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Civil & Environmental Engineering News

UW Crest with engineering background
September 5, 2024

Inspired by UW methods, FEMA’s new floodplain forecast looks clear

For an expansive effort to remap floodplains across the United States, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are drawing on a University of Wisconsin-Madison engineer’s…

Zhaohui Liang works on a control unit
September 4, 2024

In the back yard, autonomous lawn mowers on the horizon

Set it and forget it. That’s the wish of every homeowner who’s trying to fit mowing the lawn into an already busy weekend. It’s also the logic driving (pun intended)…

postdoctoral researcher Wissam Kontar and PhD student Erin Bulson
August 6, 2024

A more digestible CO2 calculator swaps cheeseburgers for carbon

A new study authored by University of Wisconsin-Madison engineers introduces public audiences to the carbon dioxide (CO2) emission impact of different modes of transportation through a simple online calculator. To…

Corn field
July 16, 2024

Upcycling discarded plants: New UW-Madison center to harness energy, nutrients from biomass

The nonprofit Schmidt Sciences and the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) have selected a multi-institution group of researchers to establish the new Center for Mineral and Metal Oxide…

Consortium for Holistic Steel Systems members John Klein, Hannah Blum, Andrea Hicks and Thomas Sputo
June 27, 2024

With a strong foundation, new steel consortium at UW-Madison blends sustainability with structural integrity

A new research consortium at the University of Wisconsin-Madison leverages structural engineering research excellence and the applied experience of industrial partners. Hannah Blum, an associate professor of civil and environmental…

Christy Remucal
June 5, 2024

Finding PFAS: New Center of Excellence will amplify ability to detect and identify ‘forever chemicals’

Federal support is helping the University of Wisconsin-Madison broaden its ability to study potentially harmful “forever chemicals” that are infiltrating our soil and water. Christy Remucal, a professor of civil…

WiscWind team members demonstrate their wind turbine during 2024 Collegiate Wind Competition
May 21, 2024

Offshore wind: UW–Madison undergrads win national award with design for floating wind turbines on Lake Michigan

Winds on the Great Lakes could provide more than enough clean energy to meet the needs of the eight bordering states, yet logistical, social, and environmental challenges have stymied development…

April 10, 2024

With NSF CAREER award, Pujara studies the motion of marine pollution

Every year, millions of tons of human-made garbage ends up in the world’s oceans and major lakes. Some of it sinks to the bottom, while other trash floats out to…

A CEE student checks a concrete specimen for cracks
March 18, 2024

Cracks in the code: Parra-Montesinos tests structural code revisions in structures lab

One structural engineering professor’s research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison may inform how concrete building codes are set for structures across the country. Professor Gustavo Parra-Montesinos has conducted a series…

CEE students students Maya Pardanani, Kris Alvarado, Clara Zwolanek, Dylan Schindler and Rachael Heck
March 18, 2024

Student team tackles deep challenge in northwestern Wisconsin lake

Day by day, sand piles up on Lake Altoona’s lakebed. It’s a problem that builds over time and beneath the surface, making the 840-acre reservoir less suitable for fish and…