2007 BURMISTER LECTURE
Department of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics
Columbia University
New York City
Seismic Design and Analysis of Embankment Dams: The State of Practice
Dr. William F. Marcuson, III
The President of ASCE
&
U.S. Army Engineer Waterway Experiment Station (retired)
October 9, 2007
11:00 -12:00
555 Lerner Hall
ABSTRACT: This
Lecture traces the development of the state of practice in seismic
design and analysis of embankment dams, starting in the mid 1960's and
continuing through
2000. The key issue, evaluation of earthquake -induced liquefaction of
saturated loose cohesionles material, will be discussed, with emphasis
on key components of the problem. Remediation methods for fixing
existing embankment dams judged to be unsafe, should the "design"
earthquake occur, are
summarized. Gaps in our knowledge are identified and he will sketch a
vision regarding future developments in permanent deformation analyses,
site characterization, remediation and ground motions.
Dr. William
F. Marcuson III is President of the American Society of Civil Engineers
(ASCE) and is one of the nation.s leading civil engineers. He holds
degrees in civil engineering from The Citadel, Michigan State
University and North Carolina State University. He has received five national
awards from ASCE, including the Norman Medal, civil engineering's
oldest honor. In 1995 he was honored by the National Society of
Professional Engineers as their Federal Engineer of the Year. His
career included research and administrative positions at the U. S. Army
Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, where he served as Director of
the Geotechnical Laboratory for nearly 20 years, prior to his
retirement in 2000. He is the only engineer to be named the Corps of
Engineer's Engineer of the Year twice (1981 and 1995), and he was
honored by the Corps as their Civilian of the Year in 1997. He was
elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1996 for his
contributions to the design and analysis ofembankment dams.
Questions: Hoe I. Ling
E-mail: Ling@civil.columbia.edu
Tel: 212-854-1203
