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N.B.K.R Institute of Science and Technology (AUTONOMOUS)

Vidyanagar-524413, Nellore Dist. A.P., India Website: www.nbkrist.org, email: ist@nbkrist.org

Techno Quest 14-15

To provide a platform for the students in order

to exhibit their talent and also to improve their

communication skills, department has organized

Techno fest. Students from many other colleges

have participated enthusiastically. Apart from

improving communication skills, students have

gained technical knowledge while encouraging

the participants.

A field visit to swarnamuki barrage was

also conducted to enrich the students with

practical knowledge.

Volume: III Issue: II

July 2015

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PERSONALITY

What Is Personality Change?

We‟ve all wished we could be someone else,

whether it‟s just polishing a few dull spots in

our personality or fully rewriting the story of

our lives, Jay Gatsby-style. If you're a

procrastinator, you may have wished you could

be more productive; if you're gloomy, you may

have hoped you could be more optimistic; if

you're shy, you may have longed to be the life

of the party. Changing a core personality

trait (such as introversion) is difficult. But what

you can change is your behavior. It's never too

late to do what you want to do, and with a little

sweat and a little luck, you can break out of old

patterns and be just who you want to be.

ARTICULATE

Radiant cooling technology – Infosys,

Pocharam campus

Pic: Radiant Cooling system- Infosys, pocharam

campus

The Infosys Pocharam campus has an air

conditioning system which is 30-40% more

efficient than the conventional air conditioning

systems. This is possible with the radiant

cooling technology where a temperature-

controlled surface cools indoor temperatures by

removing sensible heat and more than half of

the heat transfer occurs through thermal

radiation. This has helped the coefficient of

performance (CoP) spike up as high as 8.

Stronger Concrete

At Purdue University, researchers are adding

cellulose Nano crystals derived from wood fiber

to concrete. Nano-reinforced materials typically

outperform conventional alternatives across a

range of mechanical and chemical properties -

among them strength, impact resistance, and

flexibility. When applied to construction

materials like concrete, they help to reduce a

structure‟s environmental footprint by requiring

less material to achieve a similar effect

Solar Furnace

Solar Furnace (Odeillo, France)

The nanocrystal additive can be extracted as a

byproduct of industrial agriculture, bioenergy,

and paper production. Its addition enhances the

concrete-curing process, the researchers say,

allowing the concrete to use water more

efficiently and without impacting its weight or

density significantly. Construction materials are

among the target applications for the additive,

Purdue associate professor Jeffrey Youngblood

says, but the team is still working to scale it up

from current dimensions of 1 foot tall by 6

inches in diameter, assessing data to standardize

and optimize the material‟s behavior.

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“We hope to be at a large test scale in a few

years,” he says.

The Odeillo solar furnace is the world largest

solar furnace. It is situated in Font-Romeu-

Odeillo-Via, in the department of Pyrénées-

Orientales, in south of France. It is 54 m high

and 48 m large, and includes 63 heliostats. It

was built between 1962 and 1968, and started

operating in 1970, and has a power of one

megawatt.

CURRENT TRACKERS

Drone Surveying During the past 50 years,

surveying and engineering measurement

technology has made five quantum leaps: the

electronic distance meter, total station, GPS,

robotic total station and laser scanner.

Unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) or drones

(also known as unmanned aerial vehicles or

UAVs) will be the sixth quantum leap in

technology. Although drones have been around

for a while, the technology has not yet been

widely used in the surveying and remote sensing

professions. But it soon will be, thanks to the

advent of practical, lightweight lithium polymer

batteries, low-cost drone technology,

lightweight digital cameras and advances in

close-range oblique aerial photography - of

which make the future of drones in land

surveying exciting.

There are two basic types of drones - fixed-wing

units with a brushless electric motor and a rotor

type that has between three and eight or more

brushless electric motors (commonly referred to

as multi rotors). The rotor units enable drones to

hover at a precise altitude and position and

operate in confined airspace. The technology for

both systems relies on the featherweight lithium

polymer battery that stores an incredible amount

of power and the brushless motors that have a

large variable speed range with good power at

all speeds, lightweight airframes and a simple,

hobby-type airplane radio controller. GPS and

altimeters enhance their capabilities. Small, on-

board video cameras with micro-video

transmitters enable pilots on the ground wearing

digital video headsets to “fly” as though they

were sitting in the pilot‟s seat.

A basic, eight-engine, multi rotor drone consists

of a lightweight airframe that resembles a spider

with the motors at the end of each leg. The

“body” of the spider contains a lithium-polymer

battery that sends power to small devices called

electronic speed controllers (ESCs). Each motor

has an ESC. The unit has a control system that

regulates the speed each ESC tells each motor to

rotate. The control system is operated by a

chipset equipped with an electronic gyroscope

that is about the size of a pencil eraser and by a

similarly small accelerometer chipset.

The operation is logical. For example, if the

drone is hovering and one side needs power to

level the craft, then the sensors detect the tilt

and the control system automatically adds

power to the engines on the low side. The

“pilot” on the ground can override the ESCs

manually with a radio to control flight. Half the

motors spin clockwise, and the others spin

counterclockwise. Yaw is accomplished by

changing the speeds of opposing motors to

create a very small torsion perpendicular to the

vertical axis without creating differential lift.

The control accuracy of a multi rotor drone is

extremely precise. Drones can fly at incredible

speeds horizontally or vertically, reach 400 feet

in a few seconds, hover and stop on a dime. I

have demonstrated my eight-engine, 18-pound

drone in conference rooms.

Until recently, most of the affordable drones

consisted of purchased parts “with some

assembly required.” I purchased my first drone

from Mikrokopter, a German company. The

instructions were in German, so I had to use

Google Translate to interpret them. The package

was a box of electronic parts that required

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dozens of soldered connections, and it took me

more than a month to assemble it. Huge demand

for drones has stimulated competition, and now

a multitude of companies are manufacturing

drones. The kits are much easier to assemble

than they were six months ago. Two other

substantial players in the market are DJI and

Hoverfly Technologies.

Drones will be a perfect platform for aerial

photography and remote sensing. The built-in

accelerometer and gyroscope that control flight

can also be used to simultaneously control

motorized camera mounts to keep the cameras

level and correct for undesired tip and tilt

caused by wind or a shaky pilot. Mikrokopter,

DJI and Hoverfly drone controllers allow the

uploading of GPS or Google Earth data to

compute flight path coordinates and automatic

route flights. The planning software also enables

the planner to enter specific routes, speeds,

altitudes and hover times over each point.

GLITTERATI

E. SREEDHARAN

Elattuvalapil Sreedharan, popularly known as

the “Metro Man”, is an Indian engineer who

played a key role in the building of the Konkan

Railway and the Delhi Metro. In India millions

of people are dependent on the public transport

and the credit for changing the very face of

Indian public transport goes to this enterprising

engineer. The man who began his career as a

lecturer in an engineering college appeared for

the Engineering Services Examination (ESE)

and joined the Indian Engineering Service

(IES). He first proved his ability as an engineer

when he was put in-charge of restoring a bridge

that had been damaged by a cyclone. He

executed the complete work within 46 days as

against the six months allotted to this task.

Recognized by the government for his

brilliance, he was made the in-charge for

planning and designing the Kolkata metro, the

very first metro in India. The next several years

saw him working with the single-minded

conviction to improvise the public transport

system in India. He had become such an

invaluable asset to Indian Railways that the

government let him know that his services

would be required even after he retired from

IES. Several national and international honors

have been bestowed upon him for his pioneering

works.

He received his early education from Basel

Evangelical Mission Higher Secondary School

after which he went to the Victoria College in

Palghat.

He chose to study engineering and completed

his Civil Engineering from the Government

Engineering College, Kakinada, Andhra

Pradesh.

In 1953, he appeared for the Engineering

Services Examination (ESE) conducted by the

Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and

cleared it. He joined the Indian Engineering

Service (IES) and was posted as a Probationary

Assistant Engineer in the Southern Railway in

December 1954.

He faced the first big challenge of his career

in December 1964 when a cyclone damaged the

Pamban Bridge in Tamil Nadu. The Railways

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allotted a period of six months for the repair

works while Sreedharan‟s boss wanted the work

done within three. Sreedharan, who was made

in-charge of the restoration, executed the work

in just 46 days.

In 1970, Sreedharan was assigned the

responsibility of implementing, planning and

designing the Kolkata metro, the first ever metro

in India. He was deputy chief engineer at that

time.

In October 1979 he joined the Cochin

Shipyard Limited, the largest shipbuilding and

maintenance facility in India. But at the time of

his joining, the agency was not performing well.

However, under Sreedharan‟s direction, the

agency flourished and launched its first ship

MV Rani Padmini in 1981.

He became the general manager, Western

Railway in July 1987. A couple of year later he

was elevated to the post of Member

Engineering, Railway Board and ex-officio

Secretary to the Government of India.

He retired in June 1990 but the government

informed him that his services would still be

needed and thus he was appointed the CMD of

Konkan Railway on contract.

The Konkan Railway project, which had 93

tunnels with a total tunnel length of 82 km and

involved tunneling through soft soil, was very

different from the typical Indian railway

projects. The total project covered 760 km and

had over 150 bridges. Under his leadership, the

work was completed in seven years.

He was later made the managing director of

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC). Again

he proved to be an extraordinary leader and all

the scheduled sections were completed within

their respective budgets, and by their target

time.

The phenomenal success of the Delhi Metro

made him a national celebrity and the

government honored him with many awards for

his relentless hard work and dedication. He

retired from service in December 2011.

The Government of India honored him with

the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian

award in the Republic of India, in 2001.

The Government of France bestowed upon

him The Order of Légion d'Honneur, the highest

decoration in France, in 2005.

Puzzles & Questions

1. An ideal payment is constructed with?

2. The minimum thickness of the base of a

flexible pavement is kept as?

3. The first recipient of Rajiv Gandhi‟s

„Khel Ratna‟ award is?

4. January 15th

in India is celebrated as?

5. What should be the pH value of water

for irrigation purpose?

EVENTS

CIVIL ENGINEERING ASSOCIATION

events to be held in next semester

1) BLOOD DONATION CAMP

2) ENGNEER’S DAY

Editorial Board

Editor: G.S. Harish, Asst. Professor

Sub Editors: N.Harish, Asst. Professor

Student coordinators: N.Harsha, III Civil

K.Sudhakar, III Civil

R.Ratna Manjusha, III Civil

Photos By: K.Subbaraman, IV Civil

For further information contact: cehod@nbkrist.org

www.nbkrist.org

E&OE (Errors and Omissions Excepted)

Answers: 1.Portland cement concrete 2.10cm 3. Vishwanathan Anand 4.Army Day 5. 6-8

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Vision of the Department

To promote excellence in civil

engineering education, enrich research and

provide quality professional service to the

society in all areas of civil engineering.

Mission of the Department

To provide a learner - centred

environment for students to gain

comprehensive knowledge in civil

engineering.

To provide a learning experience that

fosters an aptitude for research.

To provide graduates with contemporary

skills and tools required to excel in civil

engineering profession or alternate

fields.

To produce graduates to serve within the

constraints of complex needs of the

society with high integrity.

PEO’S

PEO 1: Graduates will be proficient in the

fundamental knowledge of basic science,

engineering science including mathematical

and computational skills appropriate for civil

engineering.

PEO 2: Graduates will be successful practicing

engineers in civil engineering and allied fields

or alternate careers using their technical

knowledge, team work, communication skills

and leadership qualities.

PEO 3: Graduates will be innovative problem

solvers within the realistic constraints of

economic, environmental , social , political ,

health , safety and sustainability impact s, and

serve the society as responsible professionals

with integrity

PEO 4: Graduates will engage in lifelong

learning within the profession or through higher

studies.

PO’S

An ability to apply knowledge of

mathematics, science, and engineering

An ability to design and conduct

experiments, as well as to analyze and

interpret data

An ability to design a engineering

system , component, or process

An ability to identify , formulate, and

solve engineering problems

An ability to use the techniques, skills,

and modern engineering tools necessary

for engineering practice.

A knowledge of contemporary issues.

The broad education necessary to

understand the impact of engineering

solutions in a global, economic,

environmental and societal context.

An understanding of professional and

ethical responsibility

An ability to function on multi-

disciplinary teams.

An ability to communicate effectively.

To embark on a career as an

entrepreneur or civil engineering

project manager/ consultants thereby

playing a very important role in

society.

A recognition of the need to be

successful in competitive examinations,

and an ability to engage in life-long

learning.

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