Research Facilities

Strength Laboratory

The Strength Laboratory is equipped with the necessary equipment and test facilities to carry out a wide range of tests on a variety of structures. Starting from fracture toughness and flexural modulus tests on small-sized concrete beams, a variety of other tests have been carried out in the laboratory. Fatigue tests have been carried out on 0.9 m diameter tubular T-joints applying a dynamic load of 1.3 MN at 0.2 to 5 Hz. Seismic testing has been carried out on 2.0m x 2.0 m x 0.20 m thick concrete slabs. Frictional holding strength tests have been carried out on offshore rubber clamps. Static and dynamic tests have been carried out on 40 ft long transmission tower poles and connections. Fatigue tests have been carried out on 50 ft. long transmission tower cables.

The major experimental facilities available in the strength and concrete laboratories consist of:

  • A high strength test 24m x 12m x 1m thick;
  • A cold room with an MTS load frame capable of applying a dynamic load of 275 kN;
  • A dynamic test bed cum shaker with a capacity 1.0 kN and frequency range of 1 to 2000 Hz;
  • One 2.7 MN capacity MTS actuator with a 70 gpm hydraulic power supply and control panel;
  • Two 1.3 MN capacity MTS loading frames and control panels with dynamic testing capabilities;
  • One universal test machine (Tinius Olsen with a capacity of 1.35 MN);
  • One 2.7 MN compression test machine (Soil Test Inc.);
  • Five hydraulic actuators having fatigue-rated load cells of capacities ranging from 10 kN to 1.3 MN;\
  • Two Keithley 706 scanners having 180 channels; and
  • A variety of recording and testing equipment including U9 Crack Microgauge, B&K 2032 Dual Channel Signal analyzer, HP 3497A data acquisition system with 9825A controller, HP 2968 16-channel instrumentation recorder, HP 3314A function generator and other signal conditioners.

Soil Laboratory

The Soil Lab has been used sparingly by grad students for research purposes (especially the direct shear devices and some minor equipment) but it is mainly equipped for undergraduate teaching purposes.

Major equipment:

  • Motorized direct shear devices (2)
  • Triaxial loader and cells
  • Mechanical sieve shakers (2)
  • Multi-bay consolidation apparatus (2)
  • Table top consolidation apparatus
  • Combination permeameters (constant/falling head)
  • Hand operated unconfined compression tester (2)

Minor equipment:

  • Liquid limit devices
  • Plastic limit kits
  • Shrinkage limit kits
  • Hydrometers
  • Compaction molds and test hammers
  • Hand vane shear tester
  • Mechanical vane shear tester (2)
  • Fixed type consolidometer
  • Volume sure apparatus
  • Malt mixers (4)
  • Mixer w/ 4L Bowel

Environmental Engineering Laboratory

The Faculty of Engineering has established a state-of-the-art environmental laboratory facility. Some of the equipment available for water analysis in the laboratory are total organic (TOC) analyzer, ultraviolet (UV) spectroscopy system, portable gas chromatograph (GC) with flame ionization detector (FID) and electron capture detector (ECD), and equipment for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD, solid, turbidity, alkalinity and nitrogen determination. Portable kits for water quality analysis, noise measurements, and indoor air quality measurements are also available in the lab. Laboratory is also equipped with sample preparation including extraction and digestion facilities.

For air quality analysis, the Environmental Engineering Laboratory has monitors and samplers to monitor sulfur dioxide in the ambient air and to collect samples on filter media using high volume samplers for total suspended particulate matter (TSP) and dichotomous inhalable particulate matters. Portable meteorological station with data logging facilities is also available in the lab.

The laboratory is currently used for teaching and research purposes. We offer undergraduate lab to civil engineering students and to graduate level to students in the Master of Applied Science Program. Graduate students use laboratory facilities to conduct research. At present a study on the mechanism of formation of trihalomethane is in progress while other students are using facilities to conduct research in soil remediation.

Asphalt Laboratory

List of Equipment or Access to the Equipment for Asphalt Materials Testing at MUN

  • Marshall mixture design and testing system
  • Asphalt mixture preparation equipment
  • ITS testing system (capable to SCB test)
  • Convection oven
  • Asphalt mixture volumetric and quality control testing system
  • Rotational viscometer
  • Universal testing system
  • Environmental chamber/materials conditioning room
  • Asphalt pavement fracture study system by image processing
  • Surface Free Energy Device
  • Dynamic Shear Rheometer
  • Atomic Force Microscope
  • Scanning Electron Microscope
  • TLC-FID