Structures
Welcome to the web page for the Structures and Materials Program in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at ASU. The Structures Program at Arizona State University encompasses a multitude of areas such as structural analysis and design, steel and concrete structures, timber and masonry structures, matrix and computer methods, buildings, bridges and dams, power plant design, wind analysis and design, finite element method, earthquake analysis and design, stability of structures, nonlinear structural analysis, structural failure, prestressed concrete structures, lifeline analysis and design, applied optimal design, probabilistic methods, structural dynamics, composite materials, stress analysis, cement based materials, experimental methods etc.
Recent graduates have been employed in a variety of different organizations and companies both in the private and the public sector. Job opportunities include small and large consulting firms that deal with structural analysis and design, federal agencies and laboratories such as Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Bureau of Reclamation (BUREC), Corps of Engineers, Air Force, Army, Navy, NASA, U.S.Geological Society, Sandia Labs etc., state agencies such as Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT), county and city engineering offices etc., large companies such as Shell Oil, Boeing, Honeywell, Motorola, Intel, Ford, General Motors etc. and small companies that deal with structural problems. As can be seen by the list, the employment and career opportunities span the spectrum and are not limited to certain specialty government agencies or private sectors, or to certain geographical regions.
- Apostolos Fafitis, Associate Professor
- Barzin Mobasher, Professor
- Aditi Chattopadhyay, Professor
- Hanqing Jiang, Assistant Professor
- Subramaniam Rajan, Professor (Specialty Area Coordinator)
- Avinash Singhal, Professor Emeritus
- Marc Mignolet, Professor
- Pedro Peralta, Associate Professor
STRUCTURES COURSES
Undergraduate Structures Courses
- CEE321 Structural Analysis & Design
- CEE420 Steel Structures
- CEE421 Concrete Structures
- CEE423 Structural Design
- CEE432 Developing Software for Engineering Applications
- CEE515 Design and Behavior of Portland Cement Concrete Mixtures
- CEE521 Stress Analysis
- CEE522 Experimental Stress Analysis
- CEE524 Advanced Steel Structures
- CEE526 Finite Elements for Engineers
- CEE598 (Web-based) Finite Elements for Engineers
- CEE527 Advanced Concrete Structures
- CEE530 Prestressed Concrete
- CEE532 Developing Software for Engineering Applications
- CEE533 Structural Optimization
- CEE536 Structural Dynamics
- CEE537 Advanced Finite Elements
- CEE598 Structural Design
STRUCTURES PROGRAM GRADUATE MANUAL
The General Requirements for the Graduate Programs are available in the main page.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
If the applicant does not have an undergraduate degree in civil engineering, the following deficiencies constitute the minimum requirement. Additional requirements may be placed based upon the applicant's background.
- Sufficient courses in Mathematics including but not limited to Calculus, Differential Equations, and Linear Algebra.
- CEE211 Engineering Mechanics: Statics and Dynamics.
- CEE213 Introduction to Deformable Solids or equivalent.
- CEE321 Structural Analysis or equivalent.
- CEE353 Civil Engineering Materials or equivalent.
- CEE420 Steel Structures or equivalent, and/or CEE421 Concrete Structures or equivalent.
The graduate structures courses (taught in CEE and MAE) and some of the recommended courses outside the structures area are listed below.
Graduate Structures Courses
- CEE515 Design and Behavior of Portland Cement Concrete Mixtures
- CEE521 Stress Analysis
- CEE522 Experimental Stress Analysis
- CEE524 Advanced Steel Structures
- CEE526 Finite Elements for Engineers
- CEE527 Advanced Concrete Structures
- CEE530 Prestressed Concrete
- CEE532 Developing Software for Engineering Applications
- CEE533 Structural Optimization
- CEE536 Structural Dynamics
- CEE537 Advanced Finite Element Analysis
- CEE598 Structural Design
Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering
- MAE512 Random Vibrations
- MAE515 Structural Dynamics
- MAE523 Fracture Mechanics
- MAE524 Theory of Elasticity
- MAE525 Mechanics of Smart Materials and Structures
- MAE541 CAD Tools for Engineers
- MAE544 Mechanical Design and Failure Prevention
- MAE557 Mechanics of Composite Materials
- MAE591 Constitutive Relations and Material Behavior
Courses Qualifying for the Minor Area Requirement
Civil Engineering
- CEE598 Foundations
- CEE553 Advanced Soil Mechanics
- CEE555 Applied Soil Mechanics
Industrial Engineering
- IEE572 Design of Engineering Experiments
- IEE578 Regression Analysis
- IEE582 Response Surfaces and Process Optimization
Chemical and Materials Engineering
- MSE512 Analysis of Material Failures
- MSE513 Polymers and Composites
- MSE516 Mechanical Properties of Solids
- MSE540 Fracture, Fatigue, and Creep
Computer Science & Engineering
- CSE526 Parallel Processing
- CSE570 Advanced Computer Graphics I
- CSE573 Advanced Computer Graphics II
Courses Qualifying for the Math Requirement
Engineering Mathematics
- MAE501 Linear Algebra in Engineering
- MAE502 Partial Differential Equations in Engineering
Mathematics
- MAT521 Iterative Methods
- MAT523 Numerical Optimization
- MAT524 Parallel Numerical Algorithms
- MAT530 Numerical Solution of Ordinary Differential Equations
- MAT533 Computational Elliptic and Parabolic Differential Equations
- MAT576 Theory of Partial Differential Equations
Students may petition their GSC if they intend to take a course outside of the abovementioned list and have that course included in the Program of Study (POS).
The advisor, in consultation with the student, will establish a Graduate Supervisory Committee (GSC). The GSC shall be composed of a minimum of three members from the CEE tenure-track faculty with at least two being from the Structures Group. Participation of individuals from institutions external to the ASU is encouraged but these shall be non-voting members. The advisor shall serve as the chair of the GSC.
The Program of Study (POS) must be in accordance with Graduate College and Civil Engineering Department requirements. The candidate must complete at least 30 semester hours of approved course and research work distributed as follows:
1) at least fifteen (15) hours of Graduate Structures courses
2) at least three (3) but no more than six (6) hours in a minor area
3) at least three (3) but no more than six (6) hours of mathematics
4) not more than three (3) hours of CEE590
5) 6 hours of thesis (CEE599)
The Graduate Supervisory Committee (GSC) shall consist of all tenure-track Structures faculty. The advisor shall serve as the chair of the GSC.
The Program of Study (POS) must be in accordance with Graduate College and Civil Engineering Department requirements. The candidate must complete at least 30 semester hours of approved course work distributed as follows:
1) at least twenty one (21) hours of Graduate Structures courses
2) at least three (3) but no more than six (6) hours in a minor area
3) at least three (3) but no more than six (6) hours of mathematics
A final comprehensive exam is administered by the Structures Group two weeks before the end of the Fall and Spring semesters. The final exam is a two-part exam. Part A consists of material from mathematics, structural analysis and stress analysis. Part B consists of material from steel and concrete design. Both Part A and Part B are 4-hour open book exams. The GSC decision on whether to pass or fail the student will be based on the results from the comprehensive exam. A student who fails the comprehensive exam the first time may petition to retake the exam once more no earlier than the next semester when the exam is scheduled.
Qualifying Examination
The purposes of the qualifying examination are to assess if the student is qualified to continue in a Structures doctoral program and to detect deficiencies in the student's background that can be corrected by appropriate course work and/or individual study. With this understanding, the qualifying examination is to be taken by the student early in his or her residence, but no later than the second semester of residence. Students with an M.S. degree from ASU may be exempted from taking this exam at the discretion of the Structures faculty. Examination content will include relevant topics from undergraduate and first year graduate course work designated by the Structures Group who shall participate in formulating, grading and reviewing the exam. The exam will normally be administered once a year.
Dissertation and Program Committee
The Graduate Supervisory Committee (GSC) shall consist of at least four tenure track ASU faculty as follows:
1) Advisor (GSC Chair).
2) At least one additional member from the Structures Group.
3) At least one faculty outside the student's general area of research.
Additional suitably qualified members from outside of ASU may be included in the committee at the discretion of the GSC. A change in the GSC requires the change be in writing with both the current and the new advisor formally informed of the change.
Comprehensive Exam
The comprehensive exam shall consist of two parts:
1) An examination of the student's competency in his/her major and minor areas of study and mathematics.
2) A written and oral report on the student's proposed research.
The format of the exam is established by the GSC and includes both written and oral components. The student will be required to present to the GSC a brief written description of the proposed research, anticipated approaches, expected results and projected research contributions.
The candidate will also be required to give an oral presentation of the proposed research and to defend the research topic to the GSC. If the student fails the exam, he/she may petition to retake the exam one more time no earlier than 4 months following the exam.
Final Oral Exam (Dissertation Defense)
If the student fails the exam, he/she may petition to retake the exam one more time no earlier than 4 months following the exam.
RESEARCH
Under construction. Please check faculty web pages for more information.