Hurricane Katrina of 2005 was responsible for at least 81 billion dollars of property damage. In planning for such emergencies, society must decide whether to invest in the ability to evacuate more speedily or in improved forecasting technology to better predict the timing and intensity of the critical event. To address this need, we use dynamic programming and Markov processes to model the interaction between the emergency response system and the emergency forecasting system. Simulating changes in the speed of evacuation and in the accuracy of forecasting allows the determination of an optimal mix of these two investments. The model shows that the evacuation improvement and the forecast improvement give different patterns of impact to their benefit. In addition, it shows that the optimal investment decision changes by the budget and the feasible range of improvement.

The storm surge from Hurricane Ike inundated Bolivar Peninsula as well as pooled up (~4 meters above sea level) in the Galveston Bay System behind Bolivar. After the hurricane passed, this water flowed back over the peninsula for about 19 hours, causing a great deal of coastal destruction. Analysis of post-Hurricane Ike aerial photography and Lidar data revealed the development of dramatically different scour and backflow features in the beach and dune environments along Bolivar Peninsula, Texas. Using Ward's cluster analysis, the 454 identified features were grouped according to shape and size characteristics generated by an object-oriented shape analysis program. Five distinct groups of features emerged from the cluster analysis. Group 1 features were small and compact, distributed mostly in the west; Group 2 features were large and dendritic in nature, distributed where the peninsula was narrow. Group 3 features had a longshore orientation with many of them resembling piano keys, distributed in the east. Group 4 features were oriented longshore and ornate in shape. Many of them were similar in shape to Group 2 or 3 features though statistically different enough to be grouped alone; they were distributed mostly in the eastern half of the study area. Group 5 features tended to be elongated, oriented cross-shore, nonbranching, and distributed mostly in the east. At least four flow environments caused characteristic forms. The first flow environment is typified by seaward flowing water encountering a road parallel with the coastline. The water flowing over the road scours deeply on the leeward side (seaward side), denuding beach sediments down to the resistant mud layer (Groups 3 and 4). The second flow environment was caused by a geotube, which breached during the storm and channelized flow through the breaches (Groups 2 and 5). The third flow environment had a comparatively high elevation, high development, and shore-perpendicular roads (Group 2). The fourth flow environment was typified by wide beaches backed by dunes (lost in the storm) as well as flat vegetated areas. Water flowing seaward over the vegetation scoured deeply into troughs after it came off the vegetation (Groups 1, 3, and 4).

This thesis is part of a project funded by the Minerals Management Service (MMS) (now Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE)) to study the use of epoxy to plug hurricane damaged wells. Some of the wells destroyed by hurricanes are damaged to an extent that vertical intervention from the original wellhead is not possible. These wells have to be plugged to prevent future flows through the well to protect the environment. Cement is usually the preferred plugging material because it is very cheap compared to other materials like epoxy. However, cement can easily get contaminated by sea water or brines present in wells as completion fluids. Therefore, to be able to use cement it has to be placed at the bottom of the well by drilling an offset well all the way to the bottom of the original well. Epoxy, on the other hand, being much more chemically stable can be placed at the very top of the well and let to settle by gravity without fearing contamination. Therefore, in wells described above, epoxy can be much more economical than cement. Placing epoxy at the top of a well and letting it settle by gravity can also be more economical than using cement in other situations such as in a leaking annulus of a well where circulation in that annulus is not possible, or if a well that has been previously plugged starts leaking again after the rig has been removed. Placing epoxy in the manner described can be achieved without using a rig and therefore, would be much more economical than cement. One of the most important factors in this process is to be able to predict the settling velocity of the epoxy to be able to determine the required setting time of the epoxy so that the epoxy does not set prematurely. In addition, it is important to evaluate whether the epoxy can successfully settle to the bottom and how much of it will adhere to the pipe walls while freefalling. This thesis aims to design, build and run an experimental setup that would help study the settling velocity of epoxy. Some experiments were conducted to assess the effect of different parameters that might affect the settling velocity of the epoxy such as the epoxy’s density, the annulus size and the inclination angle. The results show that the settling velocity was proportional to the epoxy’s density. Also the settling speed was almost double in experiments done at an angle compared to experiments done at vertical position. The annulus size did not have any clear effect on the settling speed. The adhesion to the pipe walls was found to be proportional to the epoxy’s viscosity and angle of inclination and was inversely proportional to the annulus size.

Over the past several years, some of the platforms in the Gulf of Mexico have been damaged completely, such that conventional P&A operations may not be possible. In these cases, plugging fluid needs to be pumped through an intervention well and dropped several thousand feet in water to settle above a packer and seal the well. The current P&A material of choice is cement, but cement is miscible in water, which dilutes and contaminates the cement. Therefore, alternate plugging materials need to be used for these operations. This paper discusses the development of a cost-effective Epoxy P&A method and the challenges of using Epoxy. First, the impact of seawater, oil, and pipe dope on the curing process remains unknown. Secondly, the yield strength of Epoxy with and without the contaminating chemicals must be equal to or better than cement. Finally, previous tests have shown significant losses of Epoxy to the walls of the wellbore during the 7,000-ft drop. 2 High temperature curing and compression tests were performed on contaminated epoxy samples to determine the effectiveness of the epoxy plug. To reduce material losses, an improved method for introducing the epoxy into the target zone was developed. This method takes advantage of a narrow window in the cure process where the curing process can be suspended by quenching the partially cured liquid epoxy in water at room temperature, thereby changing the liquid epoxy into solid beads. The beads can then be pumped into the wellbore, where they liquefy at wellbore temperature, 200°F, then cure into a solid plug. Seawater was found to accelerate the cure time, while all contaminants tested reduced the fracture strength by more than 25% compared to pure resin. The yield strengths of contaminant mixtures, however, remained relatively constant, with the greatest drop being only 11%. The use of solid epoxy beads was found to have a compressive strength 50% greater than Portland cements I&II. In addition, the application mentioned herein eliminates the need to prepare the plug material on site. These advantages greatly contribute to reducing the costs of an epoxy P&A operation, to potentially being USD 0.7 million cheaper than a Portland cement operation.

Thesis (All-College Honors) - - State University of New York College at Cortland, 2008 - - Department of History. / Includes bibliographical references (p.42-4).

Thesis (M.S.)--Mississippi State University. Forest Products Department. / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

The objective of this study is to quantify the accuracy of two engineering models for dune erosion (SBEACH and EDUNE), and to determine which of the two models is best suited for predicting barrier island vulnerability due to extreme storm events. The first model, SBEACH, computes sediment transport using empirically derived equations from two large wave tank experiments. The second model, EDUNE, theoretically relates excess wave energy dissipation in the surf zone to sediment transport. The first mechanism for model comparison is sensitivity testing, which describes the response of the model to empirical, physical, and hydrodynamic variables. Through sensitivity tests, it is possible to determine if responses to physical variables (e.g. grain size) and hydrodynamic variables (e.g. wave height) are consistent with theoretical expectations, and whether the function of each variable is properly specified within the governing equations. With respect to empirical parameters, model calibrations are performed on multiple study sites in order to determine whether or not the empirical parameters are properly constrained. Finally, error statistics are generated on four study sites in order to compare model accuracy. Cross-shore profiles of dune elevation are extracted from coastal lidar (light detecting and ranging) surveys flown before and after the impact of major storm events. Three study sites are taken from 1998 lidar surveys of Assateague Island, MD in response to two large northeasters that produced significant erosion along the Assateague shoreline. Two additional study sites are obtained from 2003 lidar surveys of Hatteras Island, NC in response to erosion caused by Hurricane Isabel. Error statistics generated on these study sites suggest that the models are statistically equivalent in their ability to hindcast dune erosion due to extreme storm events.

Hurricane Charley was the third named storm and the second major hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season. At that time, it was also the strongest hurricane to strike the US coast since 1992. Charley made landfall on Friday, August 13, 2004 on the barrier islands off Lee County, Florida whence it moved rapidly inland towards Port Charlotte, DeSoto and Hardee counties. The purpose of this study was to understand the performance of undamaged residential home in Punta Gorda Isles (PGI) in Port Charlotte County that was crossed by Charley’s eye shortly after it made landfall. To achieve this goal, a representative sample of 20 undamaged residential homes (out of 210 identified in an earlier study) in PGI were selected from aerial photographs for detailed analysis. Unfortunately, information on dimensions of these buildings could not be obtained despite repeated attempts over a 6-month period. Consequently, a parametric study was conducted using an idealized building following procedures consistent with current practice. In the analysis, parameters such as wind velocity, exposure and building geometry were varied to assess the range of design forces. The maximum wind velocity was taken as 160 mph, based on findings reported in FEMA 488. Two idealized roof systems – a gable and hip – on a rectangular plan form were analyzed using ASCE 7-98’s Method 2. Both Main Wind Force Resisting System (MWFRS) and Components and Cladding (C&C) were evaluated. The results showed that forces resisted were significantly (over 70%) higher than those designed for. Since 210 out of 425 homes studied earlier were undamaged it suggests that properly constructed structures automatically have adequate reserve capacity to withstand higher-than-designed for lateral loads. If changes are needed, it should focus on inspection and construction rather than wind provisions in existing code.

The two fields of historic preservation and sustainable design include many similar values concerning conservation, yet produce buildings that ultimately look and perform differently. Historic preservation relies on the maintenance of traditional materials to ensure that historic buildings are preserved for future generations. Sustainable design typically works with new construction to create buildings that have little negative impact on the environment. The similarities yet separateness that exist between historic preservation and sustainable design provide a compelling platform to ask how we can combine the two fields within one building project. The combination of these two felds is currently being explored in post-Katrina New Orleans, and I am asking how we can combine historic preservation with aspects of sustainable design to create a sustainable preservation hybrid, or fusion between technological aspects of “green” design with traditional methods of preservation, that will allow historic buildings to maintain their integrity and achieve the values of sustainability. New Orleans provides a great opportunity to examine this question due to the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina and the ensuing efforts to rebuild the city. One specific area of New Orleans, the historic district of Holy Cross, plays home to two key organizations involved in the rebuilding: the Preservation Resource Center, which preserves the existing historic housing stock, and Global Green, which builds new, sustainable design projects. These two organizations work right down the street from one another, yet have yet to combine their building methods or work together on a shared project. This relationship between Global Green/sustainable design and the Preservation Resource Center/historic preservation provides a good opportunity to examine how elements of new sustainable design can be combined with the traditional methods of preservation in order to achieve a sustainable preservation hybrid. I examine the creation of a sustainable preservation hybrid by conducting a literature review, interviews and site visits, and energy modeling. The literature review reveals that preservationists and architects involved with sustainable design like the idea of creating a hybrid, but still lack a thorough understanding of each other’s tacit values. The interviews reveal how the organizations working in Holy Cross also embrace the idea of a sustainable preservation hybrid, yet remain somewhat lost as to how to actually create such a building. The energy modeling then demonstrates which combination of “green” materials from sustainable design and “traditional” materials from historic preservation combine to create a building that achieves both the values of sustainable design and historic preservation. Whether or not we can combine preservation and sustainable design to make a hybrid poses an original and relevant question in the context of post-Katrina New Orleans and elsewhere. Since we are currently facing an energy crisis, the conclusions as to how we can combine these two fields prove how a single, historic building can simultaneously conserve both environmental and historic resources. / text

This dissertation accesses memory and archival studies for inclusion in the discipline of rhetoric and composition in order to study "collective invention" (Bisecker, 125) practices as they occur in memory places, such as that of the archive. I theorize a pedagogy and memory practice for writing studies classrooms and communities by providing an autoethnographic case study across three levels of composition and rhetoric classes and community archives including the Writing After Katrina Archive Project and the Arizona Memory Project, where I explore the links between memory, place, and the process of rhetorical invention. In doing so, I hope to examine the agentive potential for students, emerging scholars, and community partners to reflect on various acts of composing, such as composing ideas, composing writing, and composing knowledge through the study of memory places and the creation of archives. Using the space of the archive as a pedagogical tool, my project seeks to redefine the space and place of the "archive" from that of a dusty space reserved for scholars, to that of a potentially generative location where critical dialogue is organically produced around the acts of what I term, rhetorical (re)invention. Rhetorical (re)invention, like the production of memory, is a social process of meaning of making that can be extrapolated from local resources. In doing so, this project continues the important work of scholars in both memory studies and rhetoric and composition studies in redefining the archive, reframing invention, and positing a pedagogical framework for teaching college writing and rhetorical studies.