction is solved simultaneously with the computational solid mechanics (CSM) model for
structural response. By accounting for the motion of the structure while the blast calculation
proceeds, the pressure that arise due to the motion and failure of the structure can be predicted
more accurately. Examples of this type of software are AUTODYN, DYNA3D, LS-DYNA and
ABAQUS.

Prediction of the blast-induced pressure field on a structure and its response involves highly
nonlinear behaviour. Computational methods for blast-response prediction must therefore be
validated by comparing calculations to experiments.

Also in elasto-plastic SDOF, exact analysis of dynamic response is only possible by step-by-step
numerical solution requiring nonlinear dynamic finite-element software. However, the degree of

74 
 
uncertainnty in both th
he determinaation of the loading andd the interpreetation of acceptability of
o the
resulting deformation n is such that solution of
o a postulatted equivaleent ideal elassto-plastic SDOF
S
system iss commonly used. Interppretation is based
b on the required ducctility factorr μ = ym/ye
 
6. BLAS
ST RESISTIING DESIG
GN AND MIITIGATION
N OF BLAS
ST LOAD

The varioous means of

o blast mitiggation curreently employyed in industtry as well as
a under reseearch
are summ
marised as fo
ollows:

6.1 Avoidance [9]

 
Avoidancce will mak ke it impossible for an explosion oro deflagratioon to occur, for instancce by
means off consistent displacemennt of the O2 necessary for an exploosion or defflagration too take
place, byy means of padding
p gas (f. i. CO2 or
o N2), or, byy means of keeping the concentratioon of
flammable content of o an atmossphere consiistently beloow or abovee the explossive limit, or,
o by
means off consistent elimination
e o ignition soources.
of

6.2 Consstructional Explosion

E P
Protection

Construcctional explo
osion protecttion aims at pre-defined,
p limited or zero
z damagee that results from
applied protective
p teechniques in combinationn with reinfforcement off the equipm ment or strucctures
that musst be expectted to becom me subject to t internal explosion
e prressure and flying debrris or
external violent impaact. An expllosion vent [10] or ruptuure panel is a device ussed for proteection
against excessive
e in
nternal, expplosion-incurrred pressurres, by meeans of pressure relieff. An
Explosion vent will relieve
r presssure from thhe instant its opening (orr activation) pressure p<
<stat>
has been exceeded.

Fig 6: Explosion
E veents

More thaan one vent can be usedd simultaneoously. Exploosion vents are available in the verrsions
self-destrructive, non--self-re-closiing and re-ussable, self-ree-closing.

75 
 
6.3 Explosion Doorss and Vents

Explosion doors [11] and vents act as cost-eeffective sollution to conntain internaal blast loadss in a
building. To focus on n the most cost
c effectivee means, dooors typicallyy have lowerr release preessure
capabilitiies; are not susceptible to fatigue faailures or suubject to chaanging releasse pressures with
changes in temperatu ure, as “ruptture membraane” type arre; capable of o leak tightt service; seervice
temperatuures of up to 2,000°F; and can be more cost effective in i small quuantities. Ruupture
membranne type vents can providde a leak tight seal moree readily in most m cases; have a relattively
broad tollerance on their
t releasee pressure annd are moree readily inccorporated innto systems with
dischargee ducts.

6.4 Disch
harge Hood
d with Exploosion Relief Panels and
d Fracture Clip
C Releasees [12].

F 7: Disch
Fig harge Hood with
w Explosiion Relief Paanels and Frracture Clip Releases
R

6.5 Presttressed Stru ucture

Prestressed structuree [13] is thhe one whosse overall integrity,
i staability and security deppend,
primarilyy, on a prestrressing. Presstressing meeans the inteentional creaation of perm
manent stressses in
a structurre for the pu
urpose of immproving its performancce under various servicee conditions. This
helps thee prestressed structure to handle largee, dynamic blast
b loads easily.

There aree the followiing basic typpes of prestreessing:

• Precoompression (mostly,
( withh the own weight
w of a structure)
• Preteensioning witth high-strenngth embeddded tendons
• Post-tensioning with
w high-strrength bondeed or boundeed tendons
The amoount of prestrressing requuired is deterrmined durinng its designn, assuming suitable dynnamic
conditionns.

If thermaal effects con

ncerns are iddentified in a building:

• Strenngthen conneection.
• Strenngthen floor framing.

76 
 
• Increase structural redundancy.
• Add additional fire proofing in vulnerable area.

6.6 Fluid Viscous Dampers

A Special Moment Resting Frame with fluid viscous damper[14] is avery effective system to
increase structural performance during large blast loading. The exterior concrete skin should be
connected to diaphragm by out-of-plane connection only, rather by providing in-plane shear
transfer. This out-of-plane connection should be flexible enough to reduce energy transfer to
diaphragm and frames. Non ductile moment frames can be simply retro fitted with fluid damper,
since the damper reduce or eliminate inelastic demand in the frame by adding large amounts of
viscous damping energy dissipation.

7. CONCLUSIONS
 
Not all buildings can be constructed to be blast-proof, owing to cost considerations. However,
the disturbing frequency of terror related bombing attacks on buildings in sensitive areas as well
as the ‘relatively safe’ urban areas has made it imperative to include assessment of blast loadings
during the design phase itself, especially in tall buildings and buildings of importance. It is
recommended that guidelines on abnormal load cases and provisions on progressive collapse
prevention should be included in the current Building Regulations and Design Standards. 
 
REFERENCES
 
T. Ngo, P. Mendis, A. Gupta & J. Ramsay, Blast Loading and Blast Effects on Structures – An
Overview

Philip Esper, Investigation of damage to buildings under blast loading and recommended
protection measures

Mr. David Smith , Glazing for Injury Alleviation under BlastLoading – United Kingdom Practice

D.L. Grote, S.W. Park1, M. Zhou, Dynamic behaviour of concrete at high strain rates and
pressures: I. experimental characterization

Cube root scaling: Blast load and structural response measurement in small-scale experimental
tests, The University of Sheffield

Micro-scale blast pressure transducers: Blast load and structural response measurement in small-
scale experimental tests, The University of Sheffield

High speed video image correlation techniques: Blast load and structural response measurement
in small-scale experimental tests, The University of Sheffield

Avoidance: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Explosion_protection&action

77 
 
Explosion vents: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:ExplosionVENT

Explosion doors: http://www.hendersonindustrial.com/exploguard_sizing.htm

Fracture clip release: http://www.hendersonindustrial.com/exploguard_sizing.htm

Prestressed Structures: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prestressed_structure

H.Kit.Miyamoto , Structural control of dynamic blast loading using Fluid Viscous Dampers
.

78 
 
USE OF SAP TECHNIQUE IN SEISMICALLY ISOLATED RC BUILDING
Parik Garg, Himanshu Panwar and Praveen Bhatt

Email: parik_garg@yahoo.co.in; him05_11@yahoo.co.in; Praveen.anshu.bhat@gmail.com

ABSTRACT: This paper deals to identify the structural behaviour of the isolated and non-
isolated structural systems and presents the seismic response of the building in terms of roof
displacements and the elastic base shear. The devices act under external forces as rigid
connections and under earthquakes as shock absorbers. A base isolator with hardening behavior
under increasing loading has been developed for medium-rise buildings (up to four storeys) and
sites with moderate earthquake risk. Seismic isolation can significantly reduce the induced
seismic loads to a relatively stiff building by inserting flexibility at its base to avoid resonance
with the predominant frequencies of common earthquakes. The comfort in the structure increases
as in the storey drifts and the total structural displacements decrease. Seismic isolation can
significantly reduce the induced seismic loads to a relatively stiff building by inserting flexibility
at its base to avoid resonance with the predominant frequencies of common earthquakes.

Keywords: Base Isolation Techniques, Vibration Serviceability, Time history, forcing function,
hysteric curve.

 
1. INTRODUCTION

Seismic isolation is a highly successful method for protecting structures from earthquakes. The
basic objectives in the seismic isolation of building structures are to protect the integrity of the
structures and to prevent injury to the occupants and damage to the contents (Housner et al.
1997, Kelly 1997, Naeim and Kelly 1999, Skinner et al. 1993, Meirovitch and Stemple 1997).
The compliant elastomeric bearings and frictional sliding mechanisms installed in the
foundations of seismically isolated structures protect these structures from strong earthquakes
through a reduction of stiffness and an increase in damping. The reduction of stiffness is
intended to detune the structures fundamental period from the characteristic period of earthquake
ground motions.

The objective of seismic isolation systems is to decouple the building structure from the
damaging components of the earthquake input motion, i.e. to prevent the superstructure of the
building from absorbing the earthquake energy. The entire superstructure must be supported on
discrete isolators whose dynamic characteristics are chosen to uncouple the ground motion.
Some isolators are also designed to add substantial damping. Displacement and yielding are
concentrated at the level of the isolation devices, and the superstructure behaves very much like a
rigid body. Isolation bearings are designed to accommodate large displacement demands and to
mobilize damping mechanisms, typically through material yielding of a lead column within the
isolator. There are two basic types of isolation systems. The system that has been adopted most
widely in recent years is typified by the use of elastomeric bearings, the elastomer made of either
natural rubber or neoprene. In this approach, the building or structure is decoupled from the
horizontal components of the earthquake ground motion by interposing a layer with low

79 
 
horizontal stiffness between the structure and the foundation. This layer gives the structure a
fundamental frequency that is much lower than its fixed-base frequency and also much lower
than the predominant frequencies of the ground motion.

The first dynamic mode of the isolated structure involves deformation only in the isolation
system, the structure above being to all intents and purposes rigid. The higher modes that will
produce deformation in the structure are orthogonal to the first mode and consequently also to
the ground motion. These higher modes do not participate in the motion, so that if there is high
energy in the ground motion at these higher frequencies, this energy cannot be transmitted into
the structure. The isolation system does not absorb the earthquake energy, but rather deflects it
through the dynamics of the system. This type of isolation works when the system is linear and
even when undamped ; however, some damping is beneficial to suppress any possible resonance
at the isolation frequency.The second basic type of isolation system is typified by the sliding
system. This works by limiting the transfer of shear across the isolation interface. Many sliding
systems have been proposed and some have been used. In China there are at least three buildings
on sliding systems that use a specially selected sand at the sliding interface. A type of isolation
containing a lead-bronze plate sliding on stainless steel with an elastomeric bearing has been
used for a nuclear power plant in South Africa.

2. BASIC THEORY OF BASE ISOLATION

Base isolation means

A flexible mounting so that the period of vibration of the total system is lengthened sufficiently
to reduce the force response.

A damper or energy dissipater so that the relative deflections between building and ground can
be controlled to a practical design level.

A means of providing rigidity under low (service) load levels such as wind and minor
earthquakes.

2.1 The need for seismic isolation of a structure may arise if any of the following situations apply

• Increased building safety and post earthquake operability are desired.

• Reduced lateral design forces are desired.
• Alternate forms of construction with limited ductility capacity (such as pre-cast concrete) are
desired in an earthquake region.
• An existing structure is not currently safe for earthquake loads.

2.2 Method of Isolation

There are several methods, by which base isolation can be implemented in structures, An
elastomeric bearing is not the only means of introducing flexibility into a structure, but it
appears to be one of the most practical approaches. Other possible devices include rollers,
friction slip plates, capable suspension, sleeved piles and rocking (stepping) foundations.
The most popular devices for seismic isolation of buildings in the United States are the lead

80 
 
rubber bearings,
b high-dampin
h ng rubber bearings
b an
nd the friction penduluum system.. The
reductionn in force withw increassing period (flexibility) is shown schematicaally in the force
response curve of. Substantial reeductions in base shear are possiblee if the periood of vibration of
the structture is signifficantly lenggthened.

Fig1: Isolation Methhods

3. SEISM
MIC ISOLA
ATION DEV
VICES

3.1 Typees of bearing

gs

3.1.1 Friiction pendu

ulum seismiic isolation bearings
b

3.1.2 RB
B (Laminateed Rubber Bearing)
B sysstem

81 
 
3.1.3 LRB Lead Rubber Bearing System:

4. DESIGN PARAMETERS FOR SEISMIC ISOLATION BEARING

As per IBC 2000 (ref. 5), a minimum level for design displacements and forces is to be obtained
from static analysis for all seismic isolation designs. The static analysis is also useful both for
preliminary design of isolation system and the structure. Dynamic analysis may be used in all
cases and must be used if the requirements mentioned for adequacy of static analysis are not
satisfied.

4.1 Minimum Design Displacements

Four distinct displacements are calculated using simple formulas used for static analysis. These
values also serve as the IBC5 permitted lower bound values for dynamic analysis results.
These are:

DD: the design displacement, being the displacement at centre of rigidity of isolation system at
design basis earthquake (DBE);

DM: the design displacement, being the displacement at centre of rigidity of isolation system at
maximum credible earthquake (MCE);

DTD: the total design displacement, being the displacement of a bearing at a corner of the
building and includes the component of the torsional displacement in the direction of DD;

DTM: same as DTD but calculated for MCE.

Where, g is the acceleration due to gravity, SD1 and SM1 are spectral coefficients, TD and TM are
isolated periods, and βD and βM are damping coefficients corresponding to the DBE and MCE
level responses, respectively.

82 
 
4.2 Effective Isolated System Periods

The effective isolated periods TD and TM corresponding to the DBE and MCE level response are:

Where, W = the weight of the building; g = acceleration due to gravity; KD,min = minimum
effective horizontal stiffness of the isolation system at the design displacement (DBE). KM,min =
minimum effective horizontal stiffness of the isolation system at the maximum displacement
(MCE). The values of KD,min and KM,min are not known during preliminary design phase and
hence the design process will begin with an assumed value which is obtained from previous tests
on similar components. After moulding of prototype bearing, the actual values of KD,min, KD,max,
KM,min and KM,max will be obtained from the results of shear test on bearings. KD,max and KM,max are
maximum effective stiffness at displacement corresponding to DBE and MCE, respectively.
The total design displacements, DTD and DTM are given as:

Where, b and d are plan dimensions at the isolation plane, e is the actual eccentricity plus 5%
accidental eccentricity, and y is the distance to a corner perpendicular to the direction of seismic
loading.

4.3 Design Forces

The superstructure and elements below the isolation interface are designed for forces based on
DBE design displacement, DD. The isolation system, the foundation and tructural elements
below the isolation system must be designated to withstand the following minimum lateral
seismic force:

If other displacements rather than DD generate larger forces, then those forces should be used in
design rather than the force obtained from above equation.

The structure above the isolation plane should withstand a minimum shear force, Vs, as if it is
fixed base where:

83 
 
Where, R is reduction factor defined in the code for superstructure.

5. PROBLEM FOR STUDY

A typical C shape building has been selected for study to incorporate uniaxial asymmetry. The
study has been carried out with reference to its response against applied forcing function in the
form of El-centro earthquake. The building has been modeled in the eminent structural analysis
tool called SAP-2000(computers and structures Inc. university of Berkley)
Size of column: 30 X 30 cm ; Size of beam : 30 X 50 cm
Load applied: dead load +live load= 15 kN/m

Plan Section Isomatric

Forcing function- EL-centro earthquake record

6. RESULTS

Responses of roof joints:

Response of joint 180 in x direction (corner of the roof)

Without base isolation With base isolation

84 
 
 Response of joint 180 in y direction (corner of the roof)

Response of joint 112 in x direction (center of the roo f)

Response of joint 112 in y direction (center of the roof)

85 
 
 Variation of base shear in x direction

Variation of base shear in y direction

6.1 Comments on the Results

It is evident from the responses obtain from the time history analysis that displacements are
much lesser and having less reversible variation in case of base isolated building then those of
building without base isolation. Looking at the base shear pattern is less coarse than that for
building without base isolation

7. CONCLUSIONS

In this era of technological revolution, the world of seismic engineering is in need of creative
thinking and advanced technology beyond conventional solutions. Seismic isolation is a suitable
technology for protection of a variety of buildings that have the requisite dynamic characteristics.
Isolation technology has matured in recent years to highly dependable and reliable level.
• Base Isolation provides an alternative to the conventional, fixed-base design of structures and
may be cost-effective for some new buildings in locations where very strong ground motions
likely, it is an attractive for buildings that must remain functional after a major earthquake.

86 
 
• The Isolation system reduces the base shear primarily because the natural vibration period of
the isolation mode, providing most of the response, is much longer than the fundamental
period of the fixed base structure. The damping in the isolation system and associated energy
dissipation is only a secondary factor in reducing structural response. When the large
displacement occurs in the laminated rubber bearing by the excessive earthquake input and
the subsidence becomes large, the friction damper supports the load of the laminated rubber
bearing substitutionally as the safety device. As the weight of superstructure gradually shifts
onto the friction damper, the frictional force gradually increases and the displacement of the
base-isolation system can be controlled and safety is secured

REFERENCES

W. H. Cantrell, “Tuning analysis for the high-Q class- E power amplifier,” IEEE Trans.
Microwave Theory & Tech., vol. 48, no. 12, pp. 2397-2402, December 2000.

Tamura, K., Yamahara, H., and Izumi, M. , "Proof Test of the Base-Isolated Building Using
Full-Sized Model", Proc. ASME, 1988.

Amin, N., Mokha, A. "Base Isolation Gets Its Day in Court", Civil Engineering, 65(2),1995.

Iiba, M., Midorikawa, M., Yamanouchi, H. and Myslimaj, B.“Three dimensional shaking table
tests on seismic behavior of isolators for houses”, Proceedings of the 30- th Joint Meeting of
U.S.- Japan Panel on Wind and Seismic Effects UJNR, May 1999, Tsukuba, Japan.

Myslimaj, B., Iiba, M. and Midorikawa, M. “3- dimensional shaking table tests on baseisolation
systems for houses”, International Workshop on Seismic Isolation, Energy Dissipation and
Control of Structures, 6-8 May 1999, Guangzhou, China.

Yamada, C., Iiba, M., Myslimaj, B., Inoue, K., Seki, M., Hasegawa, O., Yatsuhashi, M., Yasui,
Y. and Akimoto, M. “Three dimensional shaking table tests on seismic behavior of isolators for
houses –Part2: Effect of bi-directional and vertical earthquake1999. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

87 
 
 SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT CONCEPTS FOR
CIVIL ENGINEERS

Raja Sekhar Mamillapalli

M. Tech Structural Engineering, NIT-Rourkela

ABSTRACT:Sustainable development is defines as the development meeting the needs of the

present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs Several
factors, which are interactive in nature, are affecting as well as threatening the existence of our
planet Earth. They include overpopulation which leads to urbanization (which have multitude of
effects), transportation problems in cities, energy use and over exploitation of natural resources,
excessive waste generation and subsequent pollution of air, water and soil, and limited supply of
resources. A brief discussion about these challenges is provided and some solutions are given.
The building industry consumes about 40 percent of the extracted materials and is responsible
for 35 percent of CO2 emissions. Green and smart buildings will substantially impact the energy
consumption and volume of emissions. Life cycle analysis of building materials and life cycle
management of products are necessary in order to select the materials for high performance
green buildings. Concrete with cementitious materials such as fly ash, silica fume and slag can
be used to build such sustainable constructions. It is concluded that unless means of making
these green buildings reach the rural population and affordable for the common man, we cannot
attain full sustainability.

Keywords: sustainable development, green buildings, energy, environment, population,

urbanization, industrialization, energy, global warming

1. INTRODUCTION

Though several definitions for sustainability are available, the definition of sustainability
suggested by then Prime minister of Norway, Gro Bruntland, in 1987 - meeting the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs is considered
to be the most simple and effective. Sustainable development or simply sustainability is thus is a
realization that today’s population is merely borrowing resources and environmental conditions
from future generations. Several factors, which are interactive in nature, are affecting as well as
threatening the existence of our planet Earth. Though it is difficult to discuss about all these
factors in a short paper of this nature, a brief discussion about these challenges is provided and
some solutions are given. It is seen that reinforced concrete coupled with the use of cementitious
materials is found to aid sustainability.

2. ENVIRONMENTAL THREATS

The greatest threats to the sustainable development on earth are: population growth and
urbanization, energy use and global warming, excessive waste generation and the subsequent

88 
 
pollution of soil, air, and water, transportation in cities, and limited supply of resources. Many of
them are interrelated. Let us now briefly discuss about these threats.

3. POPULATION GROWTH

The world population in 2007 was estimated at 6.7 billion with an annual growth rate of about
1.2 percent. To put the recent growth in perspective, the world population in the year 1900 was
only 1.6 billion and in 1960 it was 3.0 billion. According to UN, the world population in 2050
will be between 7.9 billion and 10.3 billion, Figure 1. Currently, 80 million people are being
added every year in less developed countries, compared with about 1.6 million in more
developed countries. Thus, populations are growing more rapidly at places where such growth
cannot be afforded. The amount of bio-productive land and sea available to supply human needs
is limited. It is estimated that only one eighth of the surface of the Earth is suitable for humans to
live on — three-quarters is covered by oceans and half of the land area is desert (14%) while
high mountains constitute 27%. Currently, the approximately 11.2 billion hectares of productive
earth, divided by the 6.3 billion people who depend on it for their well being, results in an
average of approximately 1.8 hectares per person.

4. URBANIZATION

In 1950, New York was the only city in the world with a population of more than 10 million. The
number of cities with more than 10 million people increased to 5 in 1975 and 17 in 2001, and is
expected to increase to 21 cities in 2015. The world’s urban population reached 2.9 billion in
2000 and is expected to increase by 2.1 billion by 2030. Currently, about half the world’s people
are living in urban areas. By 2030, urban dwellers will make up roughly 60 percent of the
world’s population. The percentage of urban population in India increased from 18.0 in 1961 to
27.8 in 2001. It is projected that Asia and Africa will have more urban dwellers than any other
continents of the world, and Asia will contain 54 percent of the world’s urban population by
2030.Population growth coupled with urbanization results in significant impacts on the
environment and other problems, which include: (1) increased ambient temperature, (2)

89 
 
decreased air quality, (3) increased water run-off, (4) decreased quality of runoff water, (5)
altered weather patterns, (6) loss of natural beauty, (7) reduction in farmlands and subsequent
food shortage, and (8) deforestation (Deforestation is occurring at a rapid rate, with 0.8 hectares
of rain forest disappearing every second. Deforestation is linked to negative environmental
consequences such as biodiversity loss, global warming, soil erosion and desertification). Also,
urbanization results in the migration of rural population to towns thus causing an increase in the
development of slums, increased pollution and waste, apart from the compulsion to develop
infrastructure for housing the masses, educational facilities, roads and highways, healthcare, civil
supplies, etc. Congestion of living space, inadequate lung space, traffic, etc, results in increased
diseases. In addition, population growth and urbanization pose significant challenges for water
resources management throughout the world. Urban populations consume much more food,
energy and durable goods than rural populations. The urbanization of the world’s populations
will increase aggregate energy use. Not only do urban areas generate more rain, but also reduce
the infiltration of water and lower the water tables. This means that runoff occurs more quickly
with greater peak flows. Thus, flood volumes increase, as do floods and water pollution
downstream.

5. ENERGY USE AND GLOBAL WARMING

In 2004, the average total worldwide power consumption of the human race was 15 TW (15 x
1012 W) with 86.5% generated from burning fossil fuels (oil, coal and natural gas). Figure 3
shows that there is a broad relation between wealth and energy consumption. Figure 4 shows the
contribution of various sources to this worldwide power consumption. The energy consumption
in India rose threefold, from 4.16 to 12.8 quadrillion Btu between 1980 and 2001, putting India
next only to the US, Germany, Japan and China in total energy consumption. According to the
international energy outlook projections for 2030 of the US department of energy, China and
India account for nearly one-half of the total increase in residential energy use in non-OECD
countries. The principal greenhouse gases that enter the atmosphere because of human activities
are: Carbon dioxide (CO2): Carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere through the burning of fossil
fuels (oil, natural gas and coal), solid waste, trees and wood products and also as a result of other
chemical reactions (e.g. - manufacture of cement). Carbon dioxide is also removed from the
atmosphere (or sequestered) when it is absorbed by plants as part of the biological carbon cycle.
Methane (CH4): Methane is emitted during the production of coal, natural gas, and oil. Methane
emissions also result from livestock and other agricultural practices apart from the decay of
organic waste in municipal solid waste landfills. Nitrous oxide (N2O): Nitrous oxide is emitted
during agricultural and industrial activities as well as during combustion of fossil fuels and solid
waste. Fluorinated gases: Hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulphur hexafluoride are
synthetic, powerful greenhouse gases that are emitted from a variety of industrial processes.
These gases are typically emitted in smaller quantities, but because they are potent greenhouse
gases, they are sometimes referred to as High Global Warming Potential gases (High GWP
gases). In addition to the above gases, volatile organic compounds, radon, asbestos, carbon
monoxide, nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and combustion particulates may affect
indoor air-quality.

90 
 
6. WATER SCARCITY

According to a United Nations report, one person in six is without safe drinking water and
double that number, about 2.4 billion lack adequate sanitation. It is because, of all the Earth’s
water, only about 2.5 percent is fresh water, three quarters of that is locked up in glaciers and
permanent snow cover. Only 0.3 percent of water is surface water found in rivers and lakes, and
thus readily accessible. Throughout the world both the ground and surface water is being used at
a faster rate than it is being replenished. A country is considered water-scarce when its annual
supply of renewable freshwater is less than 1,000 m3 per capita. In India, the water scarcity is
felt very much due to the frequent occurrence of droughts and floods. Due to global warming, the
Himalayan glaciers may shrink from 500,000 sq km to 100,000 km2 in 2030 and per
capitaavailability may shrink from 1,800 m3 to 1000 m3. Many states fight for sharing of river
waters. It is estimated that 80% of the domestic needs in rural areas and 50% in urban areas are
met by ground water. Agriculture is the cause of serious water supply problems as it consumes
over 80 percent of ground water consumption6. About 40 percent of water in large cities is lost
due to leaky supply systems. In addition, even the class I cities, (the largest Indian cities) are
treating only a small part of their effluents, while the smaller towns practically do not have any
treatment facilities. Globally, water scarcity is resulting in a host of crises such as food shortages,
regional water conflicts, limited economic development and environmental degradation. The
value of implementing water reclamation and reuse is recognised by many in the context of
sustainable water resources management. Municipal wastewater is produced at the doorstep of
the metropolis where water is needed the most and priced the highest. Thus, it is imperative to
exploit the available recycling options.

Though fresh water can be extracted from sea water, it is very expensive (for example, Israel is
now desalinizing water at a cost of 53 cents per m3). Around 1,500 desalination plants exist in
the world and the two leading methods are reverse osmosis (47.2% of installed capacity
worldwide) and multi-stage flash (36.5%) Saudi Arabia’s desalination plants account for about
24% of total world capacity.

91 
 
7. SOME SOLUTIONS FOR SUSTAINABILITY

A number of solutions have been suggested and some have been successfully implemented in the
past in several countries to produce clean energy and to maintain sustainability. These solutions
include: geothermal power, solar energy, wind power, modern forms of bioenergy, solar
photovoltaics, advanced biomass gasification, biorefinery technologies, solar thermal power
stations and ocean energy. Development of alternative fuels such as biodiesel, bioalcohol
(ethanol and butanol), chemically stored electricity (batteries and fuel cells), hydrogen, non-
fossil methane, non-fossil natural gas, vegetable oil and other biomass sources have also been
attempted.

7.1 Green Buildings

A green/ sustainable building design is one that achieves high performance over the full life
cycle, in the following areas11: Minimising natural resource consumption through more efficient
utilisation of nonrenewable natural resources, land, water and construction materials apart from
utilisation of renewable energy resources to achieve net zero energy consumption. Minimising
emissions that negatively impact the indoor environment and outdoor environment, especially
those related to indoor air quality, greenhouse gases, global warming, particulates and acid rain.
Minimizing discharge of solid waste and liquid effluents, including demolition and occupant
waste, sewer and storm water apart from creating the required infrastructure to accommodate
removal of wastes. Minimal negative impact on site ecosystem. Maximum quality of indoor
environment, including air quality, thermal regime, illumination, acoustics/noise and visual
aspects so as to provide comfortable and satisfactory physiological and psychological
perceptions internationally, green buildings are certified through an independent body, the US
Green Building Council (USGBC), through its LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental
Design) certification programme. From 1994 to 2006, LEED grew from one standard for new
construction to a comprehensive system of six interrelated standards covering all aspects of the
development and construction Similar assessment systems are available in other countries also
(e.g. BREEAM of United Kingdom and Green Star of Australia). It is expected that LEED - NC
3.0 will include a requirement for a carbon footprint (carbon building print) and a significant
reduction of GHG (greenhouse gases) beyond a baseline level2. Figure 7(a) shows the 41-storey,

92 
 
62,245 m2 reinforced concrete office tower located in the heart of midtown Atlanta, USA,
completed in February, 2006 and designed by Pickard Chilton Architects. It was the first high
rise office building in the world to be pre-certified for silver status in the LEED core and shell
development and the second to be awarded LEED - CS Gold status, satisfying more than 30
green and high performance requirements. Figure 7(b) shows CII – Sohrabji Godrej Green
Business Centre, Hyderabad, India, which was the first structure in India to receive the
prestigious `platinum’ rating from the USGBC.

7.2 Intelligent Buildings

An intelligent or smart building is one that uses technology and systems to create a space that is
not only safer and more productive for its occupants but also more operationally efficient for its
owners. In such a building, a network of electronic devices monitors and controls the mechanical
and lighting systems to reduce energy and maintenance costs. Lighting is controlled with a
system based on sensors which can detect the presence of occupants and the relative darkness,
and modulate lights accordingly. Air-handling units mix outside air to regulate temperatures in
various parts of the building. Sensors are placed in rooms and air-ducts to monitor temperature.
Such buildings have hot water systems to supply heat to the building’s air-handling units and
chilled water systems to cool its air and equipment, with sensors maintaining temperatures at
optimum level. Intelligent buildings also have alarm capabilities. Whilst fire and smoke alarms
are common, other types of alarms for reporting critical faults in the mechanical and electrical
systems are also increasingly coming into use. Among the earliest intelligent buildings in India is
the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi. The Engineering Design and Research Centre (EDRC) of
Larsen & Toubro’s Engineering, Construction and Contracts division in Chennai is another such
building. It has fully automated energy management, life-safety and telecommunication systems
and is possibly the first building in India without any light switch. All cabins are equipped with
infra-red detectors to detect occupancy. Entry is only through smart cards with built-in antennas.
The economic benefits in using green and intelligent technology require deeper study.

7.3 Sustainable Design and Life Cycle Management

More than any other human endeavour the built environment has direct, complex, and long
lasting impact on the biosphere. Around one-tenth of global economy is devoted to construction
and about one half of world’s major resources are consumed by construction and related
industries. It is estimated that in the US, the building industry involves the extraction and
movement of 6 billion tonnes of basic materials annually (this represents 8 percent of USA’s
GDP and 40 percent of extracted material). Residential and commercial buildings together use
one-third of all energy and two-thirds of all electricity consumed in the country USA). They also
account for 47 per cent of sulphur dioxide emissions, 22 per cent of nitrogen oxide emissions,
and 10 per cent of particulate emissions, all of which damage air quality13. Further, buildings
produce 35 per cent of the country’s carbon dioxide emissions - the chief pollutant blamed for
climate change. Indoor air quality is inadequate in 30 percent of the buildings around the world.
Construction waste is generated at the rate of about 0.5 tonnes per person each year in the US. Of
the approximately 145 million tonnes of construction and demolition waste generated in the US,

93 
 
about 90 percent is demolition waste. This waste has to be transported, thus consuming more
energy and causing more pollution (transportation consumes about 40 percent of primary energy
consumption in the US). While the situation is not so acute in India at present, increasing
urbanisation may push us in that direction. These statistics underline the importance of changing
the construction practices. To address these challenges, there is a need to develop effective
approaches for life cycle design and management of constructions that will ensure their
sustainability in terms of improved physical performance, cost effectiveness, and environmental
compatibility. These optimized designs and management systems should provide the owners
with the solutions that achieve an optimal balance between three relevant and competing criteria,
namely,(i) engineering performance (e.g. safety, serviceability and durability), (ii) economic
performance (minimum life cycle costs and minimum user costs) and (iii) environmental
performance (minimum greenhouse gas emissions, reduced materials consumption, energy
efficiency, etc.). The first two criteria are not new to design professionals but the last criterion
changes the entire thinking of design. Life cycle thinking expands the traditional focus on
manufacturing processes to incorporate various aspects associated with a product over its entire
life cycle. The producer becomes responsible for the products from 'cradle to grave' and has, for
instance, to develop products with improved performance in all phases of the product life cycle.
Sustainable design has to consider three major aspects of sustainability, namely, social,
economic and environmental. The following are the design considerations for a sustainable
building design: Resources should be used only at the speed at which they naturally regenerate
and discarded only at the speed at which local ecosystems can absorb them. Site planning should
incorporate resources naturally available on the site such as solar and wind energy, natural
shading and drainage. Resource efficient materials should be used in the construction of
buildings and in furnishings to lessen local and global impact. Energy and material waste should
be minimized throughout the building's life cycle through reuse. The above design considerations
show that there should be effective interaction among all the persons involved in the project
(client, architect structural engineer, electrical and mechanical engineer, landscape architect, and
others) at all the stages of the project.

8. CONCLUSIONS

Our planet Earth is at peril due to a number of factors which include population explosion,
urbanization, excessive energy use and associated global warming, water scarcity and inefficient
waste management. A number of solutions have been proposed for sustainability. A few
sustainable solutions have been discussed. Construction industry consumes 40 percent of the
total energy and about one half of world’s major resources. Hence, it is imperative to regulate the
use of materials and energy in this industry. Green and intelligent buildings and LEED
certification have been evolved for sustainability of the construction industry. Life cycle costing
and life cycle management of resources play an important role in the development of sustainable
construction. However, unless means of making these green buildings affordable for the common
man are not developed, we cannot attain full sustainability. A truly green building should be
energy efficient, incorporate concrete that contains the least amount of Portland cement and use
large volumes of supplementary cementitious materials and recycled aggregates.

94 
 
REFERENCES

Kim, J.J., Introduction to sustainable design, The Masterbuilder, Vol. 3, No. 6, pp. 34-44.

Kibert, C.J., Sustainable construction: Green building design and delivery, John Wiley & Sons,
Inc., Hoboken, NJ, 2005.

Chiras, D., The homeowner’s guide to renewable energy, New Society Publishers, Gabriola
Island, Canada, 2006.

Smil, V., Energy - A beginner’s guide, Oneworld Publications, Oxford, England, 2006.
USGBC- journals

95 
 
 GLOBAL WARMING
Ankit Mathur, Mariyam and Ankana Dey
Department of Civil Engineering
Institute of Technology, BHU, Varanasi.

ABSTRACT:The average facade temperature of the globe has augmented more than 1°C since
1900 and the speed of warming has been almost three folds the century long average since 1970.
This increase in earth’s average temperature is called global warming. Based on the study on
past climate shifts, notes of current situations, and computer simulations, many climate scientists
say that lacking of big curbs in greenhouse gas discharges, the 21st century might see
temperatures rise of about 3 to 8°C, climate patterns acute shift, ice sheets contract and seas rise
several feet. Scenarios studied by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
predict that global warming will continue and get worse much faster than was expected even in
their last report. The IPCC reports attribute many specific natural phenomena to human causes.
Rising sea levels, glacier retreat, Arctic shrinkage, and altered patterns of agriculture are cited
as direct consequences of human activities. Predictions for secondary and regional effects
include extreme weather events, an expansion of tropical diseases, changes in the timing of
seasonal patterns in ecosystems, and drastic economic impact. Concerns have led to political
activism advocating proposals to mitigate, or adapt to it. It is notable that many of the effects of
global warming are non-linear in nature, with potential for dramatic positive feedback effects. .
The author would talk about the causes, effects, uncertainties, and the measures taken to control
global warming.

Keywords: Global warming, IPCC, Climate change, Kyoto protocol

1. INTRODUCTION

Global warming is the process by which absorption and emission of infrared radiation by
atmospheric gases warm a planet's lower atmosphere and surface. Existence of the greenhouse
effect as such is not disputed. The question is instead how the strength of the greenhouse effect
changes when human activity increases the atmospheric concentrations of particular greenhouse
gases.

It is the increase in the average temperature of the Earth's near-surface air and the oceans. Global
surface temperature increased 0.74 ± 0.18 °C during the 100 years ending in 2005. The
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes that anthropogenic greenhouse
gases are responsible for most of the observed temperature increase since the middle of the

96 
 
twentiethh century, an
nd natural phhenomena suuch as solarr variation annd volcanoees probably had
h a
small waarming effectt.

Earth hass warmed an nd cooled maany times siince its formmation about 4.6 billion years
y ago. Global
G
climate changes weere due to many factoors, includinng massive volcanic eruptions, e w
which
increasedd carbon diooxide in the atmospheree; changes inn the intensiity of energgy emitted by the
Sun; andd variations in
i Earth’s poosition relatiive to the Suun, both in itts orbit and in the inclinnation
of its spinn axis.

Fig1: Showing
S the Earth’s Greeen House Efffect

Variationns in Earth’’s position, known as Milankovitcch cycles, combine

c to produce cycclical
changes in the glob bal climate. These cyclees are belieeved to be responsible
r for the repeated
advance and retreat of
o glaciers annd ice sheetss during the Pleistocene Epoch (1.8 million
m to 111,500
years beffore present)), when Eartth went throough fairly regular cyclees of colder “glacial” peeriods
(also knoown as ice ages)
a and waarmer “intergglacial” periiods. Glaciall periods occcurred at rouughly
100,000--year intervaals.

Sea tempperatures inccrease more slowly thann those on land both beecause of thee larger effeective
heat capaacity of the oceans
o and because
b the ocean
o can loose heat by evaporation
e m
more readilyy than
the land. The North hern Hemispphere has moore land thann the Southeern Hemisphhere, so it warms
w

97 
 
faster. The Northern Hemisphere also has extensive areas of seasonal snow and sea-ice cover
subject to the ice-albedo feedback. More greenhouse gases are emitted in the Northern than
Southern Hemisphere, but this does not contribute to the difference in warming because the
major greenhouse gases persist long enough to mix between hemispheres.

Global Warming or Climate Change measurably increases in the average temperature of Earth’s
atmosphere, oceans, and landmasses. Scientists believe Earth is currently facing a period of rapid
warming brought on by rising levels of heat-trapping gases, known as greenhouse gases, in the
atmosphere.

Greenhouse gases retain the radiant energy (heat) provided to Earth by the Sun in a process
known as the greenhouse effect. Greenhouse gases occur naturally, and without them the planet
would be too cold to sustain life as we know it. Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution
in the mid-1700s, however, human activities have added more and more of these gases into the
atmosphere. For example, levels of carbon dioxide, a powerful greenhouse gas, have risen by 35
% since 1750, largely from the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas. With
more greenhouse gases in the mix, the atmosphere acts like a thickening blanket and traps more
heat.

2. CAUSES AND SOURCES OF GLOBAL WARMING

The causes of the recent warming are an active field of research. The scientific consensuses that
the increase in atmospheric greenhouse gases due to human activity has caused most of the
warming observed since the start of the industrial era, and the observed warming cannot be
satisfactorily explained by natural causes alone. This attribution is clearest for the most recent 50
years, which is the period when most of the increase in greenhouse gas concentrations took place
and for which the most complete measurements exist.

Naturally occurring greenhouse gases have a mean warming effect of about 33°C without which
Earth would be uninhabitable. On Earth the major greenhouse gases are water vapor, which
causes about 36–70 % of the greenhouse effect (not including clouds); carbon dioxide (CO2),
which causes 9–26 %; methane (CH4), which causes 4–9 %; and ozone, which causes 3–7 %.

Human activity since the industrial revolution has increased the atmospheric concentration of
various greenhouse gases, leading to increased radiative forcing from CO2, methane,
tropospheric ozone, CFCs and nitrous oxide. The atmospheric concentrations of CO2 and
methane have increased by 36% and 148% respectively since the beginning of the industrial
revolution in the mid-1700s. These levels are considerably higher than at any time during the last
650,000 years, the period for which reliable data has been extracted from ice cores. Less direct
geological evidence indicates that CO2 values this high were last seen approximately 20 million
years ago. Fossil fuel burning has produced approximately three-quarters of the increase in CO2
from human activity over the past 20 years. Most of the rest is due to land-use change, in
particular deforestation.

98 
 
CO2 concentrations are expected to continue to rise due to ongoing burning of fossil fuels and
land-use change. The rate of rise will depend on uncertain economic, sociological, technological,
and natural developments. The IPCC Special Report on Emissions Scenarios gives a wide range
of future CO2 scenarios, ranging from 541 to 970 ppm by the year 2100. Fossil fuel reserves are
sufficient to reach this level and continue emissions past 2100; if coal, tar sands or methane
clathrates are extensively exploited.

As said, the major cause of global warming is the emission of green house gases like carbon
dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide etc. into the atmosphere. The major source of carbon dioxide is
the power plants. These power plants emit large amounts of carbon dioxide produced from
burning of fossil fuels for the purpose of electricity generation. About 20 % of carbon dioxide
emitted in the atmosphere comes from burning of gasoline in the engines of the vehicles. This is
true for most of the developed countries. Buildings, both commercial and residential represent a
larger source of global warming pollution than cars and trucks.

Building of these structures requires a lot of fuel to be burnt which emits a large amount of
carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Methane is more than 20 times as effectual as CO2 at
entrapping heat in the atmosphere. Methane is obtained from resources such as rice paddies,
bovine flatulence, bacteria in bogs and fossil fuel manufacture. When fields are flooded,
anaerobic situation build up and the organic matter in the soil decays, releasing methane to the
atmosphere. The main sources of nitrous oxide include nylon and nitric acid production, cars
with catalytic converters, the use of fertilizers in agriculture and the burning of organic matter.
Another cause of global warming is deforestation that is caused by cutting and burning of forests
for the purpose of residence and industrialization. \

3. EFFECTS OF GLOBAL WARMING ON ENVIRONMENT

Storm strength leading to extreme weather is increasing, such as the power dissipation index of
hurricane intensity. Kerry Emanuel writes that hurricane power dissipation is highly correlated
with temperature, reflecting global warming. However, a further study by Emanuel using current
model output concluded that the increase in power dissipation in recent decades cannot be
completely attributed to global warming. Hurricane modeling has produced similar results,
finding that hurricanes, simulated under warmer, high-CO2 conditions, are more intense,
however, hurricane frequency will be reduced. Worldwide, the proportion of hurricanes reaching
categories 4 or 5 – with wind speeds above 56 meters per second – has risen from 20% in the
1970s to 35% in the 1990s. Precipitation hitting the US from hurricanes has increased by 7%
over the twentieth century. The extent to which this is due to global warming as opposed to the
Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation is unclear. Some studies have found that the increase in sea
surface temperature may be offset by an increase in wind shear, leading to little or no change in
hurricane activity. Hoyos et al. (2006) have linked the increasing trend in number of category 4
and 5 hurricanes for the period 1970-2004 directly to the trend in sea surface temperatures.

99 
 
 Fig2: Show
wing the risks and impactt of global warming
w

A substaantially highher risk of exxtreme weatther does noot necessarilly mean a noticeably
n grreater
risk of sllightly-above-average weather.
w How wever, the evvidence is clear
c that sevvere weather and
moderatee rainfall aree also increeasing. Increeases in tem
mperature aree expected to t produce more
intense convection ov ver land andd a higher freequency of thhe most seveere storms.

Over thee course of the 20th cenntury, evaporration rates haveh reduceed worldwide; this is thoought
by manyy to be explaained by gloobal dimminng. As the climatec grow
ws warmer and a the causses of
global diimming are reduced,
r evaaporation will increase due
d to warmeer oceans. Because
B the world
w
is a closeed system this will causee heavier rainnfall, with more
m erosionn. This erosioon, in turn, can
c in
vulnerable tropical arreas (especiaally in Africca) lead to deesertificationn. On the othher hand, in other
areas, inccreased rainffall leads to growth of foorests in dry desert areass.

Scientistss have found

d evidence that
t increaseed evaporatioon could ressult in more extreme weeather
as globall warming progresses.
p T IPCC Third
The T Annuaal Report saays: "...Global average water
w
vapor cooncentration and precipittation are prrojected to increase
i durring the 21stt century. By the
100 
 
second half of the 21st century, it is likely that precipitation will have increased over northern
mid- to high latitudes and Antarctica in winter. At low latitudes there are both regional increases
and decreases over land areas. Larger year to year variations in precipitation are very likely over
most areas where an increase in mean precipitation is projected."

The American Insurance Journal predicted that “catastrophe losses should be expected to
double roughly every 10 years because of increases in construction costs, increases in the
number of structures and changes in their characteristics.” The Association of British Insurers
has stated that limiting carbon emissions would avoid 80% of the projected additional annual
cost of tropical cyclones by the 2080s. The cost is also increasing partly because of building in
exposed areas such as coasts and floodplains. The ABI claims that reduction of the vulnerability
to some inevitable effects of climate change, for example through more resilient buildings and
improved flood defenses, could also result in considerable cost-savings in the long-term.

In historic times, glaciers grew during a cool period from about 1550 to 1850 known as the Little
Ice Age. Subsequently, until about 1940, glaciers around the world retreated as the climate
warmed. Glacier retreat declined and reversed in many cases from 1950 to 1980 as a slight
global cooling occurred. Since 1980, glacier retreat has become increasingly rapid and
ubiquitous, and has threatened the existence of many of the glaciers of the world. This process
has increased markedly since 1995.

Excluding the ice caps and ice sheets of the Arctic and Antarctic, the total surface area of
glaciers worldwide has decreased by 50% since the end of the 19th century. Currently glacier
retreat rates and mass balance losses have been increasing in the Andes, Alps, Pyrenees,
Himalayas, Rocky Mountains and North Cascades.

The loss of glaciers not only directly causes landslides, flash floods and glacial lake overflow,
but also increases annual variation in water flows in rivers. Glacier runoff declines in the summer
as glaciers decrease in size; this decline is already observable in several regions. Glaciers retain
water on mountains in high precipitation years, since the snow cover accumulating on glaciers
protects the ice from melting. In warmer and drier years, glaciers offset the lower precipitation
amounts with a higher melt water input.

Of particular importance are the Hindu Kush and Himalayan glacial melts that comprise the
principal dry-season water source of many of the major rivers of the Central, South, East and
Southeast Asian mainland. Increased melting would cause greater flow for several decades, after
which "some areas of the most populated regions on Earth are likely to run out of water'" as
source glaciers are depleted.

101 
 
4. EFFECTS OF GLOBAL WARMING ON HEALTH

Heating of the atmosphere can influence health through several routes. Most directly, it can
generate more, stronger and hotter heat waves, which will become especially treacherous if the
evenings fail to bring cooling relief. Unfortunately, a lack of nighttime cooling seems to be in the
cards; the atmosphere is heating unevenly and is showing the biggest rises at night, in winter and
at latitudes higher than about 50°C. In some places, the number of deaths related to heat waves is
projected to double by 2020. Prolonged heat can, moreover, enhance production of smog and the
dispersal of allergens. Both effects have been linked to respiratory symptoms. Global warming
can also threaten human well-being profoundly, if somewhat less directly, by revising weather
patterns—particularly by pumping up the frequency and intensity of floods and droughts and by
causing rapid swings in the weather. As the atmosphere has warmed over the past century,
droughts in arid areas have persisted longer, and massive bursts of precipitation have become
more common. Aside from causing death by drowning or starvation, these disasters promote by
various means the emergence, resurgence and spread of infectious disease. That prospect is
deeply troubling, because infectious illness is a genie that can be very hard to put back into its
bottle. It may kill fewer people in one fell swoop than a raging flood or an extended drought, but
once it takes root in a community, it often defies eradication and can invade other areas. The
control issue looms largest in the developing world, where resources for prevention and
treatment can be scarce. In these days of international commerce and travel, an infectious
disorder that appears in one part of the world can quickly become a problem continents away if
the disease-causing agent, or pathogen, finds itself in a hospitable environment. Floods and
droughts associated with global climate change could undermine health in other ways as well.
They could damage crops and make them vulnerable to infection and infestations by pests and
choking weeds, thereby reducing food supplies and potentially contributing to malnutrition. And
they could permanently or semi permanently displaces entire populations in developing
countries, leading to overcrowding and the diseases connected with it, such as tuberculosis.

But the consequences may not all be bad. Very high temperatures in hot regions may reduce
snail populations, which have a role in transmitting schistosomiasis, a parasitic disease. High
winds may at times disperse pollution. Hotter winters in normally chilly areas may reduce cold-
related heart attacks and respiratory ailments. Yet overall, the undesirable effects of more
variable weather are likely to include new stresses and nasty surprises that will overshadow any
benefits. Diseases relayed by mosquitoes— such as malaria, dengue fever, yellow fever and
several kinds of encephalitis—are among those eliciting the greatest concern as the world warms.
Cold can be a friend to humans, because it limits mosquitoes to seasons and regions where
temperatures stay above certain minimums. Winter freezing kills many eggs, larvae and adults
outright. Further, warmer nighttime and winter temperatures may enable them to cause more
disease for longer periods in the areas they already inhabit. The extra heat is not alone in
encouraging a rise in mosquito-borne infections. Intensifying floods and droughts resulting from
global warming can each help trigger outbreaks by creating breeding grounds for insects whose

102 
 
desiccated eggs remain viable and hatch in still water. As floods recede, they leave puddles. In
times of drought, streams can become stagnant pools, and people may put out containers to catch
water; these pools and pots, too, can become incubators for new mosquitoes. And the insects can
gain another boost if climate change or other processes (such as alterations of habitats by
humans) reduce the populations of predators that normally keep mosquitoes in check.

5. MEASURES TO CONTROL GLOBAL WARMING

Many efforts are being made by various nations to cut down the rate of global warming. One
such effort is the Kyoto agreement that has been made between various nations to reduce the
emissions of various green house gases. Also many non profit organizations are working for the
cause. Al Gore was one of the foremost U.S. politicians to heave an alarm about the hazards of
global warming. He has produced a significantly acclaimed documentary movie called "An
Inconvenient Truth," and written a book that archives his advice that Earth is dashing toward an
immensely warmer future. Al Gore, the former vice president of United States has given various
speeches to raise an awareness of global warming. He has warned people about the ill effects of
Global warming and its remedies.

5.1. Kyoto Protocol

The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change (UNFCCC or FCCC), an international environmental treaty produced at the United
Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), informally known as the
Earth Summit, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 3–14 June 1992. The treaty is intended to
achieve "stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would
prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system.

From December 1 through 11, 1997, more than 160 nations met in Kyoto, Japan, to negotiate
binding limitations on greenhouse gases for the developed nations, pursuant to the objectives of
the Framework Convention on Climate Change of 1992. The outcome of the meeting was the
Kyoto Protocol, in which the developed nations agreed to limit their greenhouse gas emissions,
relative to the levels emitted in 1990. The United States agreed to reduce emissions from 1990
levels by 7 % during the period 2008 to 2012.

The analysis in this report was undertaken at the request of the Committee on Science of the U.S.
House of Representatives. In its request, the Committee asked the Energy Information
Administration (EIA) to analyze the Kyoto Protocol, “focusing on U.S. energy use and prices
and the economy in the 2008-2012 time frames,” as noted in the first letter in Appendix D. The
Committee specified that EIA consider several cases for energy-related carbon reductions in its
analysis, with sensitivities evaluating some key uncertainties: U.S. economic growth, the cost
and performance of energy-using technologies, and the possible construction of new nuclear
power plants.

103 
 
6. UNCERTAINTIES ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING

The global warming skeptics are of the view that the global warming is a good phenomenon and
should not be stopped. There are various benefits of global warming according to them.
According to the skeptics, the global warming will increase humidity in tropical deserts. Also the
higher levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere trigger plant growth. As predicted, due to the
global warming the sea levels will rise. But this can be readily adapted. Another argument of
global warming skeptics is that earth has been warmer than today as seen in its history. The
thought is that global warming is nothing to get afraid of because it just takes us back to a more
natural set of environment of the past. Animals and plants appeared to do just fine in those eras
of warm climate on the earth. According to few skeptics, the present chilly climate on the earth is
an abnormality when judged over the geographical scale. Over geologic time, the earth’s mean
temperature is 22°C, as compared to today's 15.5°C.

Skeptics of global warming think that global warming is not an ecological trouble. According to
the global warming skeptics, the recent enhancement in the earth's average temperature is no
reason for alarm. According to them earth's coastlines and polar ice caps are not at a risk of
vanishing. Global warming skeptics consider that the weather models used to establish global
warming and to forecast its impacts are distorted. According to the models, if calculations are
made the last few decades must have been much worse as compared to actually happened to be.
Most of the global warming skeptics believe that the global warming is not actually occurring.
They stress on the fact the climatic conditions vary because of volcanism, the obliquity cycle,
changes in solar output, and internal variability. Also the warming can be due to the variation in
cloud cover, which in turn is responsible for the temperatures on the earth. The variations are
also a result of cosmic ray flux that is modulated by the solar magnetic cycles.

REFERENCES

Anderson, J.B. and Andrews, J.T. (1999), Radiocarbon constraints on ice sheet advance and
retreat in the Weddell Sea, Antarctica, Geology, 27, 179.

Kamishiro, N. and Sato, T. (2009), Public acceptance of the oceanic carbon sequestration,
Marine Policy, 33, 466, available online having reference number as -
doi:10.1016/j.marpol.2008.10.004.

Lomborg, C. (1998), Global warming reductions are small, 0.08o-0.28oC, Nature, 22, 395741.

Parkinson, C.L. (2002), Trends in length of the southern oceans sea-ice season, 1979-99, Annals
of Glaciology, 34, 435.

Thompson, D.W.J. and Solomon, S. (2002), Interpretation of recent southern hemisphere climate
change, Science, 295, 476.

104 
 
 GREEN ROOF

Hussain Singapurwala and Rajeev Garg

Department of Civil Engineering

Institute of Technology, BHU, Varanasi.

ABSTRACT: The following paper is written in context of green roof. It takes in account all
the information regarding it’s construction, types etc.The main aim of the paper is to provide
necessary knowledge about green roof. Green roof has wide scope in all the fields of civil
engineering as we all know that roofs are present in all types of buildings from a simple single
room house to multistory skyscrapers. And having a green roof in these buildings will not only
benefit environment but it has enormous other advantages also. This paper is mainly to acquaint
people of India about all aspects of green roof, so that they can implement the system in their
own homes. This paper also provides adequate information about private, public, economic and
social benefits caused by green roof such as purification of green house gases and rain water
harvesting. In the end, the paper concludes talking about vast differences in the development of
green roof in several developed countries and India therefore explaining the role of India in
saving the environment.
Keywords: water proof membrane, microclimates, stormwater retention, run-off volume,
roof deck, substrate.

1. INTRODUCTION [1]

Generally, a green roof is an extension of the existing roof of a building that is partially or
completely covered with vegetation and soil, or a growing medium, planted over a waterproofing
membrane.There are other terms also for green roofs namely eco-roofs, vegetated roofs and
living roofs.

1.1 Green Roofs in Different Countries

Different countries have their own ways of making green roofs and have given different names
to them.
1.1.1 In scandinavia green roofs are called sod roofs or turf roofs which are traditionally green
roofs covered with sod on top of several layers of birch bark (a cardboard type water resistant
material) on gently sloping wooden roof boards.
1.1.2 In London the term brownroof or ecoroof is often used in conservation circles torefer to
this particular model as they are mitigation for the loss of brownfield land. This uses a substrate
material, laid down on a flat roof and allowed to colonise naturally.

105 
 
2. TYPE
ES OF GRE
EEN ROOFS [2]

nsive Green Roofs

2.1 Inten

Intensivee green roof are those traaditional greeen roofs whhich require a considerabble low depthh soil
to grow large plantss or convecttional lawns . They are called intennsive roofs because
b they are
quiring irrigaation, feedinng and otherr maintenance. Intensive roofs are more
labour-inntensive, req
park-likee with easy access and may include anything from f kitchenn herbs to shrubs
s and small
s
trees. Figg.1 shows deetails of intennsive green roof.
r

2.2 Exten
nsive Green
n Roofs
As the naame suggest extensive green roofs arre designed to be virtuallly self-sustaaining and shhould
require only
o a minim mum of maiintenance, perhaps
p a onnce-yearly weeding
w or an
a applicatioon of
slow-releease fertiliseer to boost growth. Exttensive rooffs are usuallly accessed for maintennance
only. Thhey can be established on a very thin layer of soil (moost use speccially formuulated
compostss) even a th hin layer off rockwool laid directlyy onto a waatertight rooof can suppport a
planting of Sedum sp pecies and mosses.
m Fig.2 shows detaiils of extensive green roof.

2.3 Semii Intensive Green

G Roof

Semi inttesive roofs are usuallyy 6-12 inchees deep witth a saturateed weight of o 30-50 lb//sq.ft.
Whether irrigation iss necessary or o not depennds on the reegional clim mate and on the
t kind of plants
p
that are used. Shrub bs, perenniaals, herbs annd grasses can be grow wn on semii-intensive roofs.
r
Maintenaance is still quite
q labor-inntensive beccause the dessign of mostt semi-intenssive greenroofs is
still gardden-like. Fig..3 shows dettails of semi--intensive grreen roof.

Figg 1:Extensive Green rooff Intensivve Green rooof Sem

mi intensive Green
G Roof

• Rooff deck, Insulaation, Waterrproofing

106 
 
• Protection and Storage Layer
• Drainage and Capilarity Layer
• Root permeable Filter Layer
• Semi-intensive Growing Media
• Plants, Vegetation 

3. HISTORY [1]

The history of green roof is as ancient as Babylone in 7th century B.C. where it was known as
Hanging garden of Babylone (a majestic structure built by King Nebuchadnezzar II for his wife,
Amyitis).

In Scandinavia, roofs were covered with sod that was stripped from surrounding grass meadows.
This was done to insulate homes. Underneath the sod are structurally heavy timber beams
interspaced with birch bark to act as a waterproofing layer. Eventually, cheaper, lighter, more
effective, and mass-market based systems were developed to replace sod roofs. Until 1970, green
roofs were regarded as luxurious home amenities. In the same year, Professor Hans Luz, a
German Landscape Architect, proposed the use of green roofs as a means of improving the
quality of the urban environment.

After that in the beginning of 1977, the creation of FLLwhich is a German landscape and
landscape construction organization had started the formal study of green roof technology and its
applications. We have this group to thank for much of what we know about this technology. FLL
together with some German university researchersstudied everything, from developing urban
ecological habitats, to energy balances, to waterproofing systems and drainage, to effective
design and planning. And here we are standing today where, Green Roof Technology is seen as
mosteffective ecological approach towards urban design management. Stuttgart , for example,
requires all flat roofed industrial buildings to use Green Roof Technology.

4. CONSTRUCTION DETAILS [3, 4]

Green roofs can be constructed over any properly designed and constructed roof deck, whether
steel, wood or concrete, plastic or composite, so long as the structural considerations like
building insulation etc. are met. Fig.4 shows the construction details of green roof.

4.1 Water Proof Membrane

An effective waterproof seal to the roof is an essential prerequisite for all green roofs. This
membrane can be of different types namely:

The built-up roofs:- bitumen/asphalt roofing.

The single-ply membranes:- These are rolled sheets of inorganic plastic or synthetic rubber
material that are overlapped at the joints and sealed with heat, in the case of thermoplastic
materials such as PVC, or adhesive, in the case of butyl rubber. These are economic and simple
to lay.

107 
 
The fluidd-applied meembranes:- This
T is hot orr cold liquidd form that iss sprayed or painted on to
t the
surface of
o the roof and forms a complete
c m of joints. They
seal when set,, eliminatingg the problem
are also easier
e to app
plu to verticaal or inclinedd surfaces.

4.2 Insullation

The thermmal protectio on provided by the vegetation, plantting medium

m, and drain layer
l
sufficienttly eliminatees the need for
f additionaal insulation in warm, dryy climates. However,
H
building codes usuallly require a certain leveel of added insulation, regardless
r off the overalll roof
design.

 
Fig.
F 4: Show
wing construuction detailss of Green Roofs
R

4.3 Roott Protection Barrier

This mem mbrane is laaid to ensuree the protectiion of the rooof and the other
o structuural elementss
from thee roots of the
t plants overhead.Thi
o is memranee can be coombined witth the waterr
proofingg membrane by using a metal sheeet inside it. It is usuallly composedd of rolls off
PVC(.8 mmm to moree than 1 mm m in thicknesss) and out ovver the weattherproofed roof deck orr
surface. Plastic or metal
m sheet also serves thee purpose.

The mem
mbrane must be raised up
u beyond thhe surface of
o the plantinng medium at the edgess

108 
 
and around all projecttions such as chimneys and vents. The membrane sheets are welded
together to form a complete sea- it is essential that the welding is effective because any gaps
or weaknesses will be exploited by the plant roots.

4.4 Drainage Layer

Maintaining proper drainage on a green roof is extremely important for several reasons.
First is the protection of the waterproof membrane. Water proof membrane is likely to be
damaged because of continuous contact with water or wet soil. Also a permanently wet
green roof will lose its thermal insulating properties. The function of the drainage layer is to
remove excess water or underflow as rapidly as possible to prevent over-long saturation.
Generally a drainage layer and a water storage layers are combined together which stores
the water as well for plants to draw upon in dry weather.

This layer can be consisted of granular materials such as gravel, stone chips, broken clay
tiles, clinker, scoria (lava rock), pumice, expanded shale which contain large amounts of air
or pore space berween them when packed together in a layer os space. Also Porous mats of
clothing and car seats act like sponges, absorbing water into their structures.

4.5 Growing Medium or Substrate

An ideal substrate must be efficient at absorbing and retaining water and having free
drainage properties. Also it should be able to absorb and supply nutrients and retain its
volume over time, as well as provide anchorage for the plants of the green roof. It must be
lightweight and must contain 60-70 percent pore spaces. This is achieved by granular
mineral materials containing clay or silt.

4.6 Vegetation

Almost any plant can be put on a roof. The only limitations are climate, structural design and
maintenance budgets, and the roofscape designer’s imagination. Since green roofs are
typically lightweight, they often contain ground cover that can thrive in very shallow soils
with little to no maintenance. Sedum, a succulent ground cover, has become very popular for
use on green roofs in North America. Also commonly used are a variety of hearty
wildflowers and shallow-rooting grasses. At times, rooftop vegetation may go dormant and
lose foliage, as do plants on grade.

4.7 Filter Layer

Somewhere between the planting media and drain layer lies a filter, which not only allows
water to flow through while retaining the planting medium, but serves as a root barrier. The
filter usually comprises one or two layers of non-woven geotextile, where one of the layers
may be treated with a root inhibitor (i.e. copper or a mild herbicide). As in many landscaping
applications, filter fabric can also be used to control erosion at the surface of the planting
medium.

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4.8 Irrigation

Watering systems used in landscaping can be adapted to rooftop applications, but several
commercial green roof designs combine passive irrigation methods with active components.
Passive irrigation describes the process of storing rainwater in the drain layer, which
eventually wicks back up through the planting medium while excess is allowed to drain off.
One type of water storage medium is a polypropylene fiber mat directly below the planting
medium which acts as a sponge. Other types include small reservoirs in the drain mat filled
with expanded clay up to the bottom of the planting medium. Irrigation is rarely necessary,
however, when drought-tolerant plants like sedums are used.

5. ADVANTAGES OF GREEN ROOF [5]

Green Roofs have wide range of benfits in each sector including public, private , economic ,
social benefits etc. we will discuss some of them in following sections .

5.1 Private Benefits

5.1.1 Economic benefits

Cost savings opportunities for the building owner include:

• Protection of roof membrane resulting in a longer material lifespan (it is estimated that green
roofs will last up to twice as long as conventional roofs), resulting in decreased maintenance
and savings in replacement costs;
• Savings on energy heating and cooling costs, depending on the size of the
building, climate and type of green roof. Using a Micro Axess Simulation model,
Environment Canada found that a typical one storey building with a grass roof and 10 cm
(3.9 inches) of growing medium would result in a 25% reduction in summer cooling needs.
• Potential to reduce the amount of standard insulation used.
• Potential to incorporate cooling and/or water treatment functions.
• Potential to reduce or eliminate roof drains.
• Potential to meet regulatory requirements for stormwater management.
• Potential to reduce community resistance to new developments.

5.1.2 Sound insulation

5.1.2.1 Soil, plants and the trapped layer of air can be used to insulate for sound. Sound waves
that are produced by machinery, traffic or airplanes can be absorbed, reflected or deflected. The
substrate tends to block lower sound frequencies and the plants block higher frequencies.

5.1.2.2 A green roof with a 12 cm (4.7 inches) substrate layer can reduce sound by 40 decibels; a
20 cm (7.9 inches) substrate layer can reduce sound by 46-50 decibels.

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5.1.3 Amenity space and aesthetics

• Provision of amenity space for day care, meetings, and recreation;

• Aesthetic appeal, increasing the value of the property and the marketability of the
building as a whole, particularly for accessible green roofs. For example, American and
British studies show that "good tree cover" adds between 6 to 15 per cent to the value of a
home. Green roofs offer the same visual and environmental benefits.
• Satisfying the aesthetic needs of people looking down upon the roof from adjacent buildings.
• Potential to improve employee productivity.

5.1.4 Food production

The Fairmount Waterfront Hotel in Vancouver used to grow herbs, flowers, and vegetables on its
accessible roof, saving its kitchen an estimated $30,000 a year in food costs.

5.2 Public Benefits

5.2.1 Economic benefits

Public policies that support green roof installations will create jobs for the following:

• Suppliers and manufacturers of roofing membranes and root repellent layers;

• Suppliers and manufacturers of drainage layers, landscaping cloth, curbs, irrigation systems
and other specialty products;
• Suppliers and manufacturers of substrate, light-weight soils and amendments;
• Garden nurseries specializing in plants specifically for green roofs;
• Design and engineering professionals;

Although no exact figures exist, it is estimated that the roofing industry in Germany employs
approximately 12,000 people, and if all flat roofs were to be greened, this figure would increase
to approximately 100, 000.

5.2.3 Community cost savings opportunities include

• Cost savings from increased stormwater retention and decreased need to expand
or rebuild related infrastructure.
• Decreased cost of meeting greenhouse gas reductions and adapting to climate
change by reducing the "Urban Heat Island Effect" and the need for interior
building insulation.
• Decreased need for health care services from reductions in ground level ozone
resulting from a reduction in the urban heat island.
• Increased worker productivity and creativity.

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• Decreased need for health care services and medication due to the benefits of
passive experiences with nature and vegetation.
• Extending the lifespan of landfil sites by reducing re-roofing material waste.
• Opportunities to recycle aggregate and compost.

5.2.4 Improved air quality

5.2.4.1 Filtration of Airborne Particulates

A green roof will not only absorb heat, decreasing the tendency towards thermal air movement,
but will also filter the air moving across it. 1 m2 (10.76 ft2) of grass roof can remove between 0.2
kg of airbourne particulates from the air every year.

5.2.4.2 Carbon Dioxide/Oxygen Exchange

Through the process of photosynthesis, plants convert carbon dioxide, water and sunlight/energy
into oxygen and glucose. This cyclical process supplies animals and humans with oxygen and
food. 1.5 m2 (16.15 ft2 ) of uncut grass, produces enough oxygen per year to supply 1 human
with their yearly oxygen intake requirement.

5.2.5 Temperature regulation

Moderation of the Urban Heat Island Effect

5.2.5.1 In the process of evapotranspiration, plants use heat energy from their surroundings
(approximately 592 kcal per L of water) when evaporating water. One m2 (10.76 ft2) of foliage
can evaporate over 0.5 litres of water on a hot day and on an annual basis the same area can
evaporate up to 700 litres of water and hence making the cities cool in hot summer months.

5.2.5.2 This process reduces the 'Urban Heat Island Effect' in the summer. The 'Urban
Heat Island Effect' is the difference in temperature between a city and the surrounding
countryside. It is mainly due to the expanse of hard and reflective surfaces, such as
roofs, which absorb solar radiation and re-radiate it as heat. Reduction of the 'Urban Heat
Island Effect' will also reduce the distribution of dust and particulate matter
throughout the city and the production of smog. This can play a role in reducing greenhouse
gas emissions and adapting urban areas to a future climate with warmer summers.

5.2.6 Industrial cooling

The Possman Cider Cooling and Storage Facility in Frankfurt, Germany yielded a 2-3 year
payoff of their green roof system through savings in heating and cooling costs, as well as in
equipment costs, since additional cooling towers had become unnecessary.

5.2.7 Creation of microclimates

• A green roof will have a noticeable impact on the heat gain and loss of a building, as well as
the humidity, air quality and reflected heat in the surrounding neighbourhood. In conjunction

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 with other green installations, green roofs can play a role in altering the climate of the city as
a whole.
• On a summer day, the temperature of a gravel roof can increase by as much as 25
C (77 °F), to between 60-80 °C (140 - 176 F). Covered with grass, the temperature of
that roof would not rise above 25 °C (77 °F), thus resulting in energy cost savings.
• 20 cm (7.9 inches) of substrate with a 20-40 cm (7.9 - 15.7 inches) layer of thick
grass has the combined insulation value of° 15 cm (5.9 inches) of mineral wool.
• Rooms under a green roof are at least 3 - 4 °C (5.4 - 7.2°F) cooler than the air o
outside, when outdoor temperatures range between 25-30 °C (77 - 86 °F).

5.2.8 Water

5.2.8.1 Stormwater Retention:Water is stored by the substrate and then taken up by the
plants from where it is returned to the atmosphere through transpiration and evaporation. In
summer, depending on the plants and depth of growing medium, green roofs retain 70-90% of
the precipitation that falls on them; in winter they retain between 25-40%. For example, a grass
roof with a 4-20 cm (1.6 - 7.9 inches) layer of growing medium can hold 10-15 cm (3.9 - 5.9
inches) of water.

5.2.8.2 Water Filtration: Green roofs not only retain the rainwater, but also moderate the
temperature of the water and act as natural filters for any of the water that happens to run off.

Fig 5: Cumulative rainfall and runoff from the Green Roof and the Reference Roof during a
34mm rain. (Source: National Research Council's Institute for Research in Construction)

The graph in fig.5 records the cumulative rainfall and runoff from the Green Roof and the
Reference Roof during a 34mm (1.3 inches) rain

5.2.8.3 Temporal Delay of Stormwater Runoff and Reduced Runoff Volume: Green roofs reduce
the amount of stormwater runoff and also delay the time at which runoff occurs,
resulting in decreased stress on sewer systems at peak flow periods.

6. DISADVANTAGES [5]

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Inspite of having enourmous advantages Green roof also posses some disadvantages as given
below.

6.1 Imposed Loads

Irrespective of whether "intensive" or "extensive" roof solutions are adopted, green roof
constructions impose greater loads than more conventional roofing systems and therefore require
stronger supporting structures and foundations.

6.2 Maintenance

Compared against conventional horticultural schemes such as manicured lawns and planting
beds, extensive green roof solutions can be considered as relatively low maintenance. However,
when compared against conventional roofing solutions, the input required is exceptionally high.
Particular attention is required during periods of initial establishment, when seeds and plants will
require regular irrigation, weeding and feeding with an appropriate release fertiliser.

6.3 Fire Load

Unless a scheme is provided with an expensive automatic irrigation system, green roof planting
can die back in periods of extreme drought and present a serious additional fire load and arson
target. This is particularly relevant to the use of grasses and mosses, which are highly dependant
upon regular irrigation to sustain chlorophyll levels.

6.4 Wildlife Infestation

Whilst promoters of green roof concepts herald the attraction of birds and butterflies as a benefit
of this form of environmental technology, green roof systems are not necessarily selective in
their attraction properties and can serve to entice some forms of wildlife which may be
considered as a nuisance by building occupants.

7. COST [6]

Although the initial costs of installing a green roof are greater than a conventional roof system,
the long-term benefits and the energy savings outweigh the original investment (E.g. increased
longevity of the roof and savings on energy expenditures). The costs of your green roof will
depend upon the design of the green roof such as the type (extensive or intensive), climate, and
plant selection. Intensive green roof are more expensive than entensive therefore we will only
discuss the cost factors of extensive green roof . Following table shows us some of the main
costs which includes in green roof construction:

# Component Costs Cost factors

1 Design & Specifications 5 - 10 &percnt; (of total The size/complexity of the
roofing cost) project and the
number/type of

114 
 
 consultants needed.
2 Project Administration & Site 2.5 - 5 &percnt; of total The size/complexity of the
Review roofing cost project and the
number/type of
consultants needed.
3 Re-roofing with root-repelling $ 10.00 - $15.00 / ft 2 The type of existing roof,
membrane type of new roof system,
and roof accessibility.
4 Green Roof System (drainage, $ 5.00 - $10.00 / ft 2 Growing medium (type
filtering, paving, growing and depth), pavers (size
medium) and type), and square
footage of the green roof
(project size).
2
5 Plants $ 1.00 - $3.00 / ft Season of installation,
type of plants, and size of
seeds being planted.
6 Installation and Labor $ 3.00 - $8.00 / ft 2 Equipment necessary to
move materials on to the
roof (E.g. crane, if rented
is: $ 4,000.00 /day),
project size, design, and
planting methods.
7 Maintenance $ 1.25 - $2.00 / ft 2 Project size, installation
(only for the first two schedule, irrigation
years) system, and plants (type
and size) used.
2
8 Irrigation System $ 2.00 - $4.00 / ft Since extensive roofs
require little irrigation
(E.g. sprinkler system or
drip system), this
component is optional.
 
8. CONCLUSIONS
 
Although the initial costs of installing a green roof are greater than a conventional roof system,
the long-term benefits and the energy savings outweigh the original investment like increased
longevity of the roof and savings on energy expenditures. The selection of appropriately robust,
economic and visually pleasing roofing materials is always a key issue on any new building
project. Should future opportunities arise where costs, site and design parameters are suitable
then Green Roofs will be considered. There are advantages in providing a better habitat for insect
and bird life as well as potentially helping to reduce surface water run-off. However ,The area of
a buildings roof is usually a very small proportion of the site area and therefore the composite
effect is very small , therefore green roof must be built on all kinds of buildings to increase the
net effect on environment.

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  REFERENCES

www.answers.com/topic/green-roof

green roof services, LLC

Christopher G. Wark and Wendy W. Wark, Green Roof Specifications and Standards
Establishing an emerging technology, The Construction Specifier, Vol. 56, No.8

Nigel Dunnett, Noël Kingsbury, Planting green roofs and living walls, illustrated edition,
Timber Press-2004.

greenroofs.org

http://www.greenroofs.org

Great Lakes WATER Institute

http://www.glwi.uwm.ed u/research/genomics/ecoli/greenroof/roofinstall.php

116 
 
 INDUSTRIAL WASTE MANAGEMENT
Ashish Singhal, Nikhil Bansal And Ashish Gupta

B.E. (PSCT), Delhi College of Engineering

Bawana Road, Delhi-40.

1. INTRODUCTION

Environmental pollution has increased alarmingly alongside the human population, urbanization,
industrialization and changing agricultural practices, largely due to the arbitrary exploitation of
natural resources and ignorance of the deleterious side effects as a result of the wastes produced
by such practices. Hazardous and many non-hazardous industrial wastes are inherently
dangerous to human health and the environment no matter how they are managed. The more
apparent forms of environmental degradation are the water, air, noise and solid waste pollution.

Waste management is the collection, transport, processing, recycling or disposal of waste

materials. The term usually relates to materials produced by human activity, and is generally
undertaken to reduce their effect on health, the environment or aesthetics. Waste management is
also carried out to reduce the materials' effect on the environment and to recover resources from
them. Waste management can involve solid, liquid, gaseous or radioactive substances, with
different methods and fields of expertise for each.

Waste management practices differ for developed and developing nations, for urban and rural
areas, and for residential and industrial, producers. Management for non-hazardous residential
and institutional waste in metropolitan areas is usually the responsibility of local government
authorities, while management for non-hazardous commercial and industrial waste is usually the
responsibility of the generator.

WASTE MANAGEMENT is an emerging and engaging area of study. However, the picture is
often confusing and solutions fuzzy as information available in public domain is either scanty or
scattered. This paper attempts to put together available information and analyze macro-tissues
facing the Indian Techno-managers.

 
2. WASTE MANAGEMENT METHODS

Waste management methods vary widely between areas for many reasons, including type of
waste material, nearby land uses, and the area available.

117 
 
2.1 Disposal Methods

2.1.1 Landfill

Disposing of waste in a landfill involves burying waste to dispose of it, and this remains a
common practice in most countries. A properly-designed and well-managed landfill can be a
hygienic and relatively inexpensive method of disposing of waste materials. Another common
byproduct of landfills is gas (mostly composed of methane and carbon dioxide), which is
produced as organic waste breaks down anaerobically .This gas can create odor problems, kill
surface vegetation, and is a greenhouse gas.

2.1.2 Incineration

Incineration is a disposal method that involves combustion of waste material. Incinerators

convert waste materials into heat, gas, steam, and ash. Incineration is carried out both on a small
scale by individuals and on a large scale by industry. It is used to dispose of solid, liquid and
gaseous waste. Incineration is a controversial method of waste disposal, due to issues such as
emission of gaseous pollutants.

2.2 Recycling Methods

The process of extracting resources or value from waste is generally referred to as recycling,
meaning to recover or reuse the material. There are a number of different methods by which
waste material is recycled: the raw materials may be extracted and reprocessed, or the calorific
content of the waste may be converted to electricity. New methods of recycling are being
developed continuously, and are described briefly below.

2.2.1 Physical reprocessing

The popular meaning of ‘recycling’ in most developed countries refers to the widespread
collection and reuse of everyday waste materials such as empty beverage containers. These are
collected and sorted into common types so that the raw materials from which the items are made
can be reprocessed into new products. Material for recycling may be collected separately from
general waste using dedicated bins and collection vehicles, or sorted directly from mixed waste
streams.

2.2.2 Biological reprocessing

Waste materials that are organic in nature, such as plant material, food scraps, and paper
products, can be recycled using biological composting and digestion processes to decompose the
organic matter. The resulting organic material is then recycled as mulch or compost for
agricultural or landscaping purposes. In addition, waste gas from the process (such as methane)
can be captured and used for generating electricity. The intention of biological processing in

118 
 
waste management is to control and accelerate the natural process of decomposition of organic
matter.

There is a large variety of composting and digestion methods and technologies varying in
complexity from simple home compost heaps, to industrial-scale enclosed-vessel digestion of
mixed domestic waste (see Mechanical biological treatment). Methods of biological
decomposition are differentiated as being aerobic or anaerobic methods, though hybrids of the
two methods also exist.

An example of waste management through composting is the Green Bin Program in Toronto,
Canada, where household organic waste (such as kitchen scraps and plant cuttings) are collected
in a dedicated container and then composted.

2.2.3 Energy recovery

The energy content of waste products can be harnessed directly by using them as a direct
combustion fuel, or indirectly by processing them into another type of fuel. Recycling through
thermal treatment ranges from using waste as a fuel source for cooking or heating, to fuel for
boilers to generate steam and electricity in a turbine. Pyrolysis and gasification are two related
forms of thermal treatment where waste materials are heated to high temperatures with limited
oxygen availability. The process typically occurs in a sealed vessel under high pressure.
Pyrolysis of solid waste converts the material into solid, liquid and gas products. The liquid and
gas can be burnt to produce energy or refined into other products. The solid residue (char) can be
further refined into products such as activated carbon. Gasification is used to convert organic
materials directly into a synthetic gas (syngas) composed of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. The
gas is then burnt to produce electricity and steam.

3. AVOIDANCE AND REDUCTION METHODS

An important method of waste management is the prevention of waste material being created,
also known as waste reduction. Methods of avoidance include reuse of second-hand products,
repairing broken items instead of buying new, designing products to be refillable or reusable
(such as cotton instead of plastic shopping bags), encouraging consumers to avoid using
disposable products (such as disposable cutlery), and designing products that use less material to
achieve the same purpose (for example, light weighting of beverage cans).

4. WASTE MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS

There are a number of concepts about waste management which vary in their usage between
countries or regions. Some of the most general, widely-used concepts include:

4.1 Waste Hierarchy

119 
 
The waste hierarchy refers to the "3 Rs" reduce, reuse and recycle, which classify waste
management strategies according to their desirability in terms of waste minimization. The waste
hierarchy remains the cornerstone of most waste minimization strategies. The aim of the waste
hierarchy is to extract the maximum practical benefits from products and to generate the
minimum amount of waste.

Fig1: Diagram of the waste hierarchy.

4.2 Extended Producer Responsibility

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is a strategy designed to promote the integration of all
costs associated with products throughout their life cycle (including end-of-life disposal costs)
into the market price of the product. Extended producer responsibility is meant to impose
accountability over the entire lifecycle of products and packaging introduced to the market. This
means that firms which manufacture, import and/or sell products are required to be responsible
for the products after their useful life as well as during manufacture.

4.3 Polluter Pays Principle

The Polluter Pays Principle is a principle where the polluting party pays for the impact caused to
the natural environment. With respect to waste management, this generally refers to the
requirement for a waste generator to pay for appropriate disposal of the waste.

4.4 Zero Waste Discharge

Zero waste means designing and managing products and processes to reduce the volume and
toxicity of waste and materials, conserve and recover all resources, and not burn or bury them.
Implementing zero waste will eliminate all discharges to land, water or air that may be a threat to
planetary, human, animal or planet health.

4.4 Cleaner Production

It is the continuous application of an integrated preventive environmental strategy applied to

processes, products, and services to increase overall efficiency and reduce risks to humans and
the environment.

120 
 
4.5 Raise Public Awareness

People should be made aware about the different methods and practices to be implement for
proper discharge of waste materials.

4.6 Laws, Policies and Regulations

Government must take appropriate steps to implement various laws, policies and regulations for
proper management of the waste materials.

5. PLASTICS WASTES UTILIZATION OR RECYCLING OF PLASTICS

Plastic recycling is the process of recovering scrap or waste plastics and reprocessing the
material into useful products, sometimes completely different from their original state. For
instance, this could mean melting down polyester soft drink bottles then making model army
figures and ammunition.

For the environmental and economic targets to be realized and to maximize diversion from
landfill, it is important that plastic recycling programmes consider the full spectrum of available
options. The three main areas include:

• Feedstock Recycling, the processing of plastics into basic chemicals.

• Mechanical Recycling, the re-processing of the plastic materials into new products.
• Energy Recovery, the recovery of valuable energy from waste plastic through incineration.
• Plastics can be chemically recycled to recover monomer for reuse.

Over the past few decades, the use of polymers in disposable consumer goods has grown
tremendously. This growth is proving to be taxing on the waste disposal system, consuming a
large fraction of available landfill space. Furthermore, the raw materials for these polymers are
obtained from petroleum, a limited, non-renewable resource. To reduce the demand for landfill
space and the consumption of limited petroleum reserves, the recycling of polymers has become
a subject of concern.

6. PLASTIC IDENTIFICATION CODE

One of the problems faced in recycling polymers is the great variety of polymers in use. To help
sort wastes by type of polymer, most disposable polymeric goods are labeled with a recycling
code: three arrows around a number above the polymer's acronym.

Seven groups of plastic polymers, each with specific properties, are used worldwide for
packaging applications (see table below). Each group of plastic polymer can be identified by its
Plastic Identification code (PIC) - usually a number or a letter abbreviation. For instance, Low-
Density Polyethylene can be identified by the number "4" and/or the letters "LDPE". The PIC
appears inside a three-chasing arrow recycling symbol. The symbol is used to indicate whether
the plastic can be recycled into new products.
121 
 
The PIC was introduced by the Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc. which provides a uniform
system for the identification of different polymer types and helps recycling companies to
separate different plastics for reprocessing. Manufacturers of plastic food packaging and
containers can voluntarily mark their products with the PIC. Consumers can identify the plastic
types based on the codes usually found at the base or at the side of the plastic food packaging
and containers. The PIC is usually not present on packaging films, as it is not practical to collect
and recycle most of this type of waste.

Plastic
Type of plastic
Identification Properties Common Packaging Applications
polymer
Code

Polyethylene Clarity, strength, Soft drink, water and salad

Terephthalate toughness, barrier to gas dressing bottles; peanut butter and
(PET, PETE) and moisture. jam jars

Stiffness, strength,
High Density Milk, juice and water bottles;
toughness, resistance to
Polyethylene yogurt and margarine tubs; trash
moisture, permeability
(HDPE) and retail bags.
to gas.

Versatility, clarity, ease

Polyvinyl
of blending, strength, Juice bottles; cling films
Chloride (V)
toughness.

Ease of processing,
Low Density strength, toughness, Frozen food bags; squeezable
Polyethylene flexibility, ease of bottles, e.g. honey, mustard; cling
(LDPE) sealing, barrier to films; flexible container lids.
moisture.

Strength, toughness, Reusable microwaveable ware;

resistance to heat, kitchenware; yogurt containers;
Polypropylene
chemicals, grease and margarine tubs; microwaveable
(PP)
oil, versatile, barrier to disposable take-away containers;
moisture. disposable cups and plates.

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 Egg cartons; disposable cups,
Versatility, clarity, plates, trays and cutlery; disposable
Polystyrene (PS)
easily formed take-away containers; yogurt and
margarine containers

Dependent on polymers
Beverage bottles; baby milk
Other or combination or
bottles.
polymers.

 
7. NEW POLICIES (3Rs)

Because of the growing environmental problems and cost associated with landfills and
incinerators for waste disposal, new policies are being developed to support 3Rs:

• Waste Reduction at Source

• Waste Reuse
• Waste Recycling

Fig 2: Major Generators of Solid Industrial Wastes

123 
 
 Table1: Showing the types of waste generated by different Industries

Table2: Present Scenario in India

124 
 
There is no Indian policy document which examines waste as part of a cycle of production-
consumption-recovery or perceives waste through a prism of overall sustainability. In fact,
interventions have been fragmented and are often contradictory. The new Municipal Solid Waste
Management Rules 2000, which came into effect from January 2004, fail even to manage waste
in a cyclic process. Waste management still is a linear system of collection and disposal, creating
health and environmental hazards.

Urban India is likely to face a massive waste disposal problem in the coming years. Until now,
the problem of waste has been seen as one of cleaning and disposing as rubbish. But a closer
look at the current and future scenario reveals that waste needs to be treated holistically,
recognizing its natural resource roots as well as health impacts. Waste can be wealth, which has
tremendous potential not only for generating livelihoods for the urban poor but can also enrich
the earth through composting and recycling rather than spreading pollution as has been the case.
Increasing urban migration and a high density of population will make waste management a
difficult issue to handle in the near future, if a new paradigm for approaching it is not created.

Developing countries such as India are undergoing a massive migration of their population from
rural to urban centres. New consumption patterns and social linkages are emerging. India will
have more than 40 per cent, i.e. over 400 million people, clustered in cities over the next thirty
years (UN, 1995). Modern urban living brings on the problem of waste, which increases in
quantity, and changes in composition with each passing day. There is, however, an inadequate
understanding of the problem, both of infrastructure requirements as well as its social
dimensions. Urban planners, municipal agencies, environmental regulators, labour groups,
citizens’ groups and non-governmental organisations need to develop a variety of responses
which are rooted in local dynamics, rather than borrow non-contextual solutions from
elsewhere.

There have been a variety of policy responses to the problem of urban solid waste in India,
especially over the past few years, yet sustainable solutions either of organic or inorganic
wasteremain untapped and unattended. All policy documents as well as legislation dealing with
urban solid waste mention or acknowledge recycling as one of the ways of diverting waste, but
they do so in a piece-meal manner and do not address the framework needed to enable this to
happen. Critical issues such as industry responsibility, a critical paradigm to enable sustainable
recycling and to catalyze waste reduction through, say better packing, have not been touched
upon.

Any new paradigm should include a cradle-to-grave approach with responsibility being shared
by many stakeholders, including product manufacturers, consumers and communities, the
recycling industry, trade, municipalities and the urban poor.

8. WHAT IS THE WASTE?

Consumption, linked to per capita income, has a strong relationship with waste generation. As
per capita income rises, more savings are spent on goods and services, especially when the
transition is from a low income to a middle-income level. Urbanization not only concentrates
waste, but also raises generation rates since rural consumers consume less than urban ones. India

125 
 
will probably see a rise in waste generation from less than 40,000 metric tonnes per year to over
125,000 metric tonnes by the year 2030 (Srishti, 2000). Technologies, which can process organic
wastes have to be a mainstay to any solution. The Supreme Court appointed the Burman
Committee (1999), which rightly recommended that composting should be carried out in each
municipality. Composting is probably the easiest and most appropriate technology to deal with a
majority of our waste, given its organic nature.

However, new and expensive technologies are being pushed to deal with our urban waste
problem, ignoring their environmental and social implications. It is particularly true in the case
of thermal treatment of waste using technologies such as gasification, incineration, pyrolysis or
pellatisation. Indian waste content does not provide enough fuel value (caloric value) for
profitable energy production (and is unlikely to do so soon). It needs the addition of auxiliary
fuel or energy. Such technologies put communities to risk and are opposed widely. For example,
the United States has not been able to install a new incinerator for the past five years, while costs
for burning garbage have escalated astronomically with rising environmental standards in
Europe.

Again, such measures go against the requirements of the Municipal Solid Waste Management
Rules 2000, which asks for source segregation of waste for cleaner composting and recycling.
The lessons of incinerating Indian urban waste do not seem to have been learnt, despite a
disastrous experience with a Dutch-funded incinerator in Delhi. It ran for just one week in 1984,
since the calorific value of the fuel was less than half of that the incinerator needed.

9. POLICY RESPONSES

At the national policy level, the ministry of environment and forests has recently legislated the
Municipal Waste Management and Handling Rules 2000. This law details the practices to be
followed by the various municipalities for managing urban waste. However, the response has
been segmented and far from satisfactory.

First, it does not address mechanisms which will be needed for promoting recycling, or waste
minimization. Secondly, there is no provision for any public participation, despite the fact that
the Rules have been an outcome of public pressure and the immense work done by non-
government organizations and community groups in this area. Other recent policy documents
include the Ministry of Urban Affairs’ Shukla Committee’s Report (January 2000) the Supreme
Court appointed Burman Committee’s Report (March 1999), and the Report of the National
Plastic Waste Management Task Force (August 1997).

But the present rules and regulations are inadequate both in terms of assessing environmental
impact of waste and its economic and social implications. For developing countries, recycling of
waste is the most economically viable option available both in terms of employment generation
for the urban poor with no skills and investment. Indirectly this also preserves the natural
resources going down the drains. Some local governments have taken initiatives to burn waste
through incineration or gasification for insignificant electricity generation at astronomical cost

126 
 
and with dangerous environmental impacts, and which will take away the livelihoods of
hundreds of thousands of the urban poor.

9.1 Narrowing the Existing Gaps

• Ideal and Reality

• Goals and Actions
• Lesser the Gaps – More the 3Rs and Closer to Sustainable Industrial Production and
Consumption (SI P&C)
• 3Rs and SI P&C may lead to a conceivable Sustainable World.

REFERENCES

CA Wentz - 1989 - McGraw-Hill Companies,Hazardous waste management

www.nswai.com

www.enviro-ware.com

http://www.iges.or.jp/en/ltp/pdf/activity08/13_khwaja.pdf

http://www.ibec.ie/ibec/buspolicies/buspoliciesdoclib3.nsf/9550530043f63b9a802573520040348
c/b213f5645aa169c780257399002df867/$FILE/EFFECTIVE%20WASTE%20MANAGEMENT
%20PDF%20Version.pdf

http://www.envfor.nic.in/divisions/ee/neac/guide_neac_0506.pdf

www.in.gov/legislative/iac/title329.html

127 
 
 MODELLING OF FLUID FLOW BY BOUNDARY ELEMENT
METHOD

Anirban Datta and Rayan Chatterjee

Department of Civil Engineering

Jadavpur University, Kolkata – 700 032.

ABSTRACT: In view of inevitability of numerical methods in solving fluid-flow problems, the

scope of boundary element method has been reviewed in the present paper. Being a boundary-
only method, boundary element computation saves precious computation time. Constant, linear
and quadratic elements have been chosen in the solution of two-dimensional potential flow
problems, which could be selectively used to model regular or irregular boundaries and
boundary conditions. MATLAB code makes the analysis further simplified. The results speak for
the efficacy of the method.

Keywords: Fluid flow, Numerical modeling, Boundary element method

1. INTRODUCTION

Numerical solution methods for modeling fluid-flow problems are of great importance in a
multitude of physical and engineering disciplines. When the fluid flow is large, usually the
variation of potentials between the neighboring points is small, which leads us to assume inviscid
fluid flow model to evaluate them. With complicated domain geometry and complicated
boundary conditions, it becomes inevitable to solve practical problems through numerical
techniques.

Finite difference method (FDM) or finite element method (FEM) being domain type methods of
analysis, calls for discretizing the entire domain into small meshes, creating a large input, huge
matrices, and ultimately requiring large computation time to attain an acceptable solution.

In comparison, the boundary element method (BEM) requires discretizing the boundary only,
which generates a smaller system matrix, and demands smaller computation time. The solution at
internal points can be done interactively and analytically at a later stage, after the boundary
solution is attained.

In the present paper BEM has been applied to solve an inviscid fluid flow problem whereby the
dimensionality of the problem reduces by unity so as to generate a smaller system matrix and
calling for less computation time. However, the system matrices are fully populated and could be
unsymmetrical, necessitating solution of full matrices.

128 
 
2. MATHEMATICAL FORMULATION:

In the present work, the inviscid 2D fluid flow through a rectangular conduit has been modeled.
Available data are the length (L) and width (B) of the channel, and the velocity potential
functions ( φ 1 and φ2 ) at its upstream and downstream ends respectively. In order to get a full
understanding of the Boundary Element Formulation a simplified problem has been presented,
such that the solutions are not dominated by complex physical effects. This should give a clear
view on the basic steps to be followed for the formulation of the BEM for modeling any arbitrary
channel shape.

Fig1. Illustration of the fluid flow model

2.1 Basic Governing Equation

The basic differential equation representing any inviscid fluid flow is the Laplace’s equation. It
can be written in two-dimensional form as follows [1]:
∂ 2φ ∂ 2φ (1)
∇ 2φ = 2
+ 2
= 0
∂x ∂y

Where ∇2 is the Laplacian operator, φ is the potential function (here, the velocity potential) and
x and y are the Cartesian coordinate axes.

2.2 Boundary Conditions

∂φ
At all points along the channel boundary, the normal flux is zero because the channel walls
∂n
are assumed impermeable. The value of the potential function φ at all points on the inflow and
outflow ends are φ 1 and φ 2 respectively.

2.3 Fundamental Solution

The fundamental solution of Laplace’s equation which is based on the three dimensional solution
of a concentrated potential or source at the point p can be easily verified as follows [1]:
1 ⎡ 1 ⎤
λ ( p, Q ) = ln ⎢ ⎥ (2)
2π ⎣ r ( p, Q) ⎦
Where r ( p , Q ) is the distance between p and Q, given by
r ( p, Q ) = (X p − X Q )2 + (Y p − YQ )2 (3)

2.4 The Boundary Integral Equation

The Boundary Integral Equation (BIE) that forms the starting point for the subsequent numerical
formulation, has the general form shown as follows (refer [3]):

129 
 
 +
∫ uq * d Γ = ∫ u * qd Γ (4)
i
Cu
Γ Γ

Here, ∫
Γ
denotes integration over the domain boundary Γ .The function C is a multiplying factor

used to convert the integral equation (4) to a truly ‘boundary only’ form, and can be obtained
indirectly by utilizing some simple physical conditions. This will be explained in the subsequent
articles.
∂φ
u and q respectively denote the velocity potential ( φ ) and flux ( ) at a point on the
∂n
boundary.
The functions u * and q* multiplying u and q respectively, are called the kernels and are defined as
follows:
∂λ ( P , Q )
q* =
∂n

∂λ ⎛ ∂r ⎞ ∂λ ⎡ ∂r ⎛ ∂x ⎞ ∂r ⎛ ∂y ⎞ ⎤
= ⎜ ⎟= ⎢ ⎜ ⎟+ ⎜ ⎟⎥
∂r ⎝ ∂n ⎠ ∂r ⎣ ∂x ⎝ ∂n ⎠ ∂y ⎝ ∂n ⎠ ⎦ (5)

Using equation (2) one can write,

∂λ ⎛ 1 ⎞
= −⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ (6)
∂r ⎝ 2πr 2 ⎠
The derivatives of the coordinates x and y with respect to the unit outward normal n are the
components of the outward normal in the x and y directions, n x and n y , as follows:
∂x ∂y
nx = ;ny = (7)
∂n ∂n
From simple geometrical considerations [3],

∂r ( P , Q ) x Q − X P ∂ r ( P , Q ) y Q − Y P
= ; = (8)
∂x r ( P, Q ) ∂y r ( P, Q )
Using equations (5), (6) and (7) in equation (5), the first kernel can be written as follows:

−1
q* = 2
[(xQ − X P )nx + ( yQ − YP )ny ] (9)
2πr (P, Q)
The second kernel u * is given by:
1 ⎡ 1 ⎤
u* = λ(P,Q) = ln⎢ ⎥ (10)
2π ⎣ r(P, Q) ⎦

It can be seen that Equation (4) It is an integral equation that relates the boundary variables of the
actual problem (here φ and ∂ φ ) to a fundamental solution that is applicable to any domain of any
∂n
shape. The fundamental solution (which yields the kernels) simply works out the ‘influence’ of a
concentrated potential at a given point P on any other point Q except when P coincides with Q
where the solution is ‘singular’.

130 
 
2.5 Numerical Implementation
 

The boundary of the domain is divided into N small segments, called boundary elements .These
elements can be straight lines, quadratic curves or cubic splines. Each element is defined by
some nodal points. It has been assumed that there are M nodal points on the boundary; each node
having two variables, φ and ∂ φ i.e. there are a total of 2M variables. Any problem with a unique
∂n
solution must have either φ or ∂φ prescribed on each nodal point. Therefore there are M
∂n
unknowns and M equations to solve the problem. It is first assumed that a potential is placed at
node 1. Using the fundamental solution, the potentials and potential gradients can be calculated
at every node from 1 to M. This yields the first linear equation using the BIE (4), i.e. row 1 of the
matrix. To produce the second linear equation, the load point is transferred to node 2 and
calculations repeated to find out the variables at the other nodes. This operation is repeated until
the potential is placed at the last node M, which will give the final Mth equation. Therefore M
equations and M unknowns are obtained, which will produce a unique solution. Thus, the
numerical form of BIE (4) can be written as a linear equation [1, 3]
N N
Cu i + ∑∫
j =1 Γ j
uq * d Γ = ∑ ∫ qu
j =1 Γ j
*
dΓ (11)

Here Γ j denotes the boundary of the ‘j’ th element. The potential (i.e. load point) is at the ‘i’ th
boundary node.
In this paper, the problem is solved and results compared using three types of elements for the
domain boundary:
1. Constant Potential elements (single noded).
2. Linear elements (two noded).
3. Quadratic isoparametric elements (three noded).

2.5.1 Solution using constant elements

Step 1-Boundary Discretization and assembling of equations

Sixteen equi-spaced node points are marked on the domain boundary. The numbering has been
done on the elements as shown below:

Fig2. Domain Discretization using constant elements

The values of u and q are assumed to be constant over each element and equal to the value at the
mid-element node (marked by the black spot). The value of C is 0.5.

131 
 
The u and q values can be taken out of the integrals, as they are constant over each element.
They will be called u j and q j for element ‘j’. Hence, equation (11) can be re-written as
N ⎛ ⎞
1 i N
2
( )
u + ∑ ∫ q * dΓ u j = ∑ ⎜ ∫ u * d Γ
⎜
( )⎟⎟q j (12)
j =1 Γ j
⎝
j =1 Γ j
⎠
Thus, two types of integrals q d Γ and u d Γ are to be carried out over the elements. These
∫ ∫
* *

Γj Γ j

integrals relate the ‘i’ th node where the fundamental solution is acting to any other ‘j’ th node.
Hence they are sometimes called ‘influence coefficients’. We call them H ij and G ij ,i.e.
∫ q dΓ
*
H ij =
Γj
(13)
& G ij =
Γj
∫ u*dΓ

Since it is assumed throughout that the fundamental solution is acting at the ‘i’th node, hence, for
a particular ‘i’ point one can write,
N N

∑ ∑G q
1 i
u + H ij u j = ij
j
(14)
2
j =1 j =1

If it is now assumed that the position of ‘i’ can also vary from 1 to N, i.e. the fundamental
solution is applied at each node successively, one obtains a system of N equations resulting from
applying equation (20) to each boundary point in turn.
Let
H ij = H ij (When i ≠ j )
1
and = H ij + (When i = j ) (15)
2
Using this notation Equation (14) can be written as:
N N

∑H
j =1
ij
u = ∑ G ij q j
j

j =1

(16)
This set of equations can be expressed in matrix form
HU = GQ (17)

Where H and G are two N×N matrices and U, Q are vectors of length N .

Integrals like G ij and H ij in the above expressions can be calculated over each element using
numerical integration formula (such as Gauss quadrature rules) for the case i ≠ j ..

Now, singularity arises for the elements i = j. , i.e. for the diagonal terms of the matrices H & G.
For constant elements, the H ii terms are identically zero, as the normal n and the element
coordinate are always perpendicular to each other. The G ii terms are obtained from the
expression:
1 ⎛ l ⎞⎡ ⎛ 1 ⎞ ⎤
G ii = ⎜ ⎟ ⎢ln ⎜ ⎟ + 1⎥ (20)
π ⎝ 2 ⎠⎣ ⎝ l / 2 ⎠⎦
Here l is the corresponding element length.

132 
 
Step 2- Treatment
T of
o boundaryy conditionss and rearraanging equaations

From thee boundary conditions,

c N values of u and N2 vaalues of q aree known (N1+N2=N). Hence
N1 H
there aree only N un nknowns inn the system m of equatioons (23). To introducee these bounndary
conditionns into equattion (23), thhe system haas to be rearrranged by moving
m coluumns of H and
a G
from onee side to the other.
o Once all unknownns are passedd to the left-hhand side onne can write
AX = F (21)
Where X is a vectorr of unknow wn u’s and q’s
q boundaryy values. F is found byy multiplyinng the
corresponnding colummns by the knnown valuess of u’s or q’s.

It can be noticed th hat the unkknowns are a mixture of o potential and derivaative, rather than
potential only, as in
n case of Fiinite Elemennts. This ‘m mixed’ naturre of the Booundary Eleement
Formulattion gives it an added addvantage oveer Finite Elem
ments.

2.5.2 Sollution using

g two noded linear elem
ments

Step 1- Boundary
B Discretizatio
D on and element propertties:
For lineaar elements too,
t the nummber of elements is 16. But
B here, num
mbering has been done on
o the
nodes as shown below w:

Fig3. Discretizatiion using lin

near elemen
nts

The goveerning Boundary Integraal Equation (11)

( is re-wriitten for connvenience:
N N
C iu i + ∑ ∫ uq dΓ = ∑ ∫ qu dΓ
j =1 Γ j
*

j =1 Γ j
*

The bounndary is disccretization is similar to constant eleements. How wever, insteaad of assum ming a
constant potential an
nd flux for eaach element, it is now assumed
a thatt there is a liinear variation of
those twoo parameterss across eachh element, ass shown in thhe figure bellow:

F
Fig4. Linearr element deefinitions

θ
The valuue of the paarameter C i = , where θ is the internal angle of the cornner in radianns, as
2π
shown beelow:

133 
 
 Fig5. Elem
ment interseection

The valuues of u and q at any poinnt on an elem ment can be defined in teerms of theirr nodal values u1
and u 2 and two linearr interpolatioon functions φ 1 .and φ 2
⎡ u1 ⎤
u (ξ ) = φ1u 1 + φ 2 u 2 = [φ1φ 2 ] ⎢ 2 ⎥ (22)
⎣⎢ u ⎦⎥
⎡ q1 ⎤
q (ξ ) = φ1 q 1 + φ 2 q 2 = [φ1φ 2 ] ⎢ 2 ⎥ (23)
⎣⎢ q ⎦⎥
Where ξ is the dimeensionless loocal coordinaate varying from -1 to +1
+ and the two
t interpollation
functionss are:
1
φ1 = (1 − ξ )
2
(24)
1
φ2 = (1 + ξ )
2
On the leeft hand sidee, the integraals over an ellement ‘j’ caan be writtenn as:
⎡ u1 ⎤
∫
Γ
uq * d Γ =
∫ [φ 1
Γ
φ 2 ]q * d Γ ⎢ 2⎥
⎣⎢ u ⎦⎥
(25)
j j

∫ [h ]
⎡ u1 ⎤
= 1
ij
h2ij ⎢ 2 ⎥
Γj ⎣⎢u ⎦⎥

Thus, forr an element ‘j’ we have two terms on

o the left haand side:
∫φ q
*
h1 ij = 1 dΓ
Γj
and (26)
h 2 ij =
∫
Γj
φ 2 q *dΓ

Similarlyy, the integraals on the rigght hand sidee are:

∫ [g ]
⎡ q1 ⎤ ⎡ q1 ⎤
∫ qu ∫ [φ φ 2 ]u * d Γ ⎢ (27)
*
dΓ = 1 2⎥
= 1
ij
g 2 ij ⎢ 2 ⎥
⎢⎣ q ⎥⎦ ⎢⎣ q ⎥⎦
Γj Γj Γj

Where,
∫φ
ij *
g 1 = 1 u d Γ

and Γ j
(28)
∫
*
g 2
ij
= φ 2 u d Γ
Γ j

134 
 
Step 2: Assembling of equations:

When the boundary domain is discretized into linear elements, node 2 of the ‘j’th element is the
same as node 1 of the ‘j+1’th element. Now, since the potential is unique at any point on the
boundary, therefore, u 2 of element ‘j’ is the same as u1 of element ‘j+1’. But this isn’t always true
for the fluxes due to two reasons:
1. In case of corner points the normal to the boundary is not unique (refer to figure 6 where
the normals to the elements ‘j’ and ‘j+1’ are different at the connecting node).
2. In case the flux prescribed along a smooth boundary presents discontinuities at certain
particular points.

Considering these facts, the fluxes can be arranged in a 2N array.

Substituting equations (31) and (33) for all ‘j’ elements into the Boundary Integral Equation (17)
we have for node ‘i’,

⎡ u1 ⎤ ⎡ q1 ⎤
⎢ 2⎥ ⎢ 2 ⎥
⎢u ⎥ ⎢ q ⎥
[
c i u i + H i1 H i 2 ...... . . H iN ]
⎢. ⎥
⎢ ⎥ = G i1 [ G i2 . G i2 N ]
⎢ . ⎥
⎢ ⎥ (29)
⎢. ⎥ ⎢ . ⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ . ⎥
⎢. ⎥ ⎢ 2N ⎥
⎣⎢ u ⎦⎥ ⎣⎢ q ⎦⎥
N

Where H ij is equal to the h1ij term of element ‘j’ plus the h2ij −1 term of element ‘j-1’. The equation
(35) represents the assembled equation for node ‘i’. It can be written as follows:

N 2N
ciu i + ∑H
j =1
ij
u j
= ∑G j =1
ij
q j
(30)

This can be written, just like equation (22) as:

N 2N

∑j =1
H iju j = ∑G q
j =1
ij j (31)

And the whole set of matrix becomes

HU = GQ (32)

This is just like equation (17) with the only difference that G is now an NX2N rectangular
matrix.

Step 3-Treatment of singular terms:

For the elements i = j, the H ii terms are obtained by simply summing up the off-diagonal terms
of that row (since all the singular terms appear on the diagonal of the H matrix); i.e.
N
H ii = − ∑H j =1
ij
(For j ≠ i ) (33)

135 
 
To evaluuate the singu
ular terms off the G matrrix, instead of
o using (28)), the followiing two form
mulae
are used for computinng the g1 & g2 terms of the
ij ij
t respectivve elements:
l ⎡3 ⎤
g1ij = − ln( l ) ⎥ (34)
2 ⎢⎣ 2 ⎦

l ⎡1 ⎤
and g 2 ij = − ln( l ) ⎥ (ffor i = j )
2 ⎢⎣ 2 ⎦
Step 4- Treatment
T of
o boundaryy conditionss and rearraanging of eq quations:
W
When the boundary is smooth at the t node, thhe fluxes beefore and affter the nodde are
assumed equal unlesss they are prrescribed diffferent.
But whenn the node iss a corner pooint, four diff
fferent cases may occur:
1) Known
K valuees: fluxes beffore and afteer the node
Unknownn value: poteential.
2) Known
K valuees: potential and flux beffore the cornner.
Unknownn value: flux x after the coorner.
3) Known
K valuees: potential and flux afteer the cornerr.
U
Unknown vaalue: flux beffore the cornner.
4) Known
K valuees: potential
U
Unknown vaalue: flux beffore and afteer the cornerr.
In cases 1,2 and 3 above, therre is only one o unknow wn per nodee, and the rearrangeme
r nt of
equationss can be donne similar to the one for constant
c elemments.
In case 4,
4 the fluxes at both sidess of the nodee have to be assumed eqqual in orderr to rearrangee and
solve thee system of equations.
e
In the preesent problemm, for the coorner points,, only cases 2 or 3 are enncountered.

2.5.3 Solution
S using three nooded quadraatic isoparam
metric elem
ments:
This method is the most
m convenient for arbitrrary geometrries.

Boundary discretization
Step 1-B n and Elem ment propertties:
Thee boundary discretization
d n is similar to
t that for linnear elementts (figure 3)..

Fig6. A tyypical quad

dratic isoparrametric eleement

Howeverr, in this caase, three consecutive nodes (startting from noden 1) are connected by a
quadraticc curve (show
wn in figure 3 above). Thus,
T there arre 8 elementts, each having a central node
and two connecting
c end-nodes.
e

For eachh element, thhe variation of geometryy and variabbles (u and q) are expreessed in term
ms of
their noddal values as follows:

136 
 
 x ( ξ ) = φ 1 x (1 ) + φ 2 x ( 2 ) + φ 3 x ( 3 ) .
(35)
y ( ξ ) = φ 1 y (1 ) + φ 2 y ( 2 ) + φ 3 y ( 3 ) .

And
u(ξ ) = φ1u(1) + φ2u(2) + φ3u(3) .
(36)
q(ξ ) = φ1q(1) + φ2q(2) + φ3q(3).
Where φ 1 , φ 2 and φ 3 are quadratic interpolation functions given by:
1
φ1 = ξ (ξ − 1)
2
1
φ2 = ξ (ξ − 1) (37)
2
1
φ3 = ξ (ξ − 1)
2
Here ξ denotes the dimensionless local coordinate system within an element. The integrals along
any ‘j’ th element are similar to those computed for a linear element, but there are now three
nodal unknowns and the integration requires the use of a Jacobian. Let’s consider, for instance,
an integral for the H type terms,
⎡ u (1) ⎤
⎢ ⎥
∫
Γj
u (ξ ) q * dΓ =
∫ [φ1
Γj
φ 2 φ 3 ]q * dΓ ⎢u ( 2) ⎥
⎢u ⎥
⎣ (3) ⎦

⎡ u(1) ⎤
= [
h1ij h2ij h3ij ]
⎢ ⎥
⎢ u( 2 ) ⎥ (38)
⎢u ⎥
⎣ (3) ⎦
Where,
∫φ q
*
h1 ij = 1 dΓ
Γj

∫φ (39)
*
h2 ij
= 2q dΓ
Γj

∫φ
*
h 3 ij = 3q dΓ
Γj

The evaluation of these integrals requires the use of a Jacobian as the φi functions expressed in
terms of ξ , but the integrals are functions of Γ . For a quadratic curve shown in Figure (7), the
transformation is of the form:

⎛ 2 2 ⎞
⎜ ⎛ dx ⎞ ⎛ dy ⎞ ⎟ (40)
dΓ = ⎜ ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ + ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ ⎟dξ = J dξ
⎜ ⎝ dξ ⎠ ⎝ dξ ⎠ ⎟
⎝ ⎠

Where J is the Jacobian, which can be obtained from the expression:

137 
 
 ⎛ 2 2⎞
⎜ ⎛ dx ⎞ ⎛ dy ⎞ ⎟
J = ⎜ ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ + ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ ⎟dξ
⎜ ⎝ dξ ⎠ ⎝ dξ ⎠ ⎟
⎝ ⎠ (41)
⎛ 2 2⎞
⎜ ⎛ dφ dφ dφ ⎞ ⎛ dφ dφ dφ ⎞ ⎟
= ⎜ ⎜⎜ x(1) 1 + x( 2) 2 + x3 3 ⎟⎟ + ⎜⎜ y(1) 1 + y( 2) 2 + y(3) 3 ⎟⎟ ⎟dξ
⎜ ⎝ dξ dξ dξ ⎠ ⎝ dξ dξ dξ ⎠ ⎟
⎝ ⎠
Hence one can write,
Node ( 3 )
h k ij =
∫
Γj
φ k (ξ ) q * d Γ =
∫φ
Node (1 )
k (ξ ) q * J d ξ ( k = 1, 2 , 3 ) (42)

The integrals for the G type terms can be evaluated in a similar manner.

Step 2- Assembling of equations

The potential at a node is unique. So, the H matrix is a 2N X 2N matrix, where 2N = total
number of nodes (N being the total number of elements as usual). However, allowing for the flux
at both sides of the nodes connecting two elements to be different, the G matrix is a 2N X 3N
matrix.

Step 3-Treatment of singular terms

Singularity arises when the collocation point (i) is one of the nodes of an element. In that case,
the singular terms for H matrix are of the form:
1
1
Lt
η →0 ∫ f (η ) η dη ,
0
This requires specialist treatment. However, they appear in the diagonal terms only and can be
calculated by summing up the off-diagonal coefficients of that row, i.e.
N2
H ii = − ∑H
j =1
ij
; (i = 1,2,......N1) (43)

Where N1= total number of rows, N2 = total number of columns.

For the singular G-type terms, three cases are considered depending on the position of the
collocation point, i.e. node (1), (2) or (3).

(i) Collocation point is at node (1)

A new change of variables from ξ to η is carried out, i.e.

1+ ξ
η= (44)
2
The integral then gives two parts, one with a singular term ln( 1 )
η
and the other with no
singularity. The second term is integrated using a standard 10 point Gauss Quadrature, whereas
the first one is evaluated using a special formula of the type:

138 
 
 1 n

∑w
1
∫
0
f (η ) ln
η
dη ≅
i =1
i f (η i ) (45)

In this paper, a ten point logarithmic Gauss Quadrature has been used.

(ii)Collocation point is at node (2)

The integral is divided into two parts in order to integrate the singularities that appear on both
sides of the nodes:
(3) (2) (3)

∫ φu * J d ξ =
∫ φu * J d ξ +
∫ φu (46)
*
g = J dξ
(1) (1) (2)

For the first part, the change of variable is η = −ξ and for the second part, the change of variable is
η = ξ . Then, both are integrated using 10-point Logarithmic Gauss Quadrature as mentioned in
Equation (51).

(iii)Collocation point is at node (3)

This case is similar to the first one with the logarithmic integration variable being
1−ξ
η= (47)
2

Step 4- Treatment of boundary conditions and rearranging of equations:

Since the flux at both sides of a node connecting two elements may be different, three cases arise
for a corner node, which is the same as that encountered in case of linear elements. Thus, the
treatment of corner nodes and rearrangement of equations is the same as for linear elements.

3. RESULTS

In the calculations, the values of the different parameters are as follows:

Length of the conduit (L) = 6m.
Width of the conduit (B) = 2m.
Velocity potential at the upstream end ( φ1 ) = 0.
Velocity potential at the downstream end ( φ 2 ) = 300.

3.1 Analytical Results

For our particular problem, the analytical solution is purely intuitive. Assuming an inviscid flow,
the potential gradient across the length of the conduit is linear. So, the velocity potential at any
point along the length is simply a linear function of its distance from the upstream end. Also, the
flow volume (flux) at all points along the length is constant and equal to the slope of the potential
gradient line.

139 
 
3.2 Numerical Results

The computation has been done in MATLAB.

The channel boundary has been discretized into 16 nodes.

3.2.1 Constant elements

Refer to figure 2.The value of the normal flux (i.e. q) is 0 for elements
1,2,3,4,5,6,9,10,11,12,13,14. The value of potential function (i.e. u) is equal to 0 for elements 7
and 8; and 300 for elements 15 and 16.
With these boundary conditions, the values of potentials and fluxes at the various elements have
been obtained as:
Table-1: Results: Using Constant Elements
Element Potential Flux % Error
1 276.502 -51.6796 3.3592
2 225.9531 -51.6796 3.3592
3 175.3535 0 0
4 124.7198 0 0
5 74.1122 0 0
6 23.5057 0 0
7 0 0 0
8 0 0 0
9 23.5057 0 0
10 74.1122 0 0
11 124.7198 0 0
12 175.3535 0 0
13 225.9531 0 0
14 276.5023 0 0
15 300 51.6796 3.3592
16 300 51.6796 3.3592

3.2.2 Linear elements

Refer to figure 3.The values of potential are 0 at nodes 7, 8, 9, and 300 at nodes 1, 15, 16.
The values of fluxes are 0 after the corner nodes 1 and 9, before nodes 7 and 15; and both before
and after nodes 2,3,4,5,6,10,11,12,13,14.
With these boundary conditions, the values of potentials and fluxes at various nodes are obtained
to be:
Table-2: Results: Using Linear Elements
Node Potential Flux before node % Error Flux after node % Error
1 300 50.1664 0.3328 0 0
2 251.2543 0 0 0 0
3 199.9905 0 0 0 0
4 149.6582 0 0 0 0
5 99.6081 0 0 0 0
6 49.6821 0 0 0 0
7 0 0 0 -50.1664 0.3328
8 0 -50.2938 0.5876 -50.2938 0.5876
9 0 -50.1664 0.3328 0 0
10 49.6821 0 0 0 0
11 99.6081 0 0 0 0
12 149.6582 0 0 0 0
13 199.9905 0 0 0 0
14 251.2543 0 0 0 0
15 300 0 0 50.1664 0.3328
16 300 50.2938 0.5876 50.2938 0.5876

140 
 
3.2.3 Quadratic elements

The selection of node points and enforcement of boundary conditions are same as that for linear
elements as mentioned in the previous article. The results are as follows:

Table-3: Results Using Quadratic Elements

Node Potential Flux before node % Error Flux after node % Error
1 300 50 0 0 0
2 250 0 0 0 0
3 200 0 0 0 0
4 150 0 0 0 0
5 100 0 0 0 0
6 50 0 0 0 0
7 0 0 0 -50 0
8 0 -50 0 -50 0
9 0 -50 0 0 0
10 50 0 0 0 0
11 100 0 0 0 0
12 150 0 0 0 0
13 200 0 0 0 0
14 250 0 0 0 0
15 300 0 0 50 0
16 300 50 0 50 0

4. DISCUSSION ON THE RESULTS

The results obtained for Quadratic elements are exactly the same as the analytical solution. Thus
it is seen that Isoparametric Quadratic elements provide the best compromise between accuracy
and efficiency.

By increasing element numbers in constant elements, betterment of the solution can be achieved.
But in case of quadratic isoparametric elements, since the element formulation is much more
accurate, so, much less numbers of elements are required to attain an accurate solution. In fact,
this is the essence behind the Boundary Element Formulation with Higher order elements, i.e.
more accuracy using less number of elements.

5. CONCLUSION

The numerical solutions for potentials and fluxes have been provided for the boundary points
only. It is also possible to calculate the potentials and fluxes at any interior point within the
solution domain by this method. Moreover, the problem dealt here is a very simple one, where
Quadratic elements are sufficient to provide an exact solution. For more complex channel
shapes, the Boundary Element solution may have to be done using higher order elements like
four noded cubic elements, in order to obtain a solution within tolerance limits.

REFERENCES

Recent innovations in BEM. Carlos A. Brebbia.

An introduction to Boundary element Techniques- Prem K. Kythe.
Boundary Element Techniques in engineering- C.A. Brebbia, Stephen Walker.
141 
 
 MODEL FOR PREDICTION OF PRESSURE DROP IN SLURRY
TRANSPORT PIPELINE
Chandra Prakash Shukla, Parikshit Verma and Dr. S.K. Gupta
Department of Civil Engineering
Institute of Technology, BHU, Varanasi.

ABSTRACT: Thermal power constitutes about half the world’s electricity generation and hence
millions tones of fly ash and bottom ash are formed as by products which must be carried to the
sites, where it can be utilized in brick manufacturing. Transportation can be done in various
ways like through trucks , railways etc. but most efficient ,environment friendly and economical
way is to transport it through pipelines, which is common in developed countries [Table 1]
.These pipelines are used to transport particulate materials like mineral ores, fly ash, coal,
tailings etc over long and short distances.
The present paper reviews the two layer model given by K.C. Wilson for prediction of pressure
drop for slurry pipelines and its modified versions by various researchers across the globe.

Keywords: Slurry transport, Two Layer Model, Pressure Drop

1. INTRODUCTION
Slurry is the mixture of solid particles and a liquid usually water. The range of particle size
varies from greater than four 4 inches in equivalent diameter to less than one thousandth of an
inch. When solid particles in liquid are small and finely grounded, the mixture is called fine
slurry, and when larger, it is called coarse slurry. This method of slurry transport is common in
mining industry to transport mine wastes and tailings, using water as fluid. The sand, gravel or
soil dredged from a river is often pumped with water to a construction site for a distance of up to
few miles. E.g. Black Mesa pipeline (Figure 1, 2)
 
1.1 History of Slurry Transport
The cost of transportation of raw materials from the source to market has always been significant
in their market price. In a relatively short period of time, the large scale transportation of solids
through pipeline has become from being a point of debate to a viable alternative to the
conventional transport modes.

142 
 
 Fig. 1: Phhotographic view of Blaack Mesa pippeline

Fig. 2: Satellite vieew of Black Mesa pipelline

143 
 
 Table 1: Different Slurry pipelines

Material
Name transported Length Pipe Size Capacity Commission

Consolidation Coal 108 10 1.3 1957

Black Mesa Coal 273 18 4.8 1970

ETSI Coal 1036 38 25 1979

Alton Coal 180 24 10 1981

Bougainville 17 6 1.0 1972

Copper
West Iranian Concentrate 69 4 0.3 1972

Copper
Pinto Valley Concentrate 11 4 0.4 1974

Rugby Limestone 57 10 1.7 1964

Calaveras Limestone 17 7 1.5 1971

 
The concentrate of ore is mixed with water and then pumped over a long distance. At the end of
the pipeline, the material is separated from the slurry in a filter press to remove water. Water is
subjected to a waste treatment before disposal. Different solids like coal, oil sands, phosphate
concentrates, limestone, copper, iron, zinc, nickel as well as their ores can be transported by this
method. Benefits of slurry transportation over other methods are enumerated as following:-

• The slurry pipeline is a superior alternative for large shipments of coal over distances greater
than 1000 miles. Hence it is more cost effective.

• The consumption of water by the slurry pipeline is minimal. The small cost of water loss is
more than compensated by gains in lower transport costs and in jobs at the slurry preparation
facilities.

• Rail transport of coal requires no water, but the direct environmental impacts are appreciable.

• Slurry pipes are buried in the earth hence there are only few surface structures in slurry
transport system which is aesthetically better. Hence slurry pipes are more land effective.

• Slurry transport has got no repercussions like noise pollution and dust pollution.

144 
 
2. MODELS FOR PRESSURE DROP PREDICTION

Design of slurry pipeline is a very complex process as it involves simultaneous optimization of

various hydraulic parameters like pressure drop, solid distribution, mixture velocity profile and
wear. Researchers trying to develop optimized design procedures are generating experimental
data using accelerated bench scale and pilot plant test loops to test their design procedures.
Studies in first half of the 20th century (Blatch, 1906 ; Hanooq , 1929) were primarily
experimental and showed that pressure drop increases with increase in solid concentration and
mixture behaves as homogeneous fluid at higher velocities. The most exhaustive work done to
understand the frictionless losses in solid liquid flow has been that of Durand & Condolis
(1952a,b) and subsequently several correlations for pressure drop have been proposed Govier &
Aziz (1972) based on experimental data on equi-sized and narrow size range particles.

2.1 Model for Pressure Drop Prediction and Concentration Distribution by Wilson &
Shook (1988)

According to this model the total solids present are divided in to two groups corresponding to
fine and coarse particles. The particles having diameter smaller than dcf are treated as ultrafine
fraction. The value of dcf depends upon parameters like specific gravity, shape of the particles,
carrier fluid viscosity etc. But for the sake of simplicity, some investigators have used a fixed
value of dcf. As long as settling velocity is below a threshold limit, all the particles are supposed
to be homogeneously distributed across the pipe cross section. In the present model, criteria
based on settling velocity and particle reynolds number have been used. The magnitude of dcf is
determined by treating it as particle size corresponding to settling Reynolds number of 0.1 and is
calculated using the expression

dcf = [1.8(µ1/ρ1)2/(g(Ss-1)]1/3 …(1)

Ss =ρs/ρ1 …(2)

In this model, it’s assumed that these ultrafine particles combine with carrier fluid to form a new
carrier fluid of changed density (ρf) and viscosity. The modified density ρf of new carrier fluid is
given by

ρf = ρ1(1-Cf)+ ρsCf/(1-Ct+Cf) 3 …(3)

The viscosity µf is evaluated from correlation

µf = µ1(1+2.5Cf+10.05Cf2+0.00273exp(16.6Cf)) …(4)

Now coarse particles are further assumed to be divided in to two separate compositions (Figure
3). Particles suspended by fluid forces are distributed uniformly with concentration C1. In
addition to these particles, the lower layer contains particles whose immersed weight is
transmitted to the pipe wall by particle-particle interaction and are identified as contact load

145 
 
particles whose concentration is C2. If Cc is the area average concentration of contact load
particles (C2) then overall concentration of coarse particles Cr is

Cr = Cc+C1 …(5)

And also Cc and C2 are related as

C2A2 = CcA …(6)

Fig. 3: Pipe cross-section, concentration and velocity profiles (courtesy: Verma, A.K., Study of
high concentration fly ash slurry disposal through pipeline, Phd. Thesis, June 2004, IIT Delhi) 

The fraction of total (dcf) particles and therefore the concentration in the lower layer is given by

Clim = C1+C2 …(7)

A fraction of total (dcf) particles not supported by fluid forces (Cc=Cr) is calculated by the
empirical expression

Cc/Cr = exp [-0.0184(V/Vo)] …(8)

Here V0 is the settling velocity. And in the present model, settling velocity corresponding to the
median diameter (d50) is used. The value of Clim in the proposed model is calculated from
empirical equation developed based on wide database and is expressed as,

(Cmax-Clim)/(Cmax-Cr) = 0.074(V/Vo)0.44(1-Cr)0.187 …(9)

Here Cmax is taken as static settled concentration of solids. The mixture densities in the upper and
lower layers are calculated by

ρ1 = ρf(1-C1)+ ρsC1 …(10)

146 
 
 ρ2f = ρf(1-Clim)+ ρsC1/(1-Clim+C1) …(11)

The force and mass balance equations come out to be

iρ1g = (τ1s1+ τ12s12)/A1 …(12)

iρ1g = (τ2s2-τ12s12)/A2 …(13)

Here the sign τ12 is based on the assumption that V1 is greater than V2f . τ is expressed in terms
of the fanning friction factor f1 as

τ1 = 0.5f1V1|V1|ρ1 …(14)
Where,
f1 = f (k/D, ρ1VD/µf) …(15)

The force τ2s2 results from fluid-like resistance to the flow of a mixture of density ρ2f and
coulomb friction associated with contact load is given by

τ2s2 = [(0.5f1V2|V2|ρ2fs2) + ((0.5gD2 (ρs-ρf) C2 (1-Clim) X (Sinβ-βCosβ)ηs/(1-C2)))]

…(16)

The interfacial stress τ12 is calculated from the velocity difference (V1-V2), the density of the
upper layer, and a fanning friction factor f12 as

τ 12 = 0.5f12(V1-V2)|V1-V2|ρ1 …(17)

The value of f12 calculated using rough boundary approximation is expressed as

f12 = (1+2Y)/[4log10(D/d12)+3.36]2 …(18)

where,
Y = 5+1.86log10(d12/D) …(19)

for d12/D>0.002, otherwise Y=0.0

Here, d12/D>0.002, so Y=0.0

Here, d12 is the particle diameter at the hypothetical interface. Having derived the equations for
the force balance, the volumetric balance can be written by neglecting the slip between the
phases as

147 
 
 AV = A1V1+A2V2 …(20)

The flux of ultrafine micron-size particles is calculated from the expression

Ff = (Cf(1-Ct)A1V1+(1-Clim)A2V2)/(1-Cr) …(21)

The total delivered flow rate of the solids is calculated as

CvAV = C1AV+C2A2V2+Ff …(22)

2.2 Computational Procedure for Pressure Drop Prediction

2.2.1 Input parameters

In prediction of pressure drop, we require the following input parameters

Efflux concentration of solids (Cv)
Velocity of flow (V)
Diameter of the pipe (D)
Static settled concentration of solids (Cmax)
Particle size distribution of solids (PSD)
Density of solids (ρs)
Viscosity of the carriers fluid (µL)
Density of the carrier fluid (ρL)
Pressure drop flow rate data with water
Coefficient of friction between the solid particles and the pipe wall (ήs)

For a given diameter of pipe, we find all above data experimentally.

2.2.2 Steps in computation

1. Roughness of pipe of pipe (k) is determined by using pressure drop-flow data with water.
2. In-situ concentration (Ct) is assumed initially. The assumed value is taken slightly higher
than efflux concentration. Particle size corresponding to settling Reynolds number i.e. 0.1
(dcf) is calculated from the knowledge particle density and liquid viscosity.
3. Fraction of fines (Cf) is determined from the knowledge of Particle Size Distribution and in
situ concentration (Ct) using the cut off size (dcf), ρf is calculated and µf is obtained from
measurements or estimated from the available models.
4. Settling velocity is calculated using standard correlation (Grovier & Aziz 1972) with d50 used
for particle size effect. In the standard correlation ρf and µf are used as liquid density and
viscosity respectively.
5. Since Ct = Cf + Cr , hence Cr is found out and Clim and Cc/Cr are also found out using
equations.
6. Calculate C1 and C2 respectively. These values are used to calculate ρ and ρ2f respectively.
7. Estimate angle β knowing A2, which is used to define the lower layer.

148 
 
8. Two force balance equations and total volume flow equations are then used to calculate I, V1,
V2. The stresses required are estimated.
9. The delivered concentration Cv is calculated. If this value doesn’t agree with the actual
measured value of Cv, iterations are carried out with modified values of Cv until satisfactory
results is obtained.
10. The converged value of pressure drop is finally obtained.

2.3 Output Parameters

The output from the computer algorithm developed is pressure drop and in-situ concentration for
specified efflux concentration.

3. RESULT AND DISCUSSION

Table 2 shows the comparison of predicted values of pressure drop got by the computer
algorithm developed and the actual values of pressure drop from experiments.

Table 2: Comparison of Experimental and predicted values of pressure drop

Predicted Value of Experimental

Flow Velocity(V) Efflux
pressure drop Value of pressure
(m/s) Concentration(Cweff)
(mwc/100m) drop (mwc/100m)
9.8% 7.94 9.84
1.78 20.4% 9.48 12.21
33.9% 12.24 15.31
9.8% 13.30 13.22
2.67 20.4% 14.17 16.16
33.9% 15.60 18.61
9.8% 22.24 19.82
3.56 20.4% 22.80 23.00
33.9% 23.09 25.95

Hence from above table it is clear that our predicted values are close to the experimental values
given by Kumar et. al (2008).

NOMENCLATURE

A: area of cross section of pipe (m2)

A1: area of flow in the upper portion of the pipe used in two-layer model (m2)
A2: area of flow in the lower portion of the pipe used in two-layer model (m2)
C: concentration by volume (%)
C : local concentration by volume (%)
C1: concentration of suspended solids (%)
C2: concentration of contact load particles (%)
Cc: cross-sectional average of concentration C2 (%)

149 
 
Cd: drag coefficient
Cf : concentration of fine particles (%)
Cj : concentration of jth size fraction (%)
Clim : concentration at the bottom of the pipe used in two-layer model (%)
Cmax: static settled concentration (%)
Cr : concentration of coarse particles (%)
Ct : in situ concentration of solid particles (%)
Cv : concentration by volume (%)
Cw : local concentration by weight (%)
Cweff : efflux concentration by weight(%)
D: diameter of the pipe (m)
d: particle size (m)
d50 : median particle size (m)
dcf : maximum particle size corresponding to fine particles in the modified two layer model
(m)
f1 : Fanning’s friction factor
g: acceleration due to gravity (m2/s)
i: hydraulic gradient (mwc/m)
ks : roughness of the pipe surface (m)
ks : elative roughness of the pipe surface
S1 : perimeter of the pipe corresponding to upper layer in the two-layer model (m)
S12 : perimeter of the interfacial layer (m)
S2 : perimeter of the pipe corresponding to lower layer in the two-layer model (m)
Ss: specific gravity of solids
V: local flow velocity (m/s)
V0 : settling velocity (m/s)

GREEK LETTERS

τ12 : interfacial stress

ρs : density of solid particles
ρ1 : mixture density in upper region
ρf : carrier fluid density
ρ2f : mixture density in lower region
μf : carrier fluid viscosity
β: angle subtended by lower region at centre of pipeline (radian)
π: constant (3.14)

REFERENCES
Ahmed, M. (1991), Investigation of the flow of multi-sized slurries in straight pipe and pipe
bends. Ph.D. diss., Applied Mechanics Department, I.I.T., Delhi.

Blatch, N. S. (1906), Discussion: Water filtration at Washington D.C. Trans. Am. Soc. Civ. Eng.
57: 400–408.

150 
 
Doron, P., D. Granica, & D. Barnea. (1987), Slurry flow in horizontal pipes—Experimental and
modeling. Int. J. Multiphase Flow 13 (4): 535–547.

Durand, R. & E. Condolios. (1952a), The hydraulic transport of coal and solid materials in pipes.
Paper IV, presented at the Colloquium on the Hydraulic Transport of Coal, held
by the National Coal Board, London.

Durand, R. & E. Condolios. (1952b), Experimental study on conveying solids in pipes. In

Transport Hydraulique et De´cantation Des mate´riaux Solides: 2emes Journe´es de l’
Hydraulique. Grenoble: La Houille blanche. p. 29.

Gillies, R. G., W. H. W. Hushand, & M. H. Small. (1985), A study of flow conditions arising in
horizontal coarse slurry pipeline practice, Phase 1; Report R832-2-C-85. Saskatoon,

Gillies, R. G., C. A. Shook, & K. C. Wilson. (1991), An improved two layer model for horizontal
Govier, G. W. & K. Aziz. (1972), The Flow of Complex Mixtures in Pipes. New York: Van
Nostrand Reinhold.

Govindan, S. & S. K. Ghosh. (1988), Evaluation of two layer model for sand slurry
transportation in pipelines. Paper presented at International Symposium on Hydraulic
Transportation of Coal and Other Minerals, Bhubaneshwar, India.

Hanooq, C. (1929), Experimental study of loss of head in a closed pipe conveying clay
slurry.Trans. Am. Soc. Mech. Eng. 51 (8): .

Kaushal, D. R. (1995), Prediction of particle distribution in the flow of multi-sized particulate

slurries through closed ducts and open channels. Ph.D. diss., Applied Mechanics Department,
I.I.T., Delhi.

Kumar, U., R. Mishra, S. N. Singh, & V. Seshadri. (2003), Effect of particle gradation on flow
characteristics of ash disposal systems. Int. J. Powder Technol. 132: 39–51.

Kumar, U., R. , S. N. Singh, & V. Seshadri (2008), Prediction of flow characteristics of bimodal
slurry in horizontal pipe flow. Particulate Science and Technology , 26: 361-379.

Longwell, P. A. 1977. Mechanics of Fluid Flow. New York: McGraw Hill.

Wilson, K. C. (1976), A unified physically based analysis of solid-liquid pipeline flow. In

Proceedings of Hydrotransport 4. Cranfield, Bedford, England: BHRA Fluid Engineering.
Paper A1, pp. 1–16.

Wilson, K. C. (1988), Algorithm for coarse-particle transport in horizontal and inclined

pipelines. Paper presented at International Symposium on Hydraulic Transportation of Coal and
Other Minerals, Bhubaneshwar, India.

151 
 
 BANDRA WORLI SEA LINK PROJECT: A CASE STUDY
Ritunj Garg and Prathmesh Gargava

Department of Civil Engineering

Institute of Technology, BHU, Varanasi.

ABSTRACT: In construction of longer bridges over the seas, there is a requirement of using
those types of bridges which do not require a large foundation. Thus many new design types of
bridges have come up all across the world. Some of these types are Cable Stayed Bridges,
Suspension Bridges, Arch-Type Bridges, etc. The Bandra Worli Sea Link Project is an
inspiration from various huge bridges constructed in different parts of the world. This paper
deals with the Necessity, Objectives, Benefits, and on a major part, Construction of Bandra
Worli Sea Link. This project opens up a new platform for construction of longer bridges, along
with providing passage of larger ships and even without affecting the activities in water.

1. INTRODUCTION

“Bandra-Worli Sea Link Project” is a part of the “Western Expressway” in Mumbai having its
length 5.6 km. The total length of Western freeway is 11.6 km. The Bandra Worli Sea Link starts
from Bandra end at the junction of Western Expressway and S.V. Road at the northern end and
joins Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan Road at Worli end. Out of the total 5.6 km, the Bandra Worli sea
link consists of 4.2 km of eight lane road.

The Bandra Worli Sea Link Road Project (BWSLP) is a part of the Western Freeway Sea
Project, which, in turn, is part of a larger proposal of upgrade the road transportation network of
greater Mumbai as per the report prepared by the Central Road Research Station, which had been
commissioned by the Maharashtra Government. The Maharashtra State Road Development
Corporation Ltd, (MSRDC) and the Government of Maharashtra have commissioned the project.
The project is planned with a view to provide an additional corridor for the free flow of traffic
from Bandra to Worli in the first phase and Worli to Nariman Point in the second phase. The link
is meant primarily to provide an alternative to the Mahim Causeway route that is presently the
only connection between the Island-city and the Western and Central suburbs. The project starts
from the interchange at Mahim Intersection, i.e. intersection of Western Express Highway and
Swami Vivekanand Road, at the Bandra end and connects to Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan Road at
the Worli end. The project has been commissioned to divert traffic that presently is 125,000 cars
a day in each direction and is expected to grow at the rate of 250 cars per day.

152 
 
2. NECESSITY OF AN ALTERNATE ROUTE

2.1 Existing Situation

As per the survey made by MSRDC, the journey starting from Lovegrove Jn to Mahim Jn covers
7.7 km distance and has 23 traffic light signals. In the morning peak hours, it takes about 35 min
to reach from Lovegrove to Mahim. And in evening peak hours, it takes about 38 min to do the
same. The average speed is, thus, about 13 km/h.

2.2 Air Pollution

As per the Environmental Status Report by MMRDA in 1997, Sector wise distribution of
Pollution in Mumbai city was:
Transport 64%
Power 4%
Domestic 15%
Industrial 17%

Table 1: Ambient air Quality at Mahim Jn

Item Observed (microgm/Nm3) Limits (microgm/Nm3)

SO2 43 – 120 80
NOx 90 – 107 80
SPM 1144 – 3170 200

3. EARLIER STUDIES

The requirement of such a bridge connecting Bandra and Worli acknowledged a long time ago
itself. The Project was originally conceived in 1961 by Wilbur Smith and Associates in a traffic
study. In 1982, the Central Road Research Institute, Delhi also confirmed the need of this link
during the comprehensive traffic study for Mumbai City.
And in 1983, Central Water and Power Research Station (GOI U/T), Pune, conducted exhaustive
Hydraulic model studies to examine the impact of this project on the coast and tidal movements.

4. BANDRA WORLI SEA LINK PROJECT

4.1 Salient Features

This link connects Western Expressway at Mahim Jn to Khan Abdul Gaffar Road.
The length of this Bridge is 5.6 km, i.e. 0.5 km main and 5.1 km approach bridge length. The
solid approach road at Bandra is 1.8km long including the Toll Plaza. The Carriageway consists
of 8 lanes and the Main Cable Stayed Bridge has a span of 500 m.
The govt. has introduced an Advanced Traffic Control and Surveillance system with a modern
toll plaza. Estimated basic cost of the project is Rs. 650 crores.

153 
 
The project is a Toll Project, in which the maintenance of the Bridge is managed through the toll
fares collected by people using the Bridge. The Link is proposed to be extended to Nariman
Point.

4.2 Design Considerations

The Design considerations of the project are according to the following points:

4.2.1 Traffic Requirements

Acc. to traffic study* for 30 years in future, the figures estimated are shown in Table 2:

Table 2: Traffic Study* for 30 years in the future

Year Mahim Causeway BWSL TOTAL

(Existing road)
1999 1,20,000 - -
2003 72,787 71,980 144767
2011 72,183 **1,20,331 192514
2021 78,622 1,26,813 205435
2031 86,674 1,32,871 219543
* 4 lane dual carriageway required
** 8 lanes required

4.2.2 Aesthetics (Including Environment)

The bridge is to be a landmark structure in Mumbai. It will be a pride to Mumbai as well as

India. The design is unique in itself and is made as such that it merges with the surrounding
environment.

4.2.3 Geometry

The design speed of the bridge is 100 km/h. There is only one eminent curve in alignment with
Bandra, having a turning radius of 600 m. The camber provided for the road is 2.5% and the
super elevation for the curve is 6%.

4.2.4 Navigational Requirements

The main span of the cable stayed bridge shall cover the main sea channel at Bandra end. Also
the channel shall be distinctively visible from a distance by bridge features. The cable stayed
bridge is being designed so as to provide adequate vertical and horizontal clearances considering
all future needs.

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4.2.5 Foundations

The channel has a geologically weak foundation in its vicinity. Thus the minimum foundation
has been provided in this stretch. The Bandra approach and the Worli approach have a good
weathered basalt formation and geologically sound rock (SBC>35 t/sq. m.) Also there are many
international connection cables (VSNL) laid down under the sea. Thus the cable stayed bridge is
designed so as not to damage those cables. The foundations are designed to avoid inter tidal
zones along alignment.

4.2.6 Durability and Constructability Considerations

High performance Concrete (M60 + Micro silica) except piles (M50) us used for construction.
The reinforcement used is Fusion Bonded Epoxy Coated. The cables of the cable stayed bridge
have a double layer coating – Inner (Black HDPE) and Outer (Colour HDPE). Segmental
construction is done for better durability.

4.2.7 Issues during Project Execution (Fishermen Considerations)

There was a need to increase the bridge/viaduct length from 1.2 km to 4 km. It is also needed to
ensure minimum navigational clearance of 9.1 m along the entire alignment of main bridge and
to shift the alignment towards seaside by about 200 m. In return this will reduce the pollution
impacts on the shore line areas.

The area being regularly used by small fishing businessmen, it was necessary to see that the
locations of piers are in such a way so as to avoid obstruction to those fishing channels. A
provision was also made to provide an additional arch bridge of 150 m span over Worli
Navigational channel. The shape of the pile cap used in the construction must be hydraulically
less obstructive. There has been continuous interaction with fishermen and they were always
being informed about the planned activity in the sea.

4.3 Project Components

Fig 1: Alignment Plan

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The whole Bandra Worli Sea Link Project was divided into 5 major packages which covers all
the regions near to Bandra end as well as that are near to Worli end. They are as follows:-

4.3.1 Package I

To provide a grade separated junction at Lovegrove. Under this package the construction of
flyover over Love Grove junction at Worli is being done. Love grove Jn consists of a tee flyover
constructed on Annie Besant Road. Dr. Annie Besant Road is one of the busiest arteries carrying
heavy traffic in morning and evening at office hours. When traffic from Bandra Worli Sea Link
will meet already heavy traffic on Annie Besant Road, it would cause traffic jams and the whole
purpose of providing the Sea Link will be lost. Thus in order to segregate the traffic, a Tee-
junction flyover is provided on Annie Besant road so that the traffic from the Sea Link could
pass below the flyover and get streamlined with the south bound traffic, while the north bound
traffic can pass the flyover.

Salient features:
• The flyover is 345m long including 160 m long approach ramp on worli end and 116 m long
at Haji Ali end.
• It comprises of 14 spans of R.C.C box girders
• The carriageway is 7.5 to 8.5 m wide (two lanes) with concrete crash bar on either ends.
• The R.C.C. slab on the ‘nalla’ underneath is widened so that two lanes are available for the
north bound traffic, as the flyover has to restrict to the width of existing road.

Package I has been completed. It started on 1st October 2000 and was expected to be completed
in 15 months.

4.3.2 Package II

To provide Mahim Interchange for better traffic control. Under this package the construction of
cloverleaf interchange at Mahim Intersection is being done.
The sea link starts from the Northern end of the project at the junction of S.V. Road and the
Western Expressway with an interchange and meets the solid approach road (Package III) before
reaching the Toll Plaza (Package IV).
Salient features:
• The interchange has cloverleaf arrangement so as to provide grade separation for traffic in al
five directions, i.e.
1. Western Express Highway
2. Bandra Reclamation
3. S.V. Road
4. Dadar
5. Sea Link (after commissioning of project)

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• The main flyover has two carriageways each for four lanes separated form each other by 2 m
gap. Flower plants are provided in his gap in precast R.C.C troughs. It serves 2 purposes only:
1. It will provide aesthetic beauty
2. It will cut glare of vehicles approaching from opposite direction

• The flyover has 9 spans of varying length. The largest span is of 49 m on S.V. Road which
provides unobstructed passage to heavy traffic. Prestressed R.C.C. box girders are used to form
carriageways and R.C.C. crash barriers are provided.
• Signage on flyover is very important. It is a complicated interchange and there is no similar
interchange for comparison anywhere nearby. The signage is planned carefully taking into
consideration the various factors at site so that it will lead the traveling vehicles in the correct
route.

4.3.3 Package III

To provide solid approach road from Mahim Junction including Promenade that can hold all the
traffic needed to be taken from Bandra end to Worli end.
It starts from the end of Worli side ramp of interchange, and ends at the junction with Package
IV. The road is situated in Mahim Bay at a distance of about 70 m to 200 m from the shoreline of
Bandra Reclamation.
Salient features:
• The top width of the road is 45 m, which consists of 2 carriageways, each of 15 m.
• A central median 5 m wide, paved shoulder 2.5 m wide and unpaved shoulder 1.5 m wide on
outside of each of carriageways.
• The permissible speed will be restricted to 65 kmph due to geometrical constraints, as curves
are introduced at both ends.
• The total length of solid approach is 1036 m.
• The road embankment is quite high, at places it is about 10.5 m above the sea bed level.
• The embankment is protected by a thick layer of armour stone.
• On straight portion, 2.5% of camber is provided.
• A separate road with a trumpet junction is provided at a chainage 1200 to give entry form
Bandra Reclamation to the Sea Link. The road will pass through vehicular underpass, turn right
and meet the sea link road proceeding to Mumbai City (South Carriageway).
• One of the branch of the trumpet junction will enable a vehicle moving from Mumbai city to
join Bandra Reclamation road.
• Another branch will enable a vehicle coming from Bandra Reclamation to join sea link road
to proceed towards north carriageway.

4.3.4 Package IV

Package IV is the largest and main phase of Bandra Worli Sea Link Project. Project design is
complete and project is under execution. Main features of this package are:-

• Cable Stayed Bridge including viaduct approaches extending from Worli up to Toll Plaza
• Modern Toll Plaza

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• Intelligent Bridge System (IBS)
MSRDC has awarded the contract of constructing the Bandra Worli Sea-Link – Package - IV to
the HCC (Hindustan Construction Company) and its foreign partner, the China Harbour
Engineering Corporation, which has successfully completed similar projects. HCC has the
responsibility of maintaining the bridge during the damage liability period of five years.

MAIN BRIDGE STRUCTURE

The proposed Link Bridge consists of twin continuous concrete box girder bridge sections for
traffic in each direction. Each bridge section except at the cable stayed portion is supported on
piers typically spaced at 50 meters. Each section is meant for four lanes of traffic complete with
concrete barriers and service sidewalks on one side. The bridge alignment is defined with
vertical and horizontal curves. The Link Bridge layout is categorized into three different parts:-
• Part 1 - The north end approach structure mainly with precast (PC) segmental construction
• Part 2 - The Cable Stayed Bridge at Bandra channel is with 50m - 250m - 250m - 50m span
arrangement and the Cable Stayed Bridge at Worli channel is with 50m - 150m - 50m - 150m
- 50m span arrangement
• Part 3 - The south end approach structure mainly with precast segmental construction

PART - I NORTH END APPROACH STRUCTURE

The bridge is arranged in units of typically six continuous spans of 50 meters each. Expansion
joints are provided at ends of each unit. There is a provision for access ramp to connect to
Bandstand road below Searock Hotel. Span arrangement for this structure provides for cast in-
situ spans.
The superstructure & substructure are designed in accordance with IRC codes. Specifications
conform to the IRC standard with supplementary specifications covering special items. The sub -
structure consists of 1.5 meters diameter drilled piles with pile caps & some of the piers near
Worli end will be directly socketed into the rock.

Bridge bearing supports are of Disc & POT type. Longitudinal and lateral supports at various
locations along the unit are provided to limit displacements. Bridge is proposed to be built
utilizing the concept of precast, post - tensioned, twin segmented concrete box girder sections.
An overhead gantry truss crane with self - launching capability is proposed. The PC segments
can be epoxied together with nominal prestressing. The end segments adjacent to the pier would
be short segments "cast - in - situ". Geometrical adjustments are expected to be made by this
segment before primary continuous tendons are stressed. Segment types are further defined by
the changes in the web thickness and type of diaphragms cast in cell. The segment weights vary
from 75 tons to 120 tons per segment. The segment length varies from 1500 mm to 3100 mm.
Deck post tensioning is performed at the completion of the erection of each bridge unit.

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PART- II CABLE STAYED BRIDGE

The cable stayed portion of the Bandra channel is 600 meters in overall length between
expansion joints and consists of two 250 meters cable supported main spans flanked by 50
meters conventional approach spans. A centre tower with an overall height of 128 meters above
pile cap level supports the superstructure by means of four planes of stay cables in a semi fan
arrangement. Cable spacing is 6.0 meters along the bridge deck.

The cable stayed portion of the Worli channel is 350 meters in overall length between expansion
joints and consists of two 150 meters cable supported main spans flanked by 50 meters
conventional approach spans. A centre tower with an overall height of 55 meters above pile cap
level supports the superstructure by means of four planes of stay cables in a semi - fan
arrangement. Cable spacing is 6.0 meters along the bridge deck.

The superstructure comprises of twin precast concrete box girders with a fish belly cross
sectional shape, identical to the approaches. A typical precast segment length is 3.0 meters with
the heaviest superstructure segment approaching 120 tons. Balanced cantilever construction is
envisioned for erecting the cable supported superstructure as compared to span - by - span
construction for the approaches. For every 2nd segment, cable anchorages are provided.

A total of about 264 stay cables will be required for the cable - stayed spans at Bandra channel
with cable lengths varying from approximately 85 meters minimum to nearly 250 meters
maximum. The tower is cast - in - situ reinforced concrete using the climbing form method of
construction. The overall tower configuration is an inverted "Y" shape with the inclined legs
oriented along the axis of the bridge. Tower cable anchorages are achieved by use of formed
pockets and transverse and longitudinal bar post - tensioning is provided in the tower head to
resist local cable forces.

A total of about 160 stay cables will be required for the cable - stayed spans at Worli channel
with cable lengths varying from approximately 30 meters minimum to nearly 80 meters
maximum. The tower is cast - in - situ reinforced concrete using the climbing form method of
construction. The overall tower configuration is "I" shape with the inclined legs. Tower cable
anchorages are achieved by use of formed pockets and transverse and longitudinal bar post -
tensioning is provided in the tower head to resist local cable forces.
The foundations for the main tower are comprised of 2 meters drilled shafts with estimated
length of 25 meters. Cofferdam and Tremie seal construction is envisioned in order to construct
the 6 meters deep foundation in the dry.

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PART - III SOUTH END APPROACH STRUCTURE

This portion of the bridge is similar to the North end approach structure in construction
methodology with span by span match cast concrete box girder sections. Similar to the north end
approach detailed, access ramps shall be provided for connection to the western freeway i.e.
extension up to Nariman Point.

TOLL PLAZA

A modern toll plaza with 16 lanes and an approximate length of 410 meters will be provided at
the Bandra end. The toll plaza will be equipped with "State of the art" toll collection system. A
structure will be provided at this location to house the control system for the ITS.

INTELLIGENT BRIDGE SYSTEM

The toll station (TP) and collection system will provide for three different types of toll collection,
as follows:-
• Fully automatic system: Electronic payment through a toll - tag & transponder etc., which
allows passage without stopping.
• Semi - automatic system: Electronic payment through a smart card, which allows payment
without having to pay cash, but requires stopping.
• Manual toll collection: Payment of toll by cash, requiring making cash payment to a toll
attendant, and stopping cash exchange.

The toll plaza will be designed to permit toll operations. The toll plaza will also be designed to
act as a control centre for toll plaza area and the traffic surveillance, monitoring and control
system for the intelligent bridge. The control centre at the toll plaza will house control facilities
for electronic tolling, CCTV, traffic counting and classifying variable message signs, remote
weather information station, and emergency telephones.

The intelligent bridge systems will provide additional traffic information, surveillance,
monitoring and control systems. It will be comprised of CCTV's, traffic counting and vehicle
classification stations, variable message signs, a remote weather information system and
emergency telephones. The control centre will be located at the toll plaza and will be housed
with the electric tolling controls. The communications system will be comprised of fiber optic
cable housed in PVC running parallel to the Bandra Worli corridor. In addition, facilities to assist
enforcement will be provided in the form of pollute locations, which will allow drivers and
enforcement officers to safely pullout of traffic.

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POWER SUPPLY DISTRIBUTION AND ROAD LIGHTING SYSTEM

For the entire project, a reliable and dependable power supply shall be arranged. It is proposed to
install diesel generator sets and auto mains failure panels to cater to critical load e.g. monitoring,
surveillance, and communication equipment emergency services like aviation obstruction lights.
Adequate levels of lighting levels shall be maintained and energy saving luminaries shall be
installed. Special emphasis has been given to incorporate lighting protection at bridge tower and
control room building to protect those building / structures and the sophisticated monitoring and
communication equipment installed therein.

A built - in feature of providing reliability and available of equipment is achieved through

providing duplicate cables for such equipment. The equipment exposed to saline environment, G
- I poles with concealed junction boxes and epoxy cast transformer shall be utilized. Facade
lighting for bridge tower and special lighting in landscaped area is also included.

ANCILLIARY STRUCTURES

• Street & area lighting.

• Landscaping.

QUALITY ASSURANCE

Following are some of the main features incorporated into the project to enhance the
performance of the bridge:
• High performance concrete (grade M60 with micro silica slurry) will be utilized for the
structure.
• 40 mm thick high performance overlay will be provided over the pre-stressed deck to
function monolithic with the deck.
• Coal tar epoxy painting will be provided below the high tide level splash zone for the sub -
structure.
• A "State of the art" electric system for the ITS.

4.3.5 Package V

To give a final touch to the project, it includes the improvements of Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan
Road. This project will be starting after the completion of Package IV.

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5. SOME CONSIDERATIONS FOR CONSTRUCTION OF BRIDGE

5.1 Offshore Piling

The jack up platform is moved to the place where the piling is to be done. Firstly, the foundation
area is surrounded and packed with sheet piles. Then all the water is pumped out. Then the Spud
Barge is positioned. Boring is done by RCD rigs and grab buckets are used to take out the extra
soil. Then the concrete mixing barge is positioned at the site. The crane is used to lower the
reinforcement cage of the pile. Then the concrete is placed by Tremie using a pump. Same is
done for the other piles. Then the spud barge is shifted for piling at other positions. After the
piles are placed, pile caps are constructed over which the piers and the legs of the tower are
constructed.

5.2 Advanced Equipments in Use

5.2.1 Jack up Platform

A jack-up platform is a platform comprising of a deck structure, a column with a base structure
and a jack-up system for moving the column and the deck structure relative to each other. The
base structure comprises a base and at least three base supporting parts, while the deck structure,
starting from at least three spaced coupling places, can be connected by means of tensioning
means with at lest three mutually spaced connecting places on or near the base supporting parts.
Before the installation the platform, floating with pulled-up column, is brought to the desired
location where the base supporting parts are brought into contact with the floor and the deck
structure is raised out of contact with the water. After providing the tensioning means and
bringing the deck structure to working height, the tensioning means are tensioned, for instance
by slightly further raising the deck structure which is then secured relative to the column.
5.2.2 Specialized Crane

Due to heavy loading, cranes tend to submerge into the sea, thus a normal crane could not be
used for construction purposes. Therefore a specialized crane was imported from Germany to
meet this purpose. It is capable of handling heavy loads without sinking the platform on which it
is standing.

5.2.3 RCD Rig

PLAN 
RCD (Reverse Circular Drill) is essential for the foundation drilling of large diameter (1000 to
4000 mm) Cast In-place piles. This equipment is in use when drilling a borehole through soft and
hard rock layers for construction of foundation. A set of drill string with special bit is used when
drilling in the borehole and the crashed stones are sucked out through drill pipe rods by means of
air lifting during drilling.
Features:
• Because drill pipe can be connected to the machine by tiltable pipe rack and gear box without
tilting of master, so the efficiency is increased.
• The drilling speed is maximized with the power by controlling hydraulic oil pressure.
• Low vibration and low noise are a great advantage for construction in the urban area.

162 
 
• By replacing a few parts, the diameter of 1,000 to 2,500mm hole can be drilled.
• Durability can be accomplished by using special bit.

5.3 Casting of Segments

5.3.1 Casting Yard

Casting Yard is the place where segments are cast, stacked and cured. It consists of Fabrication
cells, Casting cells, Curing cells and Stacking cells.

5.3.2 Segment

5.3.2.1 Cross Section

The segment has a cross section as shown in the Fig 2.

Fig. 2: Cross Section of Segment (Box Girder)

5.4 Precast Segment Erection for Approaches

Firstly, from the Stacking cell the precast segments are transferred to a barge using an overhead
crane. Then, the barge is taken with the segments to the site with the help of small ships. At the
site of construction the segments are lifted by the overhanging crane machine.
While doing construction between two piers, the crane is fixed between three piers. Rear pylon
of crane is fixed on first pier, front pylon is fixed on second pier and a bracket is fixed at third
pier. The pier segment is erected from second pier and is taken to the third pier using front
trolley of crane. Then the front trolley is moved and connected to front pylon. The load is then
released from the front pylon and it is moved to third pier. The load is again released on front
pylon. The rear pylon is then deactivated followed by its movement from first pier to second.
The gantry is reallocated by deactivating the rear bracket followed by the movement of main
truss. After moving half a way between two piers, the bracket is removed from third pier with the
help of front trolley. The installation of segments is done between second and third pier. Using
both front and rear trolley the segments are brought in position for gluing. Each segment is
aligned with care and then proper gluing is done. Stress is applied on temporary points followed
by transferring load on the suspension frame.
Under the final stage of erection, at the piers wet joints were cast and permanent bearings were
grout. Then the load of segments is slowly transferred to the piers. Again the above process is
repeated between the following piers.

163 
 
5.5 Tower Construction

Stage 1 – RCC Platform

At the initial level a reinforced cement concrete platform is made. The thickness of the platform
is taken to be 6.0 m. This give a total elevation of 3.0 m. the platform consists of two bulging out
ends with a middle portion of less width. The bulging ends rest on pile foundation.
Stage 2 – Inclined Legs
The inclined legs are raised from the RCC platform. From a point at both the ends, start of the
inclined leg is done. Each of them gets expanded in two sub legs. They are continued up to 6.0 to
lift up the deck. A strut member is connected at the top of inclined legs.
Stage 3 – Cantilever Arms and In Situ Deck
A false work is done on the RCC platform for the construction of deck. A cast in situ deck is
build up with the help of false work. It is raised so as to make total elevation height of 28.7 m. At
this height the cantilever arm is also raised.
Stage 4 – Inclined Legs
The totals of four legs formed in stage 2 are continued further above the cantilever arm. In stage
4 they are further raised by 6.0 m. At the end of 6.0 m above the deck the 4 legs get close to each
other.
Stage 5 – Junction of Inclined Legs
In this stage the 4 legs get connected to each other. It is stage of formation of single tower for
further rise. The 4 legs are converged up to the elevation of 63.0 m.
Stage 6 – Tower
After an elevation of 63.0 m, the tower is raised of fixed dimension. This tower is raised up to an
elevation of 158.0 m.

5.6 Cable Stay Segment Erection

Stage I
A false work is erected using a truss structure for temporarily supporting the structure. The
formwork for CIP (Cast in Place) segments is also erected. The CIP segments are cast on the
deck on the truss structure and the stress cables are installed. Some segments are wider which
have been cast along with the tower.
Stage II
The precast segments are brought under a derrick placed on both sides on the junction of the
inclined legs by a barge. The derrick lifts the segments which are connected to the tower by wet
joints and then bearings are grouted.
Stage III
The stay cable 1 is attached to the deck and the tower ant tension is applied by a chain setup from
a hoist on the tower crane.
Stage IV
The CIP false work and formwork is dismantled and the derrick is moved forward by 3
segments. Then 3 segments are brought up from the barge and attached using epoxy glue and
then longitudinal stressing is done for these segments. Then the stay cable 2 is installed.
Stage V

164 
 
The same procedure is repeated as we move on both sides installing the precast segments and
installing the stay cables. The derrick is moved forward on a roller supported by a trolley using
chains connected to the tower crane as shown in the figure below.
Stage VI
The procedure goes on till 28 cables are installed on each side and the precast segments reach the
CIP segments on the other sides. Then stressing of longitudinal tendons is carried out and finally
the main span of the cable stayed bridge will be complete.

Fig. 3: Cable Type Details

5.7 Type of Cable Used

The stay cables being used were of imported quality manufactured in China. The diameter of
each cable was kept as such that as we move away from the tower, the diameter kept increasing.
The cross section of the cables is a hexagonal pattern of parallel cables of 7 mm diameter
surrounded by HDPE (High Density Polyethylene) sheath. The further details are given. The
internal details of the cable as attached to the deck as well as the tower end are also shown in
Fig. 3.

6. ADVANCED FEATURES OF THE PROJECT

Traffic Surveillance & Monitoring System

There are some plans to continuously monitor the entire alignment by CCTV. This will improve
the traffic conditions. The monitoring of whole traffic will help in reducing accidents. A team of
some members would be set to attend all emergency telephone calls and arrange for necessary
relief in the area. A traffic volume study traffic surveying would be done to monitor traffic flow
through counting and classifying system.

165 
 
A Weather forecast team would be set up to monitor major weather parameter i.e. wind, speed,
temperature, rainfall etc. which could be used for reference in safety factors. A setup would be
made to display messages through Video Messaging Service (VMS). A proper interface would
be made in emergency with external agencies like hospital, fire station, police etc. Also to
monitor the passenger traffic passing through elevators to the viewers’ gallery.

7. LANDSCAPING ELEMENTS OF THE PROJECT

The bridge is going to be a landmark in Mumbai, as well as India. It will also add to the
aesthetics of Mumbai city. Also a promenade and public park will also be constructed to
enlighten the nearby environment.

A promenade is to be constructed on the shore line along the solid approach road at Bandra
which will add to the beauty of the shore line and will be a nice place for people to get refreshed
and go for a walk or jogging.

The public park will be constructed on the other side of the solid approach road at Bandra. It will
have a good view of the cable stayed bridge and will be a refreshing place for people.

8. PROJECT BENEFITS

There is a huge benefit of project in savings Fuel and Vehicle operating costs to the tune of Rs
100 crore per annum. There is also a benefit of saving travelling time up to 30 minutes in the
travel of one way. Same could be saved in other direction also. The Highway is such that there is
ease in driving and it also reduces mental tension. The lanes would be proper so as to reduce
accidents and provide all safety facilities.
Also there will be an improvement in environment, especially in terms of reduction in Carbon
Monoxide, Oxides of Nitrogen and reduction in noise Pollution. The project has no adverse
effect on fisheries, marine life and livelihood of fishermen.

As per package I, II, III and V there will be an improved environment along existing roads in
Mahim, Dadar, Prabhadevi and Worli area. This will give a good aesthetic view to the public
travelling through that area. The viewers’ gallery would serve as an additional source of income.

9. PRESENT STATUS

Packages I, II and III have been completed. Package IV, i.e. the main bridge is currently in
progress. One side of both the cable stayed bridges, at Bandra side as well as Worli side, have
been completed. The details of construction of other sides are as shown in Table 3.
Table 3: Present Status of work completed in BWSLP

Description Unit Total Progress in Jan' Total Progress incl. Jan'

Scope 09 09
Pile Nos. 618 20 602
Pile cap including Open Nos. 139 5 127
Foundation
Pier/Abutment Nos. 147 4 129

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 Segment casting Nos. 2310 75 2059
Segment erection Span 125 4 80
Bandra Cable Stay P19 Lifts 84 0 84
Worli Cable Stay P27 Lifts 36 2 36
Worli Cable Stay P30 Lifts 34 3.5 33.5

REFERENCES

Bandra Worli Sea Link Project: Technical Presentation, 25-04-08, MSRDC (Maharashtra State
Road Development Authority)

“Executive Summary: Western Freeway Sea Link, Maharashtra State Road Development
Corporation, Mumbai

For regular updates on present status and other data,“Bandra-Worli Sea Link - Connecting
Islands and Suburbs of Mumbai”, MSRDC (Maharashtra State Road Development Authority),
www.bandraworlisealink.com

“Environmental Status Report; 1997” - MMRDA (Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development

Authority)

Report on “Use of HVFAC in Offshore Construction”, HCC (Hindustan Construction

Company):

“Drilled Shafts, Micropiling, Deep Mixing, Remedial Methods, and Specialty”, Geo-Institute,
ASCE: Geo Support 2004

167 
 
 REMOTE SENSING AND GIS APPLICATIONS FOR MAPPING AND
SPATIAL MODEL OF INVASIVE SPECIES

T. R. Pradeep, T. Anand, N. V. Deepak and R. Kalaiselvan

Kongu Engineering College

Perundurai, Erode, Tamilnadu – 638052.

ABSTRACT:  Biological invasions from a major threat to the sustainable provision of ecosystem
products and services, both in man-made and natural ecosystems. Increasingly, efforts are made
to avoid invasions or eradicate or control established invaders. It has long been recognized that
Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information System (GIS) could contribute to this for
instance through mapping actual invader distribution or areas at risk of invasion. Potentially
GIS could also be used as synthesizing tool for management of interventions aiming at invasive
species control. This paper reviews the application of remote sensing and GIS in mapping the
actual and predicting the potential distribution of invasive species. Distinction is made into four
categories of invasive species based on whether they appear in and dominate the ecosystem
canopy or not. This paper summarizes the RS techniques and GIS techniques which are involved
in the monitoring the intrusion of invaders in forest areas and areas where endangered species
live. This paper also reviews techniques used to map the risk of invasion for areas not invaded so
far.

Keywords: Review, Biological Invasions, GIS and Remote sensing, Mapping techniques,
Canopy cover classification.

1. INTRODUCTION
Invasive species are a current focus of interest of ecologists, biological conservationists and
natural resources managers due to their rapid spread, threat to biodiversity and damage to
ecosystems. Invasions may alter hydrology, nutrient accumulation and cycling, and carbon
sequestration on grasslands. The global extent and rapid increase in invasive species is
homogenizing the world’s flora and fauna and is recognized as a primary cause of global
diversity loss. Bio-invasion may be considered as a significant component on global change and
one of the major causes of species extinction. This paper summarizes the RS techniques and GIS
techniques which are involved in the monitoring the intrusion of invaders in forest areas and
areas where endangered species live. This paper also reviews techniques used to map the risk of
invasion for areas not invaded so far.

1.1 Applications of RS and GIS Techniques in Mapping Biological Invasions

Remote sensing technology has received considerable interest in the field of biological invasion
in the recent years. It is a tool offering well-documented advantages including a synoptic view,
multispectral data, multi temporal coverage and cost effectiveness. It is now widely applied on
collecting and processing data. It has proved to be a practical approach to study complex

168 
 
geographic terrain types and diverse inaccessible ecosystems. It provides a wide range of sensor
systems including aerial photographs, airborne multispectral scanners, satellite imagery, low and
high spatial and spectral resolution and ground based spectrometer measurements. Remote
sensing technology has many attributes that would be beneficial to detecting, mapping and
monitoring invaders. Spatial heterogeneity complicates the study of seasonal and long-term
trends of biological invasion. Remote sensing, however, with its broad view has the potential to
deliver the information. Satellite imagery is available for most of the world since 1972. The
multidate nature of satellite imagery permits monitoring dynamic features of landscape and thus
provides a means to detect major land cover changes and quantify the rates of change. Integrated
GIS and remote sensing have already successfully been applied to map the distribution of several
plant and animal species, their ecosystems, landscapes, bio-climatic conditions and factors
facilitating invasions.

2. MAPPING ACTUAL AND POTENTIAL DISTRIBUTION

Fig1. The world distribution of Chromolaena odorata: area under infestation (Black) and native
range (Grey). Source: map drawn besd on global invasive species database (ISSG, 2004)

2.1 Remote Sensing Techniques

Remote sensing gives a synoptic view of the surface of the earth. Aerial photography is the
oldest remote sensing technique. There is a wide choice of films and spectral sensitivity (visible
part of the spectrum versus those that include the infrared). Aerial photography has been used to
assess vegetation and plant species attributes such as canopy architecture, vegetative density, leaf
pubescence and phenological stage. Digital camera photography and videography are recently
introduced as cheap, easily available and flexible alternatives to standard photography,

169 
 
particularly when the data are to be transferred onto a computer system. There are systems
available that cover the near infrared (NIR) and infrared (IR) as well. Multiple scanners register
reflectance in a number of spectral bands through the visible, near-to far-infrared portions of the
electromagnetic spectrum. Broad-band scanners have few spectral bands of one hundred or more
mm wide. Hyper spectral scanners have more (tens up to several hundred) but narrower (tens to
few mm wide) spectral bands. Broad-band scanners have been successfully applied to
discriminate between broad land cover types such as forest versus bare soil and built up area.
The higher spectral resolution of hyper spectral scanners allows discrimination of more subtle
differences such as those between individual species (Graph 1.).

Fig2: Electromagnetic spectrum and spectral reflectance profiles for different species (adopted
from the spectral library of the Environment for Visualizing Images software (ENVI, 2003)

2.1.1 Classification of invasive species

The invasive species are classified based on the reflecting properties of the species. They are
classified into four as below.
1. Canopy dominating species.
2. Mixed canopy dominant species.
3. Invaders influencing canopy dominant species.
4. Understory species.

Fig 3. Application of remote sensing in detecting individual invasive species (may be an animal
or plant) as represented in black colour. Class I: Canopy dominating species (top row), Class II:
Mixed canopy dominant species (second row), Class III: Invaders influencing canopy dominant
species (third row) and Class IV: Understory species

170 
 
Class I inncludes speccies dominatting the canoopy and form ming homogeneous singlle species sttands.
Class II includes
i species that are members off a multi speecies canopyy and directlyy reflects eleectro-
magneticc radiation. Class III includes
i speecies not reeflecting buut influencinng the refleective
propertiees of canopy y members belonging
b inn class II andd I. Class IV
V finally inccludes all sppecies
that neithher reflect liight nor inflluence the properties
p off other speciies in class I and II. Ammong
these, thee canopy dom minant speciies and the understory
u sppecies play a major role..
.

2.1.2 Can
nopy domin
nating speciies

Several invasive
i species dominaate the canoppy of the earrth forming homogeneoous single sppecies
stands thhat extend over
o larger areas. Incluuded are a large numbber of tree species succh as
Melaleucca quinqueneervia, Miconnia calvescenns, tamarix ramosissimaa. Canopy doominance am mong
invaders is not restriicted to tree species, it also occurs in grasses (e.g.
( Arundoo donax, Spaartina
anglica) and submerg ged aquatic vegetation (Caulerpa
( taxxifolia, Unddaria pinnatiaafida) and am
mong
colonial animals such s as zeebra mussels (Dressenna polymorrpha). Aeriial photograaphy,
videograpphy and mu ultispectral scanners
s are used for identifying annd mapping invasive speecies.
Everitt et
e al. (2001aa), who useed aerial phhotographs too discriminaate Acacia smallii, Tam marix
chinensiss, Gutierreziia sarothrae and Astragaalus wootoniii noted the importance of differencces in
canopy architecture,
a vegetative density
d and leaf
l pubesceence for the mapping
m of invasive speecies.
Andersonn et al. (199 96) found GIS
G and remoote sensing to be a pow werful combiination toolss that
providedd information n about the extent and spatial dynaamics of siggnificant asssociation of leafy
spurge with
w drainagge channels. Some of the t reportedd invasive species
s dom
minate submeerged
aquatic ecosystems.
e For
F those eccosystems, reemote sensinng methods described soo far, are lim mited,
because little
l light is reflected byy submergedd organisms.

Fig. 4(a) Fig. 4(b)

Sourrce: www.yllangylang.ceenterblog.nett

171 
 
2.1.3 Understory species
 
Few researchers have pointed out the possibilities of application of remote sensing in studying
understory invasives. Plant species such as Chromolaena odorata, Ulex europaeus and most of
the invasive animal species are examples of this category. May et al. (2000) quantified remotely
sensed airborne data into physical and ecological variables, obtaining an improved spatial and
temporal representation of the dynamics of native and exotic plant communities.

Most of the invasive animals, lower flora, herbs, shrubs and fauna are found to be understory
vegetation, making detection using direct remote sensing techniques is almost impossible.
Nevertheless a combination of remote sensing techniques, GIS and expert knowledge still offer
potential to detect understory invasion through development of models and risk maps. These can
help predicting the probability of actual and potential sites and areas where environmental
conditions are susceptible to infestation.

3. MONITORING AND PREDICTION OF INVASION RISK

 
Predicting the probability of biological invasion and probable invaders has been a long-standing
goal of ecologists. A major challenge of invasion biology lies in the development of pre and post
predictive models and understanding of the invasion processes. Introduced species vary in their
invasive behavior in different regions. Prediction is more difficult than finding an explanation.
Predicting the ecological behaviour of a species in a new environment may be effectively
impossible. The consequence of a given disturbance depends on the properties of the ecosystem
or community. There is a need to evaluate disturbances not in terms of the elements of a given
regime, but rather in terms of ecological effects.

Estimating animal species numbers, population size and related features is rather difficult in
comparison to plants. The importance of logistic regression techniques to develop models for
predicting forest susceptibility and vulnerability and to assess the accuracy of the susceptibility
and vulnerability forecasts has been pointed out. Using an integrated multimedia approach in the
vegetation database for invasive species provides a unique way to represent geographic features
and associated information on interrelationships between flora, fauna and human activities.
Applications of these promising quantitative approaches in an Integrated GIS environment may
allow us to predict patterns of invading species more successfully. For the monitoring and
control of insect pests such as screw-worm (cattle-pest), desert locust (rainfall dependant
agricultural pest) and armyworm, satellite facilities and the simultaneous use of their data could
be used for a wide variety of purposes. Crops can be regularly monitored to predict their
economic yields, regional early warning for famine or pest infestation and phonological mapping
of natural vegetation. The cost of monitoring with colour aerial photography is within the
affordable range of most control programmes.

172 
 
 Fig.5

UES OF SPA
4. ISSU ATIAL AND
D TEMPOR
RAL SCALE
E AND ACC
CURACY

Scale is one of the central

c issues in invasionn ecology. All
A observatiions dependd upon the sppatial
scale, sizze of the stud
dy area inveestigated andd resolution of the remoote sensor. Habitat
H evaluuation
of a species is influennced stronglly by spatial scale. Theree is no correcct scale; it deepends on suurvey
purpose. The variatio ons in the laandscape patterns are sccale dependaant. Howeveer, in most of o the
cases, lanndscape scalle is used as an appropriaate scale for modeling.

The veggetation map ps are usedd to study large scale (1:8000-1:112000 scalee) color inffrared
photograaphs of differrent years (11972, 76, 83,, 84, 85). Cuurrent develoopments in sensor technoology
have the potential to enable imprroved accuraacy in the maapping of veegetation andd its producttivity.
Very higgh spatial ressolution (0.55m) color innfrared (CIR R) digital im
mage data froom color inffrared
digital caamera imageery showed potential foor discriminaating Acaciaa species froom native fyynbos

173 
 
vegetation, other alien vegetation and bare ground. In cases where different spatial resolutions
resulted in equal detection accuracy, the larger spatial resolution was selected due to lower costs
of acquiring and processing the data. All these studies noted the importance of image resolution,
spectral characteristics, superiority of lower scaled aerial photographs and images. It also shows
clearly that for accurate mapping of invasive species it is important to take the phonological
stage into account in aiming of the aerial photographs or images.

5. CONCLUSION

Thus this paper attempts to evaluate the potential of remote sensing and GIS techniques for the
critical task f invasion mapping. Although the use of RS and GIS techniques for mapping
invasive species and invaded ecosystems is increasing rapidly, the literature on means and
methods for invasive species mapping remains scattered and often contradictory. Recent remote
sensing and GIS applications on detecting invasive species were mainly dealing with species
belonging to class I. For instance, most of the understory species that have been declared as the
world’s worst invaders by the ecologists have not caught the attention of remote sensing experts.

Although restricted to few taxa, studies revealed the potential of remote sensing and GIS
applications in mapping and modeling invasive species. There are possibilities of generating in-
depth information in detecting, mapping and analyzing the impact of invasion on an area or
entire ecosystem and species level properties. To enhance the result of invasion mapping, there is
a clear need of combined use of remote sensing, GIS and expert knowledge. Management
dealing with invasive species requires accurate mapping and modeling techniques at relative low
costs. Development of those will be a valuable step towards conservation of native biodiversity.

REFERENCES

Everitt, J.H., Escobar, D.E., Alainz, M.A., Villarreal, r., & Davis,M.R., 1992. Distinguishing
brush and weeds on rangelands using video remote sensing. Weed Technology, 6(4), pp. 913-
921.

Anderson, G.L., Everitt, J.H., & Escobar, D.E., 1996. Mapping leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula)
infestations using aerial photography and geographic information systems. Geocario
International. 11(1), pp. 81-89.

May.C.J., Neale.C.M.U & Henderson. N., 2000, Mapping riparian resources in semiarid
watersheds using airborne multispectral imagery. IAHS AISH Publication, 267, pp. 539-541.

Luther. J. E., Franklin. S. E., Hudak. J., & Maedes. J. P.,(1997), Forecasting the susceptibility
and vulnerability of balsam fir stands to insect defoliation with Landsat Thematic Mapper data.
RS of Environment, 59(1), pp. 77-91.

174 
 
 EMERGING ASPECTS IN REMOTE SENSING, GPS AND GIS AND
THEIR APPLICATIONS IN CIVIL ENGINEERING

Syed Murtuza Abbas and Mohd. Adnan Khan

Department of Civil Engineering

Zakir Hussain College of Engineering & Technology, A.M.U, Aligarh.

ABSTRACT: The integration of technologies like Remote sensing, GPS, GIS etc. to develop
new equipments and redesign existing ones to simplify the current practices and methodologies
used in the fields of large scale construction, transport management, agriculture and
environmental compliance and enforcement. These equipments would help in daily management
and planning, better detection of smallest possible changes and movements, and improve
cartographic accuracy. The data and information from these equipments can be made available
for easy access through existing TV satellites and mobile networks. The immense potential of
integration of these technologies should be recognized and steps should be taken for their
implementation, for the simplification and advancement of civil engineering techniques.
Keywords: Remote sensing, GPS, GIS, emerging applications, construction, increased
efficiency, transportation, agriculture, mobile GPS/GIS.

1. DEFINITIONS

1.1 Remote Sensing

“Remote Sensing” can be defined as obtaining information about an object by observing it from
a distance and without coming into actual contact with it. It has practically come to imply data
acquisition of electromagnetic radiation from sensors flying on aerial or space platforms, and its
interpretation for deciphering ground object characteristics.
1.2 Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

The GIS can be defined as “An organized collection of computer hardware, software, geographic
data, and personnel designed to efficiently capture, store, update, manipulate, analyze, and
display all forms of geographically referenced information”. Every interested person can find
different GIS definitions which might be useful for their purpose. Each data for GIS must have
geographic reference value and identify the location of it on the ground.

1.3 Global Positioning System (GPS)

The GPS is a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) developed by the United States
Department of Defense and managed by the United States Air Force 50th Space Wing. It is the
only fully functional GNSS in the world, can be used freely, and is often used by civilians for

175 
 
navigatioon purposes. It uses a coonstellation of
o between 24
2 and 32 Medium
M Eartth Orbit sateellites
that transsmit precisee microwavee signals, whhich allow GPS
G receiveers to determ
mine their cuurrent
location, the time, annd their veloccity.

LICATION OF
2. APPL O REMOT
TE SENSIN
NG, GPS, GIS
G IN VAR
RIOUS FIEL
LDS

2.1 Use of
o Global Po
ositioning System
S In Coonstruction
n

Fig 1: Appplication off GPS in consstruction inddustry.

2.1.1 Introduction

GPS whiich is a posiitioning techhnology has revolutionizzed the survveying indusstry by provviding
the surveeyor accuraate and timeely positioniing data. Global
G positioning system m is one of o the
importannt surveyor’ss toolbox. Proper
P handlling of this technologyy can producce very effeective
results.G
GPS and otheer measurem ment technoloogies such ass robotic totaal station andd digital leveel are
producinng new effeective heightt to the surrveying. Thhe GPS hass caused paaradigm shiffts in
surveyingg processes.. Just as witth any new technology, there has been b enthusiastic adoptioon of
this neww tool on on ne hand and a more cautious
c appproach on thhe other. Inn the process of
developinng new toolls, GPS andd otherwise, the authorss have had to t think aboout how thee way
things arre done, will change and a could bee changed. Sometimes the applicaation of the new
technologgy has been
n observed too be a directt replacemennt for anotheer. Sometim mes it is usedd as a
complem ment. Sometim mes it is useed in ways thhat the older technologiees hadn’t or couldn’t.
c
 
2.1.2 Hisstory
In the connstruction in
ndustry, histoory of the usse of GPS technology is as follows:
1982: Triimble bough ht this technoology and beggan incorporrating it into surveying innstruments.
1988: 1st GPS instrum ments sold.
st
1993: 1 strip mining g machines began
b using GPS for “loccation”.
1998: 1st product to have
h GPS annd cellular onn a single booard for fleett managemennt.
1999: 1st GPS contro ol system forr the construcction markett.
2000: Coontractor beg gan using “sttakeless” graading.
2002: GP PS machine controls
c are installed onn caterpillar excavators
e a motor graaders.
and

176 
 
2.1.3 Requirements of the surveyor

Engineers, developers, owners and even regulatory authorities use various parts of the surveying
process, contributing to the conceptualization, design, actualization and maintenance of
engineering and land development projects. With respect to surveying, their requirements in the
field and office with respect to the tools they use are for:

1. Accuracy
2. Functionality
3. Integration
4. Productivity and,
5. Ease of use.

These requirements are to ensure that the activities required by surveying processes that
contribute to the project, are done properly and in a timely manner. Today, a wide variety of
tools are available to the surveyor to accomplish these activities. It is no longer a matter of
having a transit, tape and dumpy level on hand. The tools themselves overlap the required
functionality in some respects. Determining the optimal tool for the task and time at hand is not
done without a lot of thought. It is incumbent on the surveyor therefore, to do the analysis,
synthesis and integration to most effectively use the resources at hand.

2.1.4 GPS Technology

GPS, especially RTK GPS,(Real-Time Kinematic is a process where GPS signal corrections are
transmitted in real time from a reference receiver at a known location to one or more remote
rover receivers) is a widely accepted technology for achieving all aspects of the surveying
function. It has been shown to achieve huge productivity gains over optical total station. Being
able to use it in all kinds of weather and at night helps to increase the progression of work,
especially in projects where work continues into two or three shifts. Its ability to not be limited
by line of sight, and to work over a 20 km (10 to 12 mile) range from the reference station
increases speed and accuracy. Since data collection is initiated at the antenna pole, which is
located at the point of interest, quality of the data collected is greatly improved and the
occurrence of blunders is reduced. Keeping in mind that GPS use will be restricted under some
circumstances; the surveyor needs to have an alternative system to reliably make a measurement
when GPS cannot.

Placing of material at the right place is an important use of GPS in large scale construction.
Especially in curved structure, placing can be done easily by using these technologies with the
highest degree of accuracy. Palm Jumeirah island in Dubai, which has shape of a palm tree, has
all its parts in curved shape and placing of material at the right places was a challenge for the
engineers. This task was completed with the help of GPS.

177 
 
 Fiig 2: GPS teechnology was extensiveely used to giive Palm Jum
meirah its paalm shape.

2.1.5 Imp
pact on surv
veying operrations

Surveyinng operationss have, at a minimum

m a choice of thrree differentt kinds of tecchnologies to
t use
as sensorrs: RTK GPS S, robotic annd servo-drivven total stattions and maanual total sttations. But these
technologgies don’t offer
o a panaacea for the surveyor. Reliance
R on tried and trrue principlles of
surveyingg are still reequired. In faact because different basic principlees underlie GPS
G as comppared
with totaal stations, more
m understtanding of thhe differences is requireed to properrly assimilatee and
integrate the methodo ologies.

2.2 GIS/GPS in Tra

ansportation
n
The threee types of real world appplications off the GIS/GP
PS technologgies are:
1) GPS as
a a data colllection devicce,
2) GIS ass transportattion databasee manager, and
a
3) GPS as
a traffic design aid.

2.2.1 G as a datta collection

GPS n device

2.2.1.1 Travel
T speed data collecttion

GPS cann be used to collect travvel speed datta for variouus routes. Foor each routte, a fixed no.
n of
runs can be made du uring a desiggnated time period. Thee data collection vehicles or test vehhicles
are equippped with GPS
G units whhich record date, time, vehicle position and thhe velocity of o the
vehicle. Each
E test veh
hicle can alsso be equippped with a poortable compputer to recoord any evennt that
caused sttop delay.

2.2.1.2 Traffic
T Sign Inventory
I Daata Collectioon

GPS cann be used ass a data colllection tool for traffic sign inventorries. To accomplish thee data
collectionn activities, programs arre developedd, using the GPS
G vendorr's software, to query thee data

178 
 
collector for sign attribute information. The position of the sign is determined by the GPS unit
while the data collector can enter the attribute information into a hand-held computer which is
part of GPS unit. At the end of each data collection day, the data is downloaded to the PC and
differentially corrected (post-process).

2.2.1.3 Roadway Inventory Data Collection

GPS is also used to collect existing roadway features for several design projects which do not
have complete as-built roadway inventories. The data collection may include the existing no-
passing zone striping and signing, location of turnouts and pull-outs, mile post markers and
locations (beginning and end) of bridges. To increase efficiency, bar codes are defined for
different roadway features of interest before the data collection. To collect data, two data
collection personnel use a vehicle equipped with a GPS unit. One data collector drives the
vehicle and notifies the second data collector of an approaching feature. The second data
collector records the feature by scanning the matching feature code using a bar code reader as the
vehicle passes by. To increase accuracy, more than one run can be conducted.

2.2.2 GIS as transportation database manager

2.2.2.1 Identifying Roadway Needs

Improved systems are being created for estimating needed improvements on various roads.GIS is
used primarily to establish the roadway inventories and to map the terrain conditions.

2.2.2.2 User Information Management Systems

Various GIS based sign inventory/management systems have been created to query sign attribute
information, including sign location and sign images, on a base map. The management system
allows the user to easily pan and zoom into areas of the coverage and display the attribute
information and a picture. PC database management systems are also being created which allow
the user to access and view the attribute information and issue maintenance work orders.

2.2.3 GPS as traffic design aid

GIS and GPS are generally used as tools for inventory management systems. However, various
experiments are being done to integrate the traffic sign data captured through GPS with CAD for
signing design.GPS is used to collect such sign information as sign dimensions, legends, sign
codes, post types, number of posts, orientations and sign locations. Following differential
correction, the GPS data is put in a data base file.

2.3 Agricultural Remote Sensing

2.3.1 Introduction

When farmers or ranchers visually observe their fields or pastures to assess their condition
without physically touching them, it is a form of remote sensing. Observing the colours of leaves
or the overall appearances of plants can determine the plant’s condition. Remotely sensed images

179 
 
taken from satellites and aircraft provide a means to assess field conditions without physically
touching them from a point of view high above the field. Most remote sensors see the same
visible wavelengths of light that are seen by the human eye, although in most cases remote
sensors can also detect energy from wavelengths that are undetectable to the human eye. The
remote view of the sensor and the ability to store, analyze, and display the sensed data on field
maps are what make remote sensing a potentially important tool for agricultural producers.

2.3.2 Use of Remote Sensing on the farm

Remotely sensed images can be used to identify nutrient deficiencies, diseases, water deficiency
or surplus, weed infestations, insect damage, hail damage, wind damage, herbicide damage, and
plant populations. Information from remote sensing can be used as base maps in variable rate
applications of fertilizers and pesticides. The information from remotely sensed images allows
farmers to treat only affected areas of a field. Problems within a field may be identified remotely
before they can be visually identified. Ranchers use remote sensing to identifying prime grazing
areas, overgrazed areas or areas of weed infestations. Lending institutions use remote sensing
data to evaluate the relative values of land by comparing archived images with those of
surrounding fields.

2.3.3 Electromagnetic Energy and Plants

When electromagnetic energy from the Sun strikes plants, three things can happen. Depending
upon the wavelength of the energy and characteristics of individual plants, the energy will be
reflected, absorbed, or transmitted. Reflected energy bounces leaves and is readily identified by
human eyes as the green color of plants. A plant looks green because the chlorophyll in the
leaves absorbs much of the energy in the visible wavelengths and the green color is reflected.
Sunlight that is not reflected or absorbed is transmitted through the leaves to the ground.
Interactions between reflected, absorbed, and transmitted energy can be detected by remote
sensing. The differences in leaf colors, textures, shapes or even how the leaves are attached to
plants determine how much energy will be reflected, absorbed or transmitted. The relationship
between reflected, absorbed and transmitted energy is used to determine spectral signatures of
individual plants. Spectral signatures are unique to plant species.

Fig. 3: Spectral signatures of crops and soil.

180 
 
Remote sensing is used
u to idenntify stresseed areas in fields by fiirst establishhing the speectral
signaturees of healthy
y plants. Thee spectral siggnatures of stressed
s plannts appear alltered from those
of healthy plants. Fig
gure 4 compaares the specctral signaturres of healthhy and stresssed sugarbeeets.

Fig
g. 4: Spectraal signatures of healthy and
a stressed sugarbeets.

2.4 Receent advancess in mobile GPS/GIS mapping

m tech
hnology

2.4.1 Introduction

GPS/GIS S Field data collection

c iss a perennial problem forr cartographhers, surveyoors, engineerrs and
researcheers. Until reccently, the tools availabble for mapping applicattions have beeen bulky inn size
and weigght, expensiv ve, and diffi
ficult to learrn. During thhe past yearr, tremendouus advances have
taken plaace in GPS technology (receivers), data collecction hardwaare, and field data colleection
software.. Not only has
h the autoonomous GP PS accuracy improved, but the dataa collectors have
become smaller, ligh hter, and less expensive. The softw ware has beecome cheapper and easiier to
learn. All
A of these advances have h made the GPS/G GIS data coollection tassks easier, more
economiccal and fasteer to complette.

Fig. 5: Mobile
M mappping - Usingg the GPS receiver attachhed to the tabblet.

2.4.2 GP
PS Receiverss

With the elimination of Selectivee Availabilitty (SA), autoonomous acccuracy is muuch better. Tooday,
a single stand
s alone receiver cann provide ann accuracy of between 10-15 meters. These receeivers

181 
 
are so small that they can easily fit in your shirt pocket and one can get these receivers for
approximately $100.

2.4.3 Data Collectors

2.4.3.1 Traditional Units for data collection

The traditional units for GPS data collection use either an onboard storage memory or an
external data logger. In most cases, the software on these units is extremely complicated and
difficult to learn. The data collectors are vendor specific to GPS engines only and cannot be used
for any other applications. The units come with a proprietary operating system which makes
modifications difficult to incorporate. These units have slower processors thus making the
manipulation and processing of data and maps impossible or very slow. Also, the small screen
size limits the display of data without scrolling down or panning often. The units have very low
battery life and are expensive to replace. 
 
2.4.3.2 New Generation Data Collectors  

With the introduction of Palm Pilots followed by Microsoft's launch of a pocket PC operating
system, a new generation of handheld Personal Digital Assistants (PDA's) have flooded the
market. It is now possible to use these lightweight handheld PDA's, with GPS/GIS data
collection software, for field applications. In addition, regular windows based laptop PC's are
now available in ruggedized waterproof versions. One can use these PC's for mapping
applications in tough outdoor environments. Some of the new units available are manufactured
by Casio, Hewlett Packard, Sharp, Compaq, Fujitsu, Panasonic, and Walkabout Computers.

2.4.3.3 Advantages of New Generation Data Collectors

 
The new data collectors are economically priced $300 - $6000. Widespread familiarity with the
Palm, Pocket PC, and Windows operating systems has resulted in a quick and easy GPS/GIS
integration with these devices. As these units can be used with or without GPS, other field data
collection applications can be handled. They have a longer battery life, 14-16 hours, and are
lightweight, thus making it easier for the user to carry the units all day in the field.

2.4.4 Software

2.4.4.1 Traditional Field Data Collection Software

The traditional Data Collection software is difficult to learn and is vendor specific to their GPS
engine only. Also the software available operates only on a Windows operating system and is
expensive.

2.4.4.2 New Generation Software

Some of the new software introduced during the past year or so are: Fieldworker, Solo, ArcPad,
Sitemate, Patchworks, and Composer.

182 
 
2.4.4.3 Advantages of New Generation Software

Today, the new generation of software offers the user various options that can be used for his or
her applications. The software is very economically priced $50-$3000, and has the capability to
add background maps or digital orthophotos. Most of the new generation software allows the
user flexibility to use any type of GPS engine beginning from a low priced recreational type unit
to a high accuracy survey grade unit.

3. CONCLUSION

The day to day technological advancement in remote sensing, GPS and GIS, is providing today’s
engineer, tools to explore the branch of civil engineering as never before. Trends and practices,
unimaginable a few years back are now in vogue and form a part of our daily routine. Remote
sensing, GPS and GIS, today, has simply revolutionized construction, transportation, agriculture
etc. With further advancements and their incorporation, the engineering practices would know no
bonds and would take the process of development, which is the basic purpose of civil
engineering, to the next level.

REFERENCES:

H.S. Sharma, D.R. Ram, Rama Prasad, P.R. Binda, Mathematical modelling in Geographical
Information System, Global Positioning System and Digital Cartography,(2006),Concept
publishing company, New Delhi.
L.R.A Narayan, Remote sensing and its applications (2000), University Press (India) Limited 3-
5-819, Hyderguda, Hyderabad 500029
The Global Spatial Magazine ( Vol. 12 issue 2, vol. 11 issue 7, vol. 12 issue 7,vol. 11 issue 9)
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