Individual Project

Structural engineering is a multi-faceted field full of fascinating issues. As a student, you may be yearning to learn more about a topic presented in class, or seeking to study a topic that your coursework doesn’t cover.

The individual project offers that unique learning opportunity. By providing the latitude to stretch beyond the boundaries of the course curriculum, students can explore more deeply an area of structural engineering that excites and inspires them. The individual project also gives students a chance to shine on their own, outside the group-focused work.

Topics may involve design, research, testing, investigation, and case studies. Work on the project begins in the fall and culminates early in the spring semester. Students prepare a written report and present their findings.

Past individual project topics include:

  • Design of a lateral force resisting system using self-centering, concentrically-braced frames
  • Evaluation of the Old Mill Road Bridge, Hellertown, Pa.
  • Behavior of a side plate-reinforced steel moment connection subjected to cyclic loading
  • 335 Commerce Drive field project: structural investigation
  • Performance of concrete-filled tubular flange girders for restricted and unrestricted depths
  • Structural design of a slow sand filter tank for Engineers Without Borders
  • Case study of a parking garage helical ramp collapse
  • Teterboro Airport de-icing facility design
  • Jucuapa Abajo Suspension Footbridge design
  • Post-tensioned concrete walls For seismic resistance
  • A case study of the Fallingwater repair and retrofit
  • Roller coaster design
  • Tensile fabric structures, design and analysis
  • Post-fire strength of pre-stressed steel tendons
  • Design of a timber frame house