Infrastructure Engineering - Theses
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ItemManufacture and properties of prepacked aggregate concrete( 1984)The properties of prepacked concrete have long been studied and compared with those of normal concrete, although very little is known about its strength and deformation behaviour. Either by experiment or theory these aspects have been described in different ways. This thesis describes some experimental programmes on prepacked concrete that include its manufacture and a study of its strength, deformation and failure mechanism. To compare these aspects, normal concretes having the same water-cement and aggregate-cement ratios were made and tested under the same condition. The experimental work investigates the use of different types of admixture in grout in order to improve the strength of prepacked concrete. Among them the expanding admixture was found to be most suitable. Data are presented on some properties of grout using different types of admixture at various sand-cement ratios. Along with the strength investigation, investigation on modulus of elasticity, creep and shrinkage were also carried out. Tests of creep and shrinkage reveal that the magnitudes of both in prepacked concrete were much lower than in normal concrete. Different aspects of the failure mechanism of prepacked concrete are also presented and discussed.
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ItemModelling the seasonal variation of groundwater recharge and yield of the Barwon Downs aquifer, south-western Victoria( 1996)The Barwon Downs Aquifer in south western Victoria has long been recognized to have extensive groundwater resources. It is also an important source of supply in Barwon Water's drought emergency management plan. An understanding of the aquifer behaviour in relation to its recharge and withdrawal rates is essential for sustainable development. The main aim of this modelling exercise is to evaluate the present groundwater use and estimate the maximum possible extraction from the aquifer without serious consequences, and hence evaluate the groundwater management options and possible augmentation of the Barwon Downs Wellfield. A 2-layer finite difference model is used in groundwater modelling, and a simple hydrologic model is used to estimate the groundwater recharge. The hydrologic and groundwater models were calibrated against potentiometric heads at 38 locations. Although further effort could improve the calibration results, the model calibration is deemed sufficient for the purpose of this study. In general the potentiometric heads simulated by this groundwater model are within 2 m of the recorded heads. The calibrated model has been used to investigate groundwater extraction under various options. The model suggests that continued withdrawal of 8,000 ML/year for 10 years may not be sustainable. However, continued withdrawal of 12,600 ML/year for a period of one or two years during drought is sustainable. The model further shows that a maximum emergency extraction of up to 40,000 ML/year over a one-year period may be sustainable provided that the wells are left to recover for a period of at least 10 years. The groundwater resources thus appear to be best limited to conjunctive use with surface water during droughts. The hydrologic model also estimates that the recharge rate to the aquifer is about 9% of the total rainfall, and that to the overlying layer is about 3% of the total rainfall.
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ItemDrawdown and river bank stability( 1999-05)Drawdown is the lowering of the water level, and can refer to the groundwater, or the level of a river. In this thesis it will generally refer to a river going from a high flow condition to a lower flow condition. The rate of drawdown is expressed as either the change in flow per unit time, or the change in stage per unit time. The later is of most importance in terms of bank stability. It is commonly thought that 'rapid' drawdown of river levels adversely affects river bank stability. This concern over river banks stems largely from work done following the failures of some earth dams once the storage had been drawn down. Little further work has been done in looking at whether the same approach can be used for assessing the likely impact of drawdown on river banks. Given this apparent lack of information and knowledge on drawdown failures, this work investigated the effect of drawdown rates on river bank stability, and in so doing a better understanding of the key parameters is gained. The task was approached from three angles. The first was an analysis of the historical records to see what the rates of fall prior to regulation were, and whether they had changed since regulation. The results indicated that it can not be shown conclusively that the rate of draw down has increased since regulation. They also show that there has been a marked change in the frequency at which drawdown events of a given size occur, particularly the high incidence of lower drawdown rates. The second approach to the investigation was the field work component. The focus of the field work was the response of the near bank watertable to changes in river level. Other data collected were soil particle size distribution, bank profile monitoring (through the use of photogrammetry) and permeability testing. The results of this work show that the near bank watertable was easily able to match the rate of drawdown seen in the river channel. The particle size analysis and permeability data confirm this observation. The third prong was the smallest and consisted of some very simple modelling which further showed that drawdown rate is not so critical for river banks. The findings of this thesis are that draw down at the current rates is not a factor in the failures observed on northern Victorian rivers. The rate of drawdown has not significantly changed since regulation, although the frequency at which specific rates of drawdown occur, has changed. Observational data shows that elevated and sustained nearbank watertable levels cause seepage failures that look like drawdown failures. Permeability is the key factor in the response of the near bank watertable and should be used as a guide to the maximum drawdown rate.
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ItemFacilitating the use of cadastral data through the World Wide Web( 1998-11)Over recent years the cadastral industry has become increasingly reliant on digital data. Many surveyors now submit digital survey plan data to accompany the legally required hardcopy maps and documentation, although it will not be long before total digital lodgement will be possible. In this environment it will be ideal to capitalise on computer networking technology such as the present day Internet and World Wide Web (WWW) to better facilitate the transmission of digital data. This work provides a study of the current climate in the cadastral industry and further identifies how the Internet and its related technologies can be used to facilitate the transmission of digital cadastral data. The focus is to provide a prototype application that facilitates these data transactions in the most effective manner that benefits both user and data provider. This involves a study of the different underlying Internet technologies and how they can be used within the cadastral context. The work presents how the Internet and the WWW can bring benefits in the form of increased data distribution, and, in data integration and update for data maintainers, who need efficient ways of passing digital data to and from different locations.
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ItemA metadata management system for web based SDIs( 1998-12)The process of decision making is best undertaken with the consideration of as much information as possible. One way to maximise the amount of information that is being used in the process is to use metadata engines. Metadata engines can be used to create virtual databases which are a collection of individual datasets located over a network. Virtual databases allow decisions to be made using data from many different data bases at many different locations on a network. They shield the user from this fact. From the users point of view they are only using data from the one location. This thesis investigates some of the concepts behind metadata engines for Internet based Spatial Data Infrastructures. The thesis has a particular emphasis on how metadata engines can be used to create virtual databases that could be of use in the planning and decision making processes. The thesis also investigates some current spatial data technologies such as SDIs, data warehouses, data marts and clearing houses, their interoperability and their relationship to metadata engines. It also explores some of the more recent spatial data applications that have been developed in the context of metadata engines and Spatial Data Infrastructures.
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ItemThe digital lodgement of cadastral survey data in Victoria( 1998-12)An integral part of the Victorian land registration system is the lodgement of cadastral data. Originally data was lodged to support the operation of the land market and the legal rights of the individual owner. The purpose for which it was designed, coupled with the technology that was available at the time, resulted in a paper based system of plans and indexes. Due to many external factors, the current land registration system has essentially remained the same for the past 130 years. However the need for cadastral information means that plan lodgement now serves a wider range of needs, and although changes have been made to the system, it would seem that document-based systems are reaching the limit of cost-effective improvement. A detailed study of the Victorian system of data lodgement has shown there to be several inefficiencies within the system, many of which would benefit by the shift to a digital environment. Research has also shown that the Victorian surveying profession is actually quite prepared to adapt to a digital environment, with many surveyors already preparing or submitting plans digitally. Other jurisdictions that are experiencing similar problems to Victoria have progressed substantially in this area and form ideal examples to learn from. The study of these jurisdictions has shown that although technically the process of lodging data in a digital format is quite straightforward, there are still many technical and legal problems that must be resolved. It is envisaged that in the future, data be lodged in a digital format, which would involve there-engineering of the Victorian land registration system as we know it. This thesis explores the concept of the lodgement of cadastral survey data in a digital format, the issues associated with such a change and the long term benefits it will provide to the surveying, mapping and land development industries.
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ItemDispute Resolution for Customary Lands in Fiji( 1999-02)ivThe rapid increase of land development, the increase in population and theexploitation of natural resources have caused great concern to mostgovernments in the world today. Land and land tenure systems are the keyelements and the key forces which shape the society. However, theconstraints of the land tenure system and the effects of rapid economicdevelopment are visible throughout the world today, especially in lessdeveloped countries. Therefore land problems often break out as disputes. Inthis context, this thesis concentrates on customary land tenure and thecustomary land problems in Fiji.The main purpose of this thesis is to propose an alternative centre for theadministration and management of customary disputes, which will utiliseland information and geographical information to its maximum capabilities.It is anticipated that this model would assist customary landowners, landadministrators and land managers to resolve customary land disputes. TheFiji customary land tenure system is examined, in particular, landownership,land boundaries and land administration. These three topics are discussedindividually and then discussed as a basis of land disputes. It is in these threeareas that a procedure is developed into a system that may help in customaryland dispute resolution.This thesis aims to assist all other countries with customary land tenureproblems, especially those countries of the South Pacific that share the sameprinciples and the same flexibility.
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ItemTravel time budgets in an urban area( 1994-04)It is important to the future of Melbourne that its development should take the direction of the most benefit to those who live in the city and those who may live here in the future. The current patterns of urban development, which are based on use of previously undeveloped land on the fringes of the suburban area, are now being criticised as being uneconomic in terms of cost of providing infrastructure, the use of natural resources and the waste of time for residents who must travel for long distances. (For complete abstract open document)
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ItemAcute respiratory disorders and exposure to airborne contaminants in primary aluminium production( 1992)This report reviews the incidence of acute respiratory disorders in workers involved in production processes related to primary aluminium smelting, focusing on occupational asthma. Workplace exposure data quantifying contaminants capable of inducing respiratory disorders are presented. Possible sources of contamination include hydrogen fluoride, sulphur dioxide and fine dust fractions containing recycled impurities from emission control systems. Currently available control strategies based on these quantitative results are assessed. Critical comment is made on procedures currently in place to control workplace exposure and suggestions for improving engineering and work practices are summarised.
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ItemNon-current data and land information systems( 1986)Within the larger Land Information Systems (LIS) being developed in this is likely that several thousand records per day will be and thus become non-current. In order to minimise system country, it superceded, operating costs, the logical solution is to delete these data when they cease to be current, however this ignores any present or future value which they might have to other users. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the problems of non-current data produced in a LIS, such as: identifying the users; the law affecting records disposal; deciding which data are worthy of preservation; storage methods; costs and benefits; and the present policies being adopted by organisations establishing LIS, with respect to this subject. In addition, the practical aspects of archiving superceded graphical data were investigated during development of an historical Digital Cadastral Data Base - a system capable of displaying the parcellation of a region at any point in time since first settled.