The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is proud to offer the following courses for the current year. Semester offered and instructors are subject to change. Please contact the Department at (713) 348-4949 or ceve@rice.edu for verification. Courses listed in orange are required for the Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) of ABET accredited B.S. Civil Engineering Degree.
CEVE 101 - Fundamentals of Civil and Environmental Engineering (Fall) – Bedient
CREDITS: 3
This introduction will cover the essential topics and quantitative techniques in civil and environmental engineering. General engineering, engineering math, fluid mechanics, hydrology, statistics, and mass balance techniques will be presented followed by applications.
CEVE 202 - Sustainable Design Replaced with CEVE 302/502
CEVE 203 - Principles of Environmental Engineering Replaced with CEVE 310/510
CEVE 211 - Engineering Mechanics (Fall) – Loos
CREDITS: 3
The study of equilibrium of static systems, the dynamics of a particle and particle systems, and rigid-body dynamics. Required for mechanical engineering and materials science and engineering majors.
Cross-list: MECH 211
Pre-requisites: PHYS 101, 125 or 141, MATH 101 and MATH 102
CEVE 302- Sustainable Design (Fall) - Blackburn
CREDITS: 3
The objective of this course is to develop skills in formulating and solving problems of societal development and advancement in light of increasing material, energy and water demands and decreasing resource availability. Sustainable design requires balancing economic, elcological/environmental and social issues to create physical as well as social structures that will work for current and future generations. In addition to learning to apply sustainable design principals to individual engineering and development projects, students will be challenged to understand the application of sustainable design thinking at the municipal and corporate level. Graduate students will be required to undertake additional research assignments relative to sustainable design.
Cross-list: ENGI 302
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 502
CEVE 304 - Structural Analysis I (Spring) – Padgett
CREDITS: 3
Analysis of statically determinate structures; stability and determinacy; influence lines and deflections. Introduction to analysis of indeterminate structures by force and displacement methods.
Pre-requisites: CEVE 211 OR MECH 211
CEVE 307 - Energy and the Environment (Spring) – CohanCREDITS: 3
This course explores the physical principles of energy use and its impacts on Earth's environment and climate. Topics will include energy mechanics, climate change, and the environmental impacts and future prospects of various fossil fuel and alternative energy sources.
Cross-list: ENST 307, ESCI 307
CEVE 308 - Introduction to Air Pollution Control (Spring) – Griffin
CREDITS: 3
This course will discuss the history of air pollution and its effects as motivation for control of anthropogenic emissions to the atmosphere. Topics will include air pollution control strategies and regulations, predictive pollution concentration models, general ideas to reduce air pollution, and specific technologies to limit emissions of criteria pollutants and their precursors.
Pre-requisites: (CHEM 122 OR 152 and MATH 102 and PHYS 101, 111, 125 OR 141)
CEVE 310 - Principles of Environmental Engineering (Fall) - Alvarez
CREDITS: 3
This course covers principles of water quality engineering, air pollution control and solid and hazardous waste management. Elements of risk assessment, global atmospheric change, and pollution prevention are also addressed to contribute to adequate-level competency in Environmental Engineering. Graduate students will write a term paper and prepare a lecture.
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 510.
CEVE 311 - Mechanics of Solids and Structures (Spring) - Nagarajaiah
CREDITS: 3
Analysis of stress and deformation of solids with applications to bar beams and columns. Study of engineering properties of materials. Applying equilibrium, compatibility, and force-deformation relationships to structural elements. Introduction to flexibility and stiffness method of structural analysis.
Cross-list: MECH 311
Pre-requisites: CEVE 211, OR MECH 211
CEVE 312 - Strength of Materials Lab (Spring) – Nagarajaiah
CREDITS: 1
Instruction in standard tension, compression, and torsion tests of ferrous and nonferrous metals. Includes experimental techniques and the behavior of structural elements.
CEVE 313 - Uncertainty and Risk in Urban Infrastructures (Spring) - Dueñas-Osorio
CREDITS: 3
This course explores methods for practical risk-based decision support, particularly for infrastructure systems. Uncertainty quantification (UQ) to external events including natural hazards is at the core of risk-informed design, operation, and mitigation actions. UQ will also guide engineering practice in the future as established by ASCE. The course emphasizes decision theory, Bayesian approaches, risk analysis tools, and infrastructure safety
Cross-list: STAT 313
Pre-requisite: STAT 312 or STAT 310, or ECON 307, or ECON 382, or STAT 331, or ELEC 331
CEVE 314 - Sustainable Water Purification for the Developing World (Spring 2013) – Gordon
CREDITS: 1
This course is an introduction to several innovated methods of small scale water purification which are appropriate for implementation in the developing world. Through the different components of the course, students will acquire and hone a sustainable methodology for addressing global health problems at the local level.
Cross-list: BIOE 365
CEVE 320 - Ethics and Engineering Leadership (Fall & Spring) – Segner
CREDITS: 3
Seminar introduces students to a framework for discussing and making ethical engineering and business decisions. Using case studies and exercises, students will look at their own profession and its Engineering Code of Ethics as well as the issues and risks they may face as managers and executives. Graduate version: CEVE 529
Cross-list: ENGI 320
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 529
CEVE 322 - Engineering Economics (Fall & Spring) - Segner
CREDITS: 3
Introduction to the evaluation of alternative investment opportunities with emphasis on engineering projects and capital infrastructure. Time value of money concepts are developed in the context of detailed project evaluation and presentations. In addition, concepts and applications of risk analysis and investment under uncertainty are developed. Requires oral and written presentations by students.
Cross-list: ENGI 303
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 528
CEVE 334 - Building Workshop II (Spring) – Samuels
CREDITS: 3
Real-life problems dealing with design and construction.
CEVE 363 – Applied Fluid Mechanics (Fall) – Griffin
CREDITS: 3
Study of fluid properties, fluid statics, and incompressible fluid steady flow. Includes energy and momentum equations with many applications, similitude and dimensional analysis, and viscous fluid flow in pipe networks. Required for B.S.C.E.
Pre-requisites: MATH 212 and (PHYS 101 or PHYS 111 or PHYS 125 or PHYS 141)
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CEVE 400- Advanced Mechanics of Materials (Spring) – Stanciulescu
CREDITS: 3
Advanced topics in solid mechanics and strength of materials including energy methods, principle of virtual work, conservation laws, constitutive modeling, aspects of elasticity theory, stability and fracture mechanics with application to the analysis and design of reliable structures.
Cross-list: MECH 400
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 500
Pre-requisites: MECH 211 and MECH 311
CEVE 401 - Chemistry For Environmental Engineering and Science Lab (Fall) – Tomson
CREDITS: 4
Students will design and perform soil and water collection and extractions for trace concentration of organic compounds and heavy metals. This course covers basic statistics and EPA-certified software for inorganic and organic property estimations needed for data reduction and report writing. Most common measures of water quality are performed by students including pH, alkalinity, dissolved oxygen, and spectroscopic methods.
CEVE 404 – Atmospheric Particulate Matter (Alt. year Spring) – Griffin
CREDITS: 3
Description and examination of the processes determining the chemical and physical characteristics of atmospheric aerosol particles. Important focal points include aerosol measurements and control techniques and aerosol climate effects. Most attention will be paid to processes active in the troposphere, but important differences between the troposphere and stratosphere are addressed.
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 504
CEVE 405 - Steel Design (Spring) – Varadarajan Nadathur
CREDITS: 3
Design of steel members, connections, and assemblies. Behavior of a member as related to design.
Pre-requisite: CEVE 311
CEVE 406 - Intro to Environmental Law (Alt. years) – Blackburn
CREDITS: 3
Introduction to Environmental Law is intended to introduce the student to the methods used by the United States and the international community to regulate and / or allocate air, water and land resources. A key focus of this course will be the emerging area of the law of sustainable development, including the implementation of full price costing, life cycle analysis, carbon cycle analysis, allocation of assimilative capacity and other similar issues. Offered every other spring semester.
CEVE 407 - Reinforced Concrete Design (Fall) – Varadarajan Nadathur
CREDITS: 3
Introduction to design of reinforced concrete structures.
Pre-requisite: CEVE 311
Co-requisite: CEVE 408
CEVE 408 - Concrete Laboratory (Fall) – Nagarajaiah
CREDITS: 1
Instruction in tests of materials, reinforced concrete members and frames.
Co-requisite: CEVE 407
CEVE 411 - Atmospheric Processes (Fall) – Cohan
CREDITS: 1
Study of the chemical and physical processes that govern the formation, transformation, and transport of gases and particles in the atmosphere. Overview of urban and regional air pollution, including tropospheric ozone formation and particulate matter; stratospheric chemistry; and global climate change.
Graduate version: CEVE 511 Pre-requisites: CHEM 121 and CHEM 122 and MATH 101 and MATH 102 and (PHYS 101 or PHYS 111 or PHYS 125 or PHYS 141)
Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Level(s): Undergraduate
CEVE 412 - Hydrology and Water Resources Engineering (Spring) – Bedient
CREDITS: 3
Fundamentals of the hydrologic cycle, hydrograph techniques, flood routing, urban system, and open channel flow. Topics in ground water and well mechanics are covered. Includes computational hydrology, floodplain analysis, hydrologic design and local watershed applications. Environmental flows and water quality topics are also covered. Group presentations are required.
CEVE 417 - Finite Element Analysis – (Semester) – Akin
CREDITS: 3
An introduction to finite element analysis by Galerkin's method and the method of least squares as applied to both ordinary and partial differential equations common in engineering applications. Element interpolations, numerical integration, computational considerations for efficient solution and post-processing methods. Application of the commercial codes to ANSYS and Cosmosworks.
Cross-list: MECH 417
Pre-requisites: (MATH 212 or MATH 222) and (CAAM 210 or CAAM 211)
CEVE 418 - Quantitative Hydrogeology (Fall) – Dugan
CREDITS: 3
An
advanced course that will provide a quantitative overview of
groundwater hydrology. Emphasis will be placed on mastering concepts in
fluid mechanics and applying these concepts to water supply,
environmental, and geological problems.
Cross-list: ESCI 418
Instructor Permission Required
CEVE 420 - Environmental Remediation & Restoration (Alt. Years) – De Blanc
CREDITS: 3
Remediation principals and application of full-scale remediation for restoration of contaminated soil, groundwater, and surface water. Topics include mass balances and distribution of chemicals in environmental media; development of remediation goals through risk assessment; treatment technology selection criteria and costs; groundwater, soil and surface water restoration technologies; and regulatory considerations.
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 520
CEVE 424 - Time Dependent System Reliability Methods and Applications ((Fall/alt yr.) – Duenas-Osorio
CREDITS: 3
Students will learn modern computational simulation and theoretical techniques to assess the reliability of engineering systems as a function of their component probabilities of failure. The course will explore topics on time-dependent system reliability and will provide insights into load modeling, load combinations, and the role of normative design standards. Structural infrastructure components and their host systems will be emphasized and used as case studies. These include power system substations, wind turbines, bridges, and buildings. The graduate level course includes advanced exercises in homework and exams as well as a research-oriented final project. Graduate Equivalency: CEVE 524.
College: School of Engineering
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 520
CEVE 427 - Matrix Methods in Structural Mechanics (Fall) – Nagarajaiah
CREDITS: 3
Introduction to matrix structural analysis, trusses, beams, frames. Use of computer programs for structural analysis of Civil, Mechanical, and Aerospace Structures.
Cross-list: MECH 427Pre-requisites: CEVE 311 or MECH 311
CEVE 434 - Fate and Transport of Contaminants in the Environment (Fall) – Li
CREDITS: 3
Physical and chemical principles governing the fate and transport of contaminants in the aqueous and atmospheric environment, and the applications of such principles in environmental engineering. Previous course work in fluid mechanics and calculus through differential equations is strongly suggested.
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 534
CEVE 450 - Remote Sensing (Semester) – Jones
CREDITS: 3
Introduction to data display, statistical methods, system simulation, and geostatistics for environmental scientists. The course will emphasize the application of these techniques to real and simulated environmental problems. The lab will involve extensive computer use and the completion of a major individual project on a topic selected by the student.
Cross-list: ESCI 450
CEVE 452 - Urban Transportation Systems (Spring) – Gornet
CREDITS: 3
Survey of the operation characteristics of transport modes the elements of transportation planning, and the design of stationary elements.
CEVE 453 - Geographic Information Science (Fall) – Sawyer
CREDITS: 3
Introduction to geographic information systems (GIS) technology, mapping sciences, and spatial analysis. The course will include extensive computer use and the completion of a major individual project on a topic selected by the student.
Cross-list: ESCI 454
CEVE 454 - Computational Fluid Mechanics (Fall) – Tezduyar
CREDITS: 3
Fundamental concepts of finite element methods in fluid mechanics, including spatial discretization and numerical integration in multi-dimensions, time-integration, and solution of nonlinear ordinary differential equation systems. Advanced numerical stabilization techniques designed for fluid mechanics problems. Strategies for solution of complex, real-world problems. Topics in large-scale computing, parallel processing, and visualization.
Cross-list: BIOE 454, MECH 454
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 554
CEVE 455 - Numerical Methods For Partial Differential Equations (Spring) - Riviere
CREDITS: 3
This course covers various numerical methods for solving partial differential equations: aspects of finite difference methods, finite element methods, finite volume methods, mixed methods, discontinuous Galerkin methods, and meshless methods. Both theoretical convergence and practical implementation of the methods are studied for hyperbolic, elliptic, and parabolic problems.
Cross-list: CAAM 452
CEVE 460 - Bridge Engineering and Extreme Events (Fall/Alt. Years) – Padgett
CREDITS: 3
This course integrates information from various engineering and scientific disciplines to provide a rational basis for bridge design under regular and extreme loading. It provides an introduction to bridge engineering, including bridge systems, construction material, loading, and reliability-based design. Design, analysis, and retrofit for seismic and coastal threats will be introduced.
Recommended Pre-requisite: CEVE 304 and CEVE 311
Recommended Pre-requisite or Co-requisite: CEVE 407
CEVE 470 - Principles Soil Mechanics (Fall) – Cibor
CREDITS: 4
Index and classification properties of soil including soil classification systems, clay minerals and soil structure, compaction theory, engineering behavior and properties of soils including permeability, compressibility and strength, and design considerations. Required for B.S.C.E.
CEVE 476 - Structural Dynamic Systems and Control (Spring) – Nagarajaiah
CREDITS: 3
Introduction to structural dynamic systems. Linear SDOF and MDOF discrete systems, undamped and damped systems, free and forced vibration, dynamic response to periodic and arbitrary excitations, numerical evaluation of dynamic response, response spectrum and modal analysis Applications using MATLAB. Demonstrations and laboratory examples.
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 576
Pre-requisite: CEVE 311
CEVE 479 - Engineering Project Development and Management (Fall) – Segner
CREDITS: 3
Life cycle approach to project development and management, success factors, project planning, and economic analysis contracting, project communications, network scheduling techniques, pricing and cost control, risk management, organizational structures, professional ethics, and cases.
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 505
CEVE 480 - Senior Design (Spring) – DeBlanc
CREDITS: 3
The capstone design course in the Spring Semester will provide senior engineering students with a complete design experience including fundamental design issues in the major areas of the curriculum, small team experiences, project proposals, progress reports and presentations, design software and computations, major report writing, and a final presentation to the CEE faculty and an external jury of professional engineers. An established local firm will assist in teaching practical design methods and consultation with other faculty is required as part of the overall experience.
CEVE 481 – Introduction to Senior Design (Fall) – DeBlanc
Credits: 1
This will set the stage for Senior projects in the Spring Semester. Guest lectures on various engineering design topics and CAD training. Students will be divided into groups and projects introduced.
CEVE 484 – Environmental Risk Assessment & Human Health - Raun
Credits: 3
This course is a series of group projects. Student assessment is performed through quantification of the role and contributions of each student in the group and the overall strength of the project. Undergraduates will be members of the teams led by graduate students. The grading scale for each group will be separate. Graduate students will be graded on leadership as well as the other aspects of the project. Undergraduates will be graded on their ability to contribute to the group effort.
CEVE 490 - Special Study and Research (Technical Writing Course) (Fall) – TBA
CREDITS: Variable
Open to environmental science or engineering majors with permission of instructor. Written report required.
Cross-list: ENST 490
CEVE 492 - Modeling and Analysis of Complex Urban Infrastructure Systems – (Fall-Alt. years) – Dueñas-Osorio
CREDITS: 3
To introduce graph theory and optimization for characterizing complex networked systems; to study probabilistic tools for estimation of network failure modes given natural hazards or attacks; and to quantify the effects of network interdependencies and mitigation actions. Complex systems apply to the structure and dynamics of civil, mechanical, electrical, and bioengineering networks. The graduate level course includes advanced exercises in homework and exams as well as a research-oriented final project. Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 592
CEVE 496 - Offshore and Marine Systems (Spring) – Nagarajaiah
CREDITS: 3
Introduction to dynamics of offshore and marine systems, structures, drillstrings, marine risers, fluid forces, hydrodynamic forces, wind and earthquake forces. MATLAB programming and use of computer software. Demonstrations and laboratory examples.
CEVE 499 - Special Problems (Fall/Spring)
CREDITS: Variable
Study of selected topics including individual investigations, special lectures, and seminars. Offered upon mutual agreement of faculty and student. Please note each faculty member has their own section. Be certain you select the appropriate section for the faculty you are studying under.
Graduate/Undergraduate Equivalency: CEVE 599
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