"Wisdom begins in wonder" – Socrates
Category: Engineering
Voltage Sag
08/27/26
“How do we describe short voltage drops?”
Electric power distribution is supposed to supply a constant voltage. However, a short-term drop in voltage called a Voltage Sag may occur. Voltage sags are defined by their magnitude and duration and can cause harm to electrical systems.
Electric Power Quality
08/26/26
“How can we define the quality of AC electric power supply?”
AC electric power quality is the backbone of most global electricity supplies. However, its quality depends on a few factors. Electric Power Quality is determined by how much the voltage level doesn’t stray from its expected value and how stable its frequency is. Providing high-quality electric power quality is of the utmost importance for electric infrastructure operators.
Why Data Centers Are Causing The Grid to Go Out Of Sync
08/25/26
“Why are data centers causing the grid to go out of sync?”
Data centers take up gargantuan amounts of power for their computational needs. However, they don’t do it all at once. Instead, their operations fluctuate with the computation at hand. These extreme fluctuations cause rapid grid load changes, which in turn can throw the electricity grid out of sync. The degradation of a consistent AC electricity frequency can be so severe that it damages nearby household electrical appliances. This is Why Data Centers Are Causing The Grid to Go Out Of Sync.
Steep Slope Ordinances
08/21/26
“How can municipalities limit disturbance of their steep slopes?”
Disturbing steep slopes can lead to a myriad of issues such as erosion, landslides, and subsidence. Municipalities can implement Steep Slope Ordinances that regulate steep slope disturbance. These ordinances can include quantitative thresholds, zoning overlay districts, and supplemental regulations.
Lean Clay
08/20/26
“How can we describe clays that are less sensitive to moisture?”
Fat clays are famous for their volumetric sensitivity to moisture. At the other end of the spectrum are Lean Clays. Lean clays have a higher composition of silt and sand particles and therefore have lower Atterberg limits compared to fat clays. Consequently, lean clays are less volumetrically sensitive to moisture. To determine if a clay sample is fat or lean, fat clays have liquid limits greater than 50, and lean clays have a plasticity index greater than 7 or plot above the “A” line.
Sand Columns
08/19/26
“How can we improve an area’s drainage and load-bearing capacity by replacing the soil with compressed sand?”
Fat clays and similar soils drain poorly and have weak load-bearing capacity. This makes them poor candidates for serving as building load support. Wouldn’t it be great if we could replace them with strong, fast-draining compacted sand? Well, it turns out that’s the exact idea behind Sand Columns. Sand columns are long vertical columns of compacted sand that replace soils to optimize civil support. Sand columns are used all over the world where the soil requires it.
Image credit: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40703-019-0106-6
Fat Clays
08/18/26
“What type of clay soils are very sensitive to moisture?”
Clays are one of the fundamental soil types in the world. Some clays have a very wide Atterberg limit, so they exhibit plastic behavior most of the time. These so-called Fat Clays are highly moldable and will change size with water applications very sensitively. Because the pores in fat clays are very small, water will move out slowly under applied loads. It’s not recommended to build basements in areas with fat clay soils, such as in Houston, Texas, because the changing volume from water will cause structural damage.
Primary Consolidation
08/17/26
“What’s the first part of consolidation?”
Soil consolidation is when buildings and heavy loads squeeze water out of soil pores. The first part of consolidation, Primary Consolidation, occurs as the water is being squeezed out.
Soil Consolidation
08/16/26
“How do massive loads make soil more compact?”
Soil is made up of small particles, with air and water between them. When massive, passive loads like a building sit upon soil, the pressure will slowly force the water out of the soil, reducing the soil volume. Soil Consolidation is a fundamental factor in geotechnical engineering and often occurs over several months or years. Soil consolidation is typically done in soft clays, silts, and organic soils.
