Stochastic methods are required to model natural hazards, such as winds and earthquakes, and other loads. Structural aging and quality control of materials, design and fabrication, along with modeling uncertainty, are being incorporated in reliability studies. Large-scale system reliability techniques and mathematical programming are being applied to optimize the design process for complex structural systems. Probabilistic risk assessment procedures are being used to quantify the consequences of postulated extreme events. Probability-based structural design codes allow limit states of structural members and systems to be formulated using principles of structural mechanics and probabilistic models of uncertain load and strength variables.
All structures are subject to environmental loads that are dynamic.
Wind, waves, earthquakes, explosions, and traffic all initiate dynamic structural responses that affect structural safety, serviceability, and durability. Within structural dynamics, the tools of analysis are more extensive than those concerned with statics alone, encompassing the disciplines of fluid and solid mechanics, linear and nonlinear structural behavior, stochastic methods, and their mathematical representations. Particular research thrusts in the department are centered around the response of structures to earthquakes and the understanding of the aerodynamics and aeroelasticity of long-span bridges under wind forces. Future efforts in this area will include a combination of analytical, numerical and experimental techniques, both laboratory and full scale, to reveal the physics of the complex processes involved. Measurement systems, including appropriate data transmission and analysis frameworks, will be developed to advance the understanding of structural performance under service loadings.