Steel is the most recycled material in the world. But there are questions as to whether structural steel can be safely reused in buildings and, if so, under what conditions.
A multidisciplinary team involving Jennifer McConnell and Thomas Schumacher in Civil Engineering and Erik Thostenson in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science have been awarded a three-year $300,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to lay the foundation for a new paradigm to reuse structural steel members in contrast to recycling them.
In this project, the Multifunctional Composites Lab will investigate the use of smart sensing skins for monitoring construction-induced stresses in buildings. (read more)