Increasing Community Resilience Through Improved Lifeline Infrastructure Performance

Christopher Rojahn1, Laurie Johnson1, Thomas D O'Rourke1

  • 1Christopher Rojahn is director emeritus of the Applied Technology Council (ATC). Laurie Johnson is principal, Laurie Johnson Consulting | Research. Thomas O'Rourke (NAE) is the Thomas R. Briggs Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering in the College of Engineering at Cornell University. Veronica Cedillos is president and CEO of GeoHazards International (GHI). Therese McAllister is leader of the Community Resilience Group and Steven McCabe is leader of the Earthquake Engineering Group, both at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

Bridge (Washington, D.C. : 1969)
|March 18, 2024
PubMed

Related Concept Videos

Applications of GIS: Disaster Management and Emergency Response01:29

Applications of GIS: Disaster Management and Emergency Response

Geographic Information System (GIS) technology is essential for risk identification, action prioritization, and resource optimization in critical situations like flooding and earthquakes. By integrating spatial and demographic data, GIS provides a comprehensive framework for emergency response.GIS integrates data layers, like rainfall intensity, topography, elevation profiles, and river levels, to model high-risk flood zones. These layers assess areas susceptible to flooding based on their...
78
Reclosers and Fuses01:26

Reclosers and Fuses

Automatic circuit reclosers enhance the protection of distribution circuits by interrupting and auto-reclosing an AC circuit according to a preset sequence. They effectively manage temporary faults on overhead distribution lines, often caused by tree limbs or wildlife, by briefly disrupting service to improve overall reliability. However, contact with reclosers or energized broken conductors on the ground can pose serious hazards.
A comprehensive protection scheme for radial distribution...
104
Line Protection with Impedance Relays01:27

Line Protection with Impedance Relays

Coordinating time-delay overcurrent relays in complex radial systems and directional overcurrent relays in multi-source transmission loops can be challenging. Impedance relays address these issues by responding to the voltage-to-current ratio, specifically measuring the apparent impedance of a line. These relays become more sensitive during faults as current increases and voltage decreases, thereby reducing the apparent impedance.
Under normal conditions, low load currents keep the measured...
79
Design Example: Analyzing Capacity Contours for Flood Risk Assessment01:17

Design Example: Analyzing Capacity Contours for Flood Risk Assessment

Flood risk assessment involves careful planning and analysis to ensure the safety of communities near water retention structures. Capacity contours are a vital tool in this process, as they illustrate the potential spread of water at specific levels in a given area. In the context of building a bund across a small valley, these contours play a critical role in evaluating the safety of nearby residential areas.In this example, the bund is intended to store stormwater in the valley. The engineers...
46
Transmission Line Design Considerations01:23

Transmission Line Design Considerations

Aluminum has become the material of choice for overhead transmission lines, surpassing copper due to its abundance and cost-effectiveness. The most prevalent type is the aluminum conductor, steel-reinforced (ACSR), which combines aluminum strands around a steel core. Other variants include all-aluminum conductors (AAC), all-aluminum alloy conductors (AAAC), aluminum conductor alloy-reinforced (ACAR), and aluminum-clad steel conductors. Advanced designs, such as aluminum conductors with steel...
134
Design Example: Alignment of a Road Line Using GIS01:17

Design Example: Alignment of a Road Line Using GIS

The alignment of a road line using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a critical process in civil engineering, combining advanced technology with practical decision-making. This methodology begins with the collection of geospatial data, including information on land cover, geomorphology, drainage patterns, slope, and contour details. Such data is typically acquired through satellite imagery and GIS tools, offering a comprehensive understanding of the terrain.Once the data is gathered, it...
48