Our Centers and Institutes
Our department houses a number of competitively funded labs and centers, and our faculty collaborate with researchers around the nation and across the globe. Our faculty and student researchers improve safety and quality of life through research leading to smarter, sustainable infrastructure design.
CCEER
- Contact: Sherif Elfass
- Website: Center for Civil Engineering Earthquake Research
- Major focus: Researchers and students in this program have access to two state-of-the-art earthquake engineering facilities, the Earthquake Engineering Laboratory, which opened in 2014 and houses our four shake tables, and the Large-Scale Structures Laboratory, which offers a 9,000 square foot high-bay laboratory for researchers to do floor experiments.
Environmental Engineering Laboratory
- Primary contact: Eric Marchand
- Major focus: Water quality analyses, fate and transport of environmental contaminants, water reuse technologies, membrane testing and characterization, microbiological analyses, bench- and pilot-scale testing, and surface/colloid characterization
Environmental Hydraulics and Water Resources Engineering Laboratory
- Primary contact: Keith Dennett
- Major focus: Performance testing of erosion control products and devices for trapping and retention of sediment, large flume studies, sediment transport investigations, pilot-scale testing of water and wastewater treatment processes.
Geotechnical Engineering Laboratory
- Primary contact: Ramin Motamed
- Major focus: Complex stress path testing with feedback of soils under drained and undrained conditions; cyclic triaxial testing; large-scale soil model testing; flex wall permeability measurements
Nevada Water Innovation Institute
- Primary contact: Krishna Pagilla
- Website: Nevada Water Innovation Institute
- Major focus: Through innovative research, strategic partnerships, and education and outreach, the Nevada Water Innovation Institute is solving real-world problems and promoting economic growth and development in the Truckee Meadows region.
Traffic Engineering Laboratory
- Primary Contact: Zong Tian
- Major focus: Traffic signal control systems, traffic simulation, traffic safety analysis, travel demand forecasting and traveler information systems
Western Regional Superpave Center
- Primary contact: Peter Sebaaly
- Website: Western Regional Superpave Center
- Major focus: The Western Regional Superpave Center in the Civil Engineering Department at the University of Nevada, Reno is one of five centers established by the Federal Highway Administration to promote the implementation of superpave technology. The WRSC offers strong academic and research programs in pavements/materials engineering.