• ERDC Alumni Association awards scholarships to nine high-school graduates

    Each year, the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) Alumni Association presents scholarships to local high-school graduates. This year, nine students were recognized for their leadership, dedication and academic excellence.
  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issues Finding of No Significant Impact in the Draft Supplemental Environmental Assessment for the Duval County Shore Protection Project

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Jacksonville District and U.S. Department of Interior (DOI), Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), issue the Notice of Availability (NOA) of the Draft Supplemental Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Proposed Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for the Duval County Shore Protection Project (SPP), Duval County, Florida.
  • USACE Louisville District welcomes Maj. Adam Cartier as new deputy commander

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Louisville District welcomed Maj. Adam Cartier as the new deputy
  • Cotton Hill Campground Reopens Following Major Utility Upgrades

    Cotton Hill Campground, a full-service recreation site on the shores of Walter F. George Reservoir, will officially reopen to the public on Saturday, June 28, 2025, at 7:00 a.m., just in time for the peak summer season.
  • From Construction to Conservation: One Family’s Legacy of Service at Libby Dam

    As part of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle District's commemoration of 50 years of operations at Libby Dam, Montana, Natural Resource Manager Tana Wilson shares her family's legacy of service from construction to conservation, today.
  • A Field Sampling and Analysis Protocol for Assessing Occupational Exposure and Risk from Military Munition Storage Magazines

    Abstract: An occupational health study was conducted inside reinforced-concrete earth-covered munitions storage magazines at Fort Wingate Depot Activity. HEPA vacuuming of bulk dust and wipe sample verification post-vacuuming was used. In Phase 1, no explosives detections exceeded site-specific screening criteria. In Phase 2, no exceedances were noted for detected explosives with criterion. Using structure/ reactivity characteristics within the explosives category, surrogates were assigned to the six explosives without occupational health screening criteria. Based upon structural similarities within the analysis category, assignments of surrogates to explosives without criteria did not adversely impact the conclusions. In Phase 1, lead was detected in bulk dust in all igloos, and all exceeded the applicable criterion for commercial/industrial workers. In Phase 2, all lead detections in wipe samples were below the wipe screening criteria. Results indicated the ECM interiors posed no unacceptable dermal occupational risk for explosives or lead residues following bulk dust removal. HEPA filter vacuuming of interior bulk dust in ECMs at FWDA reduced occupational risk/hazard for exposure via inhalation and dermal contact under worst-case exposure conditions. Both phases of sampling are widely applicable, provided the site-specific assumptions made for this study are evaluated for suitability to another specific application and adjusted if needed.
  • Graphene-Coated Sand for Enhanced Water Reuse: Impact on Water Quality and Chemicals of Emerging Concern

    Abstract: This paper investigates the potential of graphene-coated sand as an advanced filtration medium for improving water quality and mitigating chemicals of emerging concern in treated municipal wastewater, aiming to enhance water reuse. The study utilizes three types of sand coated with graphene to assess the impact of surface morphology, particle shape, and chemical composition on coating and filtration efficiency. Additionally, sand coated with graphene and activated graphene coated sand were both tested to understand the effect of coating and activation on the filtration process. The materials were characterized using digital microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction analysis. The material’s efficiency in removing turbidity, nutrients, chemical oxygen demand, bacteria, and specific CECs was studied. Our findings indicate that GCS significantly improves water quality parameters, with notable efficiency in removing turbidity, COD, and bacterial contaminants. The study also highlights the material’s capacity to remove challenging CECs like Sulfamethoxazole and Diphenhydramine, showcasing its potential as a sustainable solution for water reuse applications. This research contributes to the field by providing a comprehensive evaluation of GCS in water treatment, suggesting its potential for removing CECs from treated municipal wastewater.
  • Analytical Solutions for Coupled Hydromechanical Modeling of Lateral Earth Pressures in Unsaturated Soils

    Abstract: Lateral earth pressures in unsaturated soils undergo variations with changes in suction due to infiltration. The infiltration-induced alterations in the pressure head present a coupled hydromechanical problem, where interactions between solids and fluids influence the outcomes. However, existing analytical solutions for determining lateral earth pressures in unsaturated soils do not consider the effects of hydromechanical modeling. This paper presents analytical solutions for coupled hydromechanical modeling of lateral earth pressures in unsaturated soils. For this purpose, an analytical solution for coupled hydromechanical modeling of one-dimensional (vertical) infiltration is integrated into effective stress-based formulations for at-rest, active, and passive earth pressures of unsaturated soils. The solutions are presented for two cases: with and without a consequential drop in groundwater levels during infiltration. The results are verified by comparing them against those obtained from the finite difference method. The findings demonstrate significant differences between coupled and uncoupled results for pressure head and lateral earth pressures for fine-grained soils (characterized by small Gardner’s coefficients) and during transient (short time) conditions. The comparison of analytical and numerical results was very close for both cases and thus illustrates that the Laplace Transform is an accurate and robust method for determining analytical solutions for this problem.
  • Corps of Engineers makes additional changes at Lac qui Parle Dam

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, is making additional water level changes at its Lac qui Parle Lake Dam, near Watson, Minnesota, due to ongoing rain within the basin.
  • As Willamette Valley reservoir levels drop, USACE holds virtual info session

    Responding to less-than-expected precipitation, the Portland District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is hosting a virtual information session this week regarding the Willamette Valley System’s (WVS) dams and reservoirs summer forecast.