The Centre for Soft Ground

Transcription

1 Founded ISSN THE T NATIONAL UNIVERSITY of of SINGAPORE CIVIL ENGINEERING NEWSLETTER vol 10 no 1 $1.38 Million NSTB Funding to Centre for Soft Ground Engineering inside... CCMT Hosts Professor P K Mehta 2 One-Day Course on Advances in Concrete Technology 3 US Navy Delegation Visits PORL 3 Ice Cream Stick Bridge Design Challenge 4 Reflections by Professor Mark Randolph 4 Outstanding University Researcher Award 4 SCI Honours Prof Paramasivam 11 Vacancies 11 The Centre for Soft Ground Engineering in the Department together with the Housing and Development Board (HDB) and the Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) of Singapore have successfully obtained funding from the National Science and Technology Board (NSTB) to carry out a study on Optimisation of the use of waste soils from construction for land reclamation. The amount awarded is $1.38 million. The principal investigator of this project is Assoc Prof Tan Thiam Soon, and the Co-Principal Investigators are Mr Chua Keng Chay of HDB and Mr Toh Ah Cheong of MPA. Other members in the research team include Professor Yong Kwet Yew, Assoc Profs Leung Chun Fai and Tan Siew Ann, and Dr Phoon Kok Kwang. In a highly built-up environment like Singapore, the disposal of waste soils always poses formidable challenges. The disposal of such material is not easy because of the very large volume involved, and often it is of poor drainage property. On the other hand, Singapore is importing large amount of good construction material, usually sand, for land reclamation purposes. The cost of such material will increase as nearby sources are depleted and the material has to be transported from further and further away. It is therefore logical to consider the use of waste soils from construction for such land reclamation purpose. As such sites are usually very large and the volume involved is huge, the potential saving is enormous. This research is to evaluate the field performance of such a large reclamation and develop suitable analytical and monitoring tools, and observational approaches to reduce the cost of construction of the dumping ground, reclamation and subsequent soil treatment. For example, a saving of a metre of top sand will translate to a saving of more than $80 million for the proposed site evaluated in this project. This is clearly a case of a small investment with almost certain huge returns. This project will involve extensive studies using the centrifuge, monitoring in the field and predictive and back analyses to calibrate the data obtained. An actual area to be reclaimed in the near future will provide a suitable site to carry out various trials, as part of the actual construction project. For large scale projects such as land reclamation, the monitoring of field performance is critical and often the missing link in many projects. This is a unique feature of this project, which will enable the researchers in this project to develop realistic and coherent guides for future works. Contact Person: Principal Investigator: 1 Assoc Prof Tan Thiam Soon cvetants@nus.edu.sg, Tel:

2 CCMT Hosts Professor P K Mehta The Centre for Construction Materials and Technology (CCMT) hosted Professor P Kumar Mehta as a Visiting Professor from 20 September - 8 October Dr Mehta is Professor Emeritus in Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of California at Berkeley and held the Roy W Carlson Distinguish Professorship. Professor Mehta s research activities include various aspects of cement and concrete technology. Beginning his professional career in the chemistry of cements, he extended his research interest to cover pozzolanic materials and concrete durability. To date, approximately 200 scientific papers have resulted from 35 years of his research on various subjects including expansive cements, cements from rice-husk ash, energy-saving cements containing high iron-oxide, microstructure and properties of concrete, and concrete durability in the marine environment. He holds several patents, and is the author of three books in concrete technology. His text, Concrete: Microstructure, Properties and Materials (co-author, P J M Monteiro), has been translated into Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, and Spanish. During his visit, he shared his 35 years work and experience in this field with staff, students and practitioners in four seminars entitled, Microstructure of concrete and its influence on properties, Volume changes in concrete - causes and control, Concrete deterioration by chemical attack and Concrete technology for sustainable development. The crux of his message was that concrete is a heterogeneous material of aggregate and binder, interacting both chemically and physically, thus laying emphasis that concrete is not just a material but a technology. Much of the macro-behaviour of concrete could thus be explained by mechanisms occurring at the micro-structural level. He traced the development of concrete through the years and outlined challenges for the future. His public lectures, which were wellattended, included the ACI 1999 Concrete Lecture entitled Concrete Durability: Critical Issues for the Future. He was also among the panel of speakers who conducted a one-day course on Advances in Concrete technology. The ACI Concrete Lecture 1999, co-sponsored by CCMT on 1 October 1999 at Sheraton Towers was based on his award winning paper Durability: Critical Issues for the Future. The paper deals with the perceived lack of durability as a threat to the glorious future of concrete. A critical review of the possible causes underlying the problem was presented and some solutions suggested. Staff members and students met Professor Mehta over several sessions to discuss existing research projects and future research thrusts. He was very impressed with the research activities and facilities available in the Structural and Construction Engineering Division. During his stay, he also visited the Prefabrication Technology Centre, Housing and Development Board and Ssangyong Cement (S) Pte. Ltd. Engrossed audience at Professor Mehta s Lecture on Concrete Technology for Sustainable Development. 2

3 One-Day Course on Advances in Concrete Technology This one-day course on Advances in Concrete Technology is part of the on-going series of high profile activities of relevance to the construction industry in Singapore organised by the Centre for Construction Materials and Technology (CCMT), NUS together with the Singapore Concrete Institute. The objective was to bring together practitioners in Singapore and visiting and, NUS academics to focus on recent advancements both in Singapore and overseas. The course, held on 30 September 1999 at Copthorne Orchid Hotel, was attended by more than seventy participants. Papers presented included extracts from award winning papers by Professor P K Mehta of the University of California at Berkeley, a Visiting Professor hosted by CCMT, NUS. Trends were reviewed, together with descriptions of the behaviour of concrete materials, which were related back to structural form and properties of materials used. Practical considerations were also discussed. Prof Mehta delivering one of his lectures in the one-day course on Advances in Concrete Technology. Dr David W S Ho from CSIRO, Australia, a Visiting Senior Fellow in the Department, presented a paper entitled Concrete Curing Methods and their Effectiveness. Dr Murugappan from L & M Structural Systems, Singapore dealt with Retrofitting of Concrete Structures. From the Department, Assoc Prof C T Tam provided enlightening insights into Tropical Concreting Practice and Dr M Maalej, a new staff from the Department, talked about Design of Engineered Cementitious Composites. The course ended with a lively question and answer panel session. US Navy Delegation Visits PORL Adelegation led by RADM Paul G Gaffney II, Chief of Naval Research of the United States navy, visited the Physical Oceanography Research Laboratory (PORL), the Marine Information Technology Laboratory, and the Acoustic Research Laboratory on 6 November Before his present assignment, RADM P G Gaffney II served as advisor to the Vietnamese Navy Combat Hydrographic Survey US Navy Delegation visits PORL. team, as Director, Test and Evaluation and Technology requirements and as Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff for Science and Technology, HQ, US Marine Corps. He received the J William Middendorf Prize for Strategic Research from Naval War College in The three laboratories, all part of the Tropical Marine Science Institute (TMSI), are hosted by the Faculty of Engineering. The delegation, including Dr James DeCorpo, Chief Technology Officer of the US Navy, was received by Professor Low Teck Seng, Dean of Engineering, Assoc Prof Chan Eng Soon, Deputy Director of TMSI, and Professor Yong Kwet Yew, Head of Civil Engineering. Assoc Profs Chan Eng Soon and Chan Weng Tat presented an overview of the R&D activities carried out in the PORL and the Marine Information Technology Laboratory respectively. Arising from the visit, potential areas of collaboration were identified. 3

4 Ice-Cream Stick Bridge Design Challenge AScience and Technology Camp was held in the Faculty of Engineering on 7 December More than 170 Junior College students from the Asia- Pacific countries and of course from Singapore participated in the activities of the camp. The Civil Engineering department played host to about 40 students who registered for the ice-cream stick bridge design challenge. The objective of the activity was to design and fabricate a bridge, of 600 mm span, that will carry the maximum load without its midspan deflection exceeding 30 mm. The bridge must not only be aesthetically pleasing, it must be light too. Before the activity began, Assoc Prof C M Wang gave a presentation on the different types of bridges and highlighted the various world-famous bridges that were built in the ancient times and also in the recent times. Breaking up into teams of 4 persons, the students brainstormed, designed and constructed bridges from only 400 ice-cream sticks, 2 tubes of glue, 1 roll of cotton string and the use of assorted hand tools. One of the participants remarked that the activity was highly challenging because they had so many different bridge designs to consider and furthermore they had to draw on all their creative juices and limited experiences to produce a workable structure at the end of 3 hours. Finally, the students came up with rather interesting bridge designs, such as a combination of arch and truss Will this bridge hold up? structure and suspension-type bridges. The models were inspected for their functionality and beauty. The champion bridge, built by 4 students from Vietnam, caught the eyes of the judges. Not only was the bridge beautifully constructed with a main arch supported by foundation beams, it also proved to be one tough piece of workmanship bearing a heavy load that none of its competitors could match up to. The participants agreed unanimously that the competition was a valuable learning experience and made them appreciate the bridges and the engineering course even more. Reflections by Professor Mark Randolph Iwas privileged to spend November at the National University of Singapore, under the Distinguished Visiting Professor scheme, interacting with academic staff and research students in the Centre for Soft Ground Engineering in the Department of Civil Engineering. My lasting impression of the visit will be the wonderful hospitality, both academically and socially, offered to my wife and myself by my principal hosts, Assoc Profs Tan Thiam Soon and Lee Fook Hou. To Dr Tan, I give my heartfelt thanks for all his efforts in initiating the DVP offer, and for making all the arrangements that made the visit run so smoothly, from my penthouse suite in Kent Vale to a refreshingly empty office conveniently situated adjacent to the Department Office. Prof Mark Randolph The month passed very quickly, with formal commitments comprising two public seminars, participation in an international workshop on centrifuge modelling, and collaborating with Professor Chow Yean Khow over a twoday course on Piling Engineering Practice (run through the Professional Activities Centre). The centrifuge workshop, run over two days and attended by centrifuge researchers from Japan, Australia, Thailand, England, Switzerland and The Netherlands, was the third in a series of annual workshops organised through a Targeted Institutional Links Program grant from the Australian government. During this project, the key participants (NUS, Tokyo Institute of Technology and my own University of Western Australia) have made enormous strides in the technology and academic rigour of their respective centrifuge modelling facilities. Even the briefest of glances into the centrifuge laboratory at NUS will convince any visitor that here is a centre of extraordinary activity, with robotic gadgetry setting new standards on a world basis, to enable in-flight modelling of deep excavations or the construction of sand compaction piles, or fire controlled model earthquakes with a high-powered servo-hydraulic actuator. Since my last visit, there has been a strong growth in postgraduate student numbers, no doubt inspired by the frenetic construction activity that is as much the hallmark of Singapore as the amazing range and quality of food! Civil Engineering often has to fight for the recognition it deserves, in comparison with such trendy research areas as high-tech electronics, or medicine. However, Singapore s past and future infrastructure depends on cost-effective use of underground space and reclamation of coastal marshland, and other developing economies in the region will in turn depend on the techniques and understanding gained here. Painstaking experimental studies, where even a single journal paper may build on the results of several individual model tests, each with a cycle of 6 to 8 weeks from start to finish, is part and parcel of geotechnical research, and the group here is one of a number around the world who are at the forefront of this work. I trust that this visit, which has been most worthwhile and enjoyable for me and has led to a deep-seated respect for the quality of research here, will be the forerunner of many more visits and exchanges of researchers between the Geomechanics Group (and in particular our 4Centre for Offshore Foundation Systems) at UWA and the geotechnical researchers at NUS.

5 Outstanding University Researcher Award Professor Ng Wun Jern (CE Dept) received the Outstanding University Researcher Award from the Vice Chancellor Professor Lim Pin on 12 November Professor Ng (left) receiving the Outstanding University Researcher Award from Vice Chancellor Professor Lim Pin for contributions made in the field of cyclic technologies and wastewater treatment. He has actively disseminated R&D information on the technology and promoted its application in the region. In the former he not only worked on improving fundamental understanding of the technology but also developed design and operating protocols for applications of the technology. He is unusual among colleagues working in the area of cyclic technologies not only because he has been able to apply cyclic concepts to both aerobic and anaerobic systems but he was also able to bring both versions to full-scale applications. Examples of the latter can be found not only in Singapore but also in countries in the region and East Asia. In recognition of his contributions to the industry in this area of engineering, he and his co-workers were awarded the ASEAN Engineering Excellence Merit Award in Promotions Assoc Prof K Y Yong was promoted to full Professorship effective 1 October He received his BEng (1 st Class Hons) and his PhD from the University of Sheffield, England, under a Grouped Scholarship in Engineering and George Senior Fellowship. After joining NUS in October 1979, he served as Founder Director, Centre for Soft Ground Engineering ( ), Sub-Dean of Engineering ( ), and Deputy Head of Civil Engineering ( ). Currently he heads the Department of Civil Engineering (since July 1995) and is concurrently serving as Director, Office of Estate & Development, NUS (since March 1998). He also serves in the University s Committee on Management and Operations, and Resource Allocation Committee. His current research interests include the control of ground movements related to deep excavation in soft soils, deep foundation problems, and innovative land reclamation and ground improvement techniques. Over the past decade, he has received, as a Principal Investigator or Collaborator, over $6m of research funding from external bodies and NUS. Prof Yong has supervised/is supervising 20 Masters and 11 Doctoral students, and has published more than 130 technical papers in journals, conferences and chapters in books, including several Keynote Lectures. He is a corecipient of a Merit Award of the inaugural IES Innovation Award (1990) for Land Reclamation Techniques. He is on the Advisory Board of Geotechnical Engineering Journal, a Guest Editor of Journal of Engineering Geology, Elsevier Science and has served as reviewer for local and international journal papers. Currently, he is Advisor to three international conferences and a Member of ISSMGE Technical Committee TC30 on Coastal Geotechnical Engineering. He was a Visiting Scholar at Kyoto University, Cambridge University and the Port and Harbour Research Institute, Yokohama, Japan. Besides research, Prof Yong is also a dedicated lecturer who was awarded the Faculty of Engineering Teaching Excellence Award (TEA) in 1993, 1994 and In Professor K Y Yong. 1997, he was inducted into the Faculty s Hall of Fame for Teaching Excellence, an award given to staff who has won the TEAs on more than three occasions. Prof Yong s activities outside the University is wide-ranging. He is a Council Member of the Southeast Asian Geotechnical Society; Chairman of the Local Advisory Committee to Institution of Civil Engineers, UK; Chairman of 4th Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety and Health for the Construction Industry, Ministry of Manpower; Steering Committee Member, Construction 21 (C21), Ministry of Manpower and Ministry of National Development; Chairman/Member Interview Panel, Professional Engineers Board; and Chairman, Technical Committee for Review of CP4 Code of Practice on Foundation. He is also a Supervisory Board Member of Lands & Estates Organisation, MINDEF; Council Member of Ngee Ann Polytechnic Board of Governors; Council Member, Town Council of Sembawang and an Independent Director of a public listed company, BBR Holdings (S) Ltd. His expertise in soft ground engineering is widely sought after by major developers, consultants and contractors, and 5 he has provided expert advice on more than 100 major projects in Singapore, ASEAN and China.

6 Assoc Prof Chow Yean Khow was promoted to full Professorship effective from 1 October Professor Chow Yean Khow received his BSc Hons (First Class), MSc and PhD degrees from the University of Manchester in 1977, 1979 and 1981, respectively. After his doctoral studies, he practised as a geotechnical engineer with Fugro Limited (UK) involved in the design and installation of offshore foundations for Professor Chow Yean Khow over a year. He joined the National University of Singapore as a lecturer in He served as the Head of the Division of Geotechnical and Transportation Engineering from 1995 to He is currently the Deputy Head (Administration) of the Department. Professor Chow s main research interest is in the field of numerical methods in geomechanics, with special interest in the area of pile foundations. He has published over 100 technical publications, including over 60 in civil engineering news international refereed journals which are well cited. He is an Editorial Board Member of Computers & Geotechnics, and has served as a reviewer for 9 international refereed journals, principally in the area of geomechanics. Based on his active interest and contributions in the area of geomechanics, was recently invited to be a member of the Board of Directors of the International Association for Computer Methods and Advances in Geomechanics. He has served as external examiner of PhD theses from the University of Sydney, University of Western Australia, University of New South Wales and University of Queensland, and has also served on the International Advisory Committees of several international conferences. He is a Registered Professional Engineer in Singapore and is a Member of the Institution of Engineers Singapore, American Society of Civil Engineers and Southeast Asian Geotechnical Society. He has been active in the Institution of Engineers, Singapore serving as Secretary of the Publications Committee ( ), Editor of the Civil and Structural Engineering Issue of the IES Journal ( ) and member of the Civil and Structural Engineering Technical Committee ( ). He has also served on the professional interview panel of the Professional Engineers Board, Singapore. Assoc Prof Ng Wun Jern was promoted to full Professorship effective from 1 December Professor Ng received his BSc (Civil Engineering) from Queen Mary College, University of London in He then went on to earn his MSc Water Resources Engineering (1978) and PhD Civil Engineering (1980) from the University of Birmingham, UK. He subsequently spent time at Kyoto University, Japan to undergo training in Environmental Engineering. He joined the National University of Singapore as a Lecturer in January 1981 following his PhD studies. Professor Ng s research interests are in the areas of cyclic technologies (as applied to water and wastewater treatment) and water reclamation. He has written more than 200 papers and chapters for books on water and wastewater treatment with many of these in the area of cyclic technology. He is the joint author of two patents. Professor Ng developed a particular version of the cyclic technology, the aesbr, which is widely used in the region. He contributed towards its fundamental understanding and also developed design and operating protocols for its application. Professor Ng s efforts in cyclic technology R&D were recognized in 1999 by the university when he was presented with the Outstanding University Researcher Award. His interest in water reclamation has led him to being appointed a member of the expert panel on water reclamation. It has also led him towards interactions with academic colleagues working in other disciplines. This has led to the formation of the Water Infrastructure Program, a multi-disciplinary R&D program. Professor Ng is a registered professional engineer in Singapore. He is active professionally providing technical advisory services and conducting courses on wastewater engineering. Professor Ng Wun Jern Professor Ng has consistently interacted extensively with the pollution control industry. In recognition of his efforts at transferring developments in cyclic technologies to the industry, he and his co-workers were recognized with the ASEAN Engineering Excellence Merit Award in His interactions with the pollution control industry have become even closer since he founded the university spinoff company, Biotreat International. The company markets wastewater treatment systems designed on the basis of cyclic technology and other know-how developed by the R&D group, the Wastewater Biotreatment Group, he has worked with in the Department. Full-scale examples of such technology applications can be found not only in Singapore but also in the region and in East Asia. Prof Ng remains a director of the company. 6 Professor Ng is currently Vice-Dean (Administration) in the Faculty of Engineering.

7 New Appointment Dr Guo Junke, John, joined the Department as an Assistant Professor in the Hydraulic and Environment Division in early November. He received his BSc from Wuhan University of Hydraulic and Electric Engineering in He then spent three years in Tsinghua University Beijing for his MEng. He was a lecturer in Taiyuan University of Technology, Shanxi, China between 1986 and He moved to US for further studies in early He spent a year in University of Iowa. He then transferred to Purdue University in 1993 and obtained his MSc in Dr Guo received his PhD in civil engineering from Colorado State University in 1998, with the prestigious H W Shen Graduate Award of the Dr Guo was a teaching fellow in Colorado State University in 1998 where he taught Dynamics and Sediment Transport. Before he joined NUS, he was a hydraulic engineer in the California Department of Tran- sportation (CalTrans). Dr Guo s research interests focus on fluid mechanics and sediment dynamics. He has published about 20 papers in journals and conferences, including ASCE Journal of Hydraulic Engineering. He is an active member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the American Geophysical Union (AGU). Dr Guo Junke, John Staff Activities Assoc Prof E S Chan was appointed Deputy Director of Tropical Marine Science Institute (TMSI) effective from 1 October Assoc Prof Y S Choo has been elected to the grade of Fellow in the American Society of Civil Engineers for his professional achievements. Professor Y K Chow has been invited to be a member of the International Advisory Committee of the 10th International Conference on Computer Methods and Advances in Geomechanics to be held from 7-12 January 2001 in Tucson, Arizona, U.S.A. Professor T F Fwa was invited by the Korean Society of Pavement Engineers (KOSPE) as a special guest to the society s inauguration celebration, and the keynote speaker for the KOSPE Conference 99 held on 12 November 1999 in Seoul, Korea. Professor T F Fwa was invited by RITST (Research Institute for Transportation Science and Technology) of Vietnam as a special guest speaker for the 1999 Vietnam Scientific Conference on Transportation held in Hanoi on 28 August Assoc Prof C G Koh was invited to attend the US-Japan Workshop on Nonlinear System Identification and Structural Health Monitoring, Osaka, November Dr D H Lee was invited by the Utah State University to serve as a member of the external review panel in the Department of Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering Programme). Dr D H Lee has been invited to be the chair of transportation track in APORS 2000 (The Fifth Conference of the Association of Asian-Pacific Operations Research Societies within IFORS) to be held in Singapore, July Assoc Prof J Y Richard Liew was invited to serve as a Guest Editor for a Special Issue of Journal of Computeraided Civil and Infrastructure Engineering on High Performance Computing. Assoc Prof J Y Richard Liew served on the international scientific committee on Second International Conference on Advances in Steel Structures in December 1999 in Hong Kong. Assoc Prof J Y Richard Liew has been invited to serve as a committee member of the International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering - Working Committee 2 on Steel, Timber and Composite Structures from 1999 to Assoc Prof K C Gary Ong has been invited to serve on the Technical Committee of the Third International Conference on Concrete under Severe Conditions of Environment and Loading to be held in Vancouver, Canada in June Assoc Prof K C Gary Ong has been invited to serve on the Local Advisory Committee of the Fifth CANMET/ACI International Conference on Recent Advances in Concrete Technology to be held in Singapore in July Assoc Prof S L Ong has been invited to be a member of the Executive Committee of the Water Environment Federation located in USA. Water Environmental Federation is one of the world s largest professional associations in water and wastewater engineering.... continued on page 11 7

8 Publications. July September Ang, K K, C M Wang and L Yang, Vibration of general-shaped sandwich plates with laminated facings. In Proceedings of the First International Conference on Advances in Structural Engineering and Mechanics, August 1999, Seoul, South Korea. 2. Mansur, M A, T H Wee and S C Lee, Crushed Bricks as Coarse Aggregate for Concrete, ACI Materials Journal. 96 (4), Mansur, M A, Design of R/C Beams with Small Openings Under Combined Loading, ACI Structural Journal, 96 (5), Teoh, B K, M A Mansur, and T H Wee, Maximum shear strength of high strength concrete beams, Proceedings, First International Conference on Advances in Structural Engineering and Mechanics, Seoul, Korea, August, , Teoh, B K and M A Mansur, Modified Softened Truss Model for shear in prestressed concrete beams, Proceedings, Twelfth KKNN Seminar/ Workshop in Civil Engineering, KAIST, Taejon, Korea, August, , Tian, J, C M Wang, and S Swaddiwudhipong, Elastic buckling analysis of ring-stiffened cylindrical shells under general pressure loadings via Ritz method. Thin-Walled Structures, 35(1), Wang, C M, Deducing thick plate solutions from classical thin plate solutions. In Structural Engineering and Mechanics, August 1999, Lotte World Hotel, Seoul Korea, (Keynote Paper). 8. Wang, C M and G T Lim, Analysis of sectorial and semi-circular Mindlin plates via relationships with classical soultions. In Structural Engineering and Mechanics, August 1999, South Korea. 9. Wang, C M and Ang, C H, Moment value at centre of circular plates under central point load, Trans. ASME, J. Applied Mechanics, 66(3), Wang, C M, Y K Chow and Y C How, Bending of rectangular Mindlin rafts on elastic half-space. In Structural Engineering and Mechanics, August 1999, Seoul, South Korea. 11. Wang, C M, Lim, G T and Lee, K H, Relationships between Kirchhoff and Mindlin bending solutions for Levy plates, J. Applied Mechanics, 66(2), Visitors to the Department (Visitors who presented seminars are listed under seminars) When Who From Where 10 Sept Dr Tariq Mehmood National University of Science and Technology, Pakistan 6 Oct Professor Rafael Bras Head, Civil & Environmental Engineering, MIT Ms Patricia Dixon Senior Administrative Officer, MIT 18 Oct Mr Simon Lam Chairman of Shell Group and some senior staff members 21 Oct Dr James Tien Acting Dean, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York Ms Debra S Geer Director, Asian Advancement, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 16 Nov Professor Xiu Feng Gao Research Fellow, Department of Building and Construction, City University of Hong Kong 26 Nov Professor T Adachi Kyoto University 8

9 Seminars held. October December 1999 When On What By Whom 22 Sept Microstructure of Concrete and its Professor P Kumar Mehta influence on Properties Visiting Professor, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS and Professor Emeritus in Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, USA 24 Sept Volume Changes in Concrete - Causes Professor P Kumar Mehta and Control Visiting Professor, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS and Professor Emeritus in Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, USA 1 Oct Durability - Critical Issues for the Future Professor P Kumar Mehta Visiting Professor, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS and Professor Emeritus in Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, USA 2 Oct Assessment of Recent Advancements in Professor P Kumar Mehta Concrete Technology Visiting Professor, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS and Professor Emeritus in Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, USA 4 Oct Concrete Technology for Sustainable Professor P Kumar Mehta Development Visiting Professor, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS and Professor Emeritus in Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, USA 6 Oct Concrete Deterioration by Chemical Attacks Professor P Kumar Mehta Visiting Professor, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS and Professor Emeritus in Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, USA 7 Oct Structural Engineers in Society Mr Tan Ee Ping Principal, Tan Ee Ping & Partners, Singapore 8 Oct Optimum Bridge Management Strategy: Professor Dan M Frangopol Balancing Lifetime Reliability and Professor of Civil Engineering, University of Colorado, Life Cycle Cost Boulder, Colorado, USA 16 Oct Model Studies on Floating Structures Dr R Sundaravadivelu Associate Professor, Ocean Engineering Centre, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, India 30 Oct Combining Theories of Stability and Plasticity Mr Chen Hong for the Analysis of Multi-Storey Frames Research Engineer, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS 30 Oct Advanced Plastic Hinge Method for the Mr Tang Ling Kan Fire Resistance Design of Steel Structures Research Scholar, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS 5 Nov Performance of Offshore Foundation and Professor Mark Randolph Anchoring Systems in Soft Sediments Distinguished Visiting Professor, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS and Director, Centre for Offshore Foundation Systems, University of Western Australia, Australia 10 Nov Level of Service as Offered to Urban Assoc Prof S B Pattnaik Riders - A Case Study of Madras Transportation Engineering Division, Dept of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, India... continued on page 10 9

10 Seminars held. October December continued from page 9 When On What By Whom 12 Nov Hydroinformatics and Data-driven Modelling Dr Dimitri P Solomatine International Institute for Infrastructural, Hydraulic and Environmental Engineering 24 Nov Chloride and Water Transport in Concrete Mr James M Aldred with and without Admixtures Manager, High Performance Concrete Group, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS 26 Nov Recent Developments in Bearing Capacity Professor Mark Randolph of Foundations in Cohesive Soil Distinguished Visiting Professor, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS and Director, Centre for Offshore Foundation Systems, University of Western Australia, Australia 26 Nov The 921 Ji Ji Earthquake: Causes of Assoc Profs Lee Fook Hou, Liaw Chih Young and Damage and Destruction Quek Ser Tong Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS 26 Nov Filamentous Overgrowth and Control Mr Lin Hui in UCBR Research Scholar, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS 26 Nov Biological Stability of Water Produced Ms Wang Lu by Distillation Research Scholar, Dept of Civil Engineering, NUS 30 Nov Failures in Deep Excavation and Retaining Dr Wanchai Teparaksa Structures in Bangkok Subsoils and Department of Civil Engineering, Chulalongkorn Remedial Actions University, Bangkok Promotions New Appointments Professors Assoc Prof Chow Yean Khow, 1 October 1999 Assoc Prof Yong Kwet Yew, 1 October 1999 Assoc Prof Ng Wun Jern, 1 December 1999 Appointments Deputy Head Assoc Prof Koh Chan Ghee, Deputy Head (Research), 1 October 1999 Visiting Appointments Professor P K Mehta, Visiting Professor, 20 September - 8 October 1999 Professor Mark Randolph, Distinguished Visiting Professor, 1-29 November 1999 Assistant Professor Dr Guo Junke, John, 2 November 1999 Post Doctoral Fellow Dr Liu Wenjun, 18 October 1999 Research Scholars Mr Bian Yi - Computational Structural Dynamics Mr Chen Chuan - Construction Management Mr Chen Huibin - Structural Mechanics Mr Jiang Rongrong - Stability Design of Structures Mr Md Kabir Hossain Patoary - Concrete Beams with FRP Re-bars Mr Md Nazmul Islam - Torsional Behaviour of Reinforced Concrete Structures Mr Nie Yu - Geotechnical Engineering Mr Shaikh Faiz Uddin Ahmed - Corrosion Durability of Reinforced Concrete Mr Wei Chenhan - Polymer Concrete Ms Xie Hua - Geotechnical Engineering Mr Yang Li Ang - Geotechnical Engineering Mr Zheng Xiangyuan - Structural Engineering 10

11 SCI Honours Prof Paramasivam Singapore Concrete Institute (SCI) honoured Professor P Paramasivam as a life member of SCI (LSCI) in recognition of his contribution to the Institute and the industry. The award was presented by Dr N Y Ho, President of SCI during the 21st Anniversary celebrations of member nights at Mandarin Hotel on 21 October 1999 and attended by more than 300 members from various sectors of the construction industry. Professor Paramasivam has been serving the SCI Board of Directors from 1987 and was president from Vacancies The Department of Civil Engineering has vacancies for academic positions, Administrative Officer, Management Support Officer, Professional Officer and Laboratory Technologist. For details on academic positions, please refer to: For details on all other positions, please refer to: The application forms are available on the Department s website. Interested applicants are invited to send the completed forms, together with all supporting documents, to: Department of Civil Engineering National University of Singapore Blk E1A # Engineering Drive 2 Singapore Tel: Fax: cveclp@nus.edu.sg The Department is also looking for a Research Engineer to work on Traffic Monitoring System for Tactical Logistics Planning. The position is available for 2 years. The applicant should have an honours degree in engineering or computer science. He/ she will be conducting GPS field tests and performing computer simulations in traffic modelling. Professor Paramasivam receiving the award from Dr N Y Ho. Interested persons may contact either: - Dr Cheu Ruey Long (Tel: , cvecrl@nus.edu.sg) or - Assoc Prof Chan Weng Tat (Tel: , cvecwt@nus.edu.sg) Staff Activities... continued from page 7 Assoc Prof S L Ong has been invited to be a member of the International Scientific Committee on 8 th IAWQ (International Association on Water Quality) Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on Water Quality to be held in September 2001 in Japan. Professor P Paramasivam has been invited by University Sains Malaysia, Perak Campus, to serve as an external examiner in the School of Civil Engineering for the Master of Science (Structural Engineering) and Bachelor Degree Programmes for the academic year 1999/2000. Professor N E Shanmugam has been elected as a Fellow of The Royal Institution of Naval Architects (UK). The Royal Institution of Naval Architects is a world renowned and highly respected professional institution and learned society. Professor N E Shanmugam has been invited to serve as member in the Editorial Board of the new International Journal of Structural Stability and Dynamics to be published by the World Scientific Publishing Co Pte Ltd. Assoc Prof C M Wang is a co-editor of a new International Journal of Structural Stability and Dynamics, published by World Scientific Publishing Co Pte Ltd. The other editors are Professor Y B Yang (Dean of Engineering, National Taiwan University) and Professor J N Reddy (Distinguished Professor, Texas A & M University). The first issue will be launched in June Assoc Prof C M Wang was the Chairman of the Fourth Asia-Pacific Conference on Computational Mechanics, in Singapore, December 1999, organised by the Department of Civil Engineering and the Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering, NUS. Assoc Prof C M Wang was awarded the University Teaching Excellence Award The award is given only to the top 1% academic staff in each Faculty. Professor K Y Yong was appointed Chairman, 5th Advisory Committee on Occupational Health and Safety in Construction Industry by Ministry of Manpower for a 2-year term commencing November

12 conferences 2000 civil engineering news Jun th International Conference on Applications of Advanced Technologies in Transportation Engineering Professor T F Fwa. cvefwatf@nus.edu.sg, Tel: Sept th International Conference on Structural Failure, Durability and Retrofitting Assoc Prof Gary Ong Khim Chye. cveongkc@nus.edu.sg, Tel: Jul - 1 Aug 2001 Fifth CANMET/ACI International Conference on Recent Advances in Concrete Technology Professor P Paramasivam. cveparam@nus.edu.sg, Tel: To receive a complimentary copy of the Civil Engineering News, please contact: The Chairman Editorial Committee Department of Civil Engineering National University of Singapore Blk E1A # Engineering Drive 2 Singapore Tel: Fax: cveclp@nus.edu.sg 12 Advisers Professor K Y Yong, Head of Department. Professor Y K Chow, Deputy Head of Department (Admin) Editorial Committee Professor N E Shanmugam, Chairman. Assoc Profs M A Mansur. V Thevendran. Ms E Chia Printed by PHOTOPLATES PTE LTD