The most common scaling mechanisms are:

• Classic freeze-thaw scaling, where sub-horizontal micro-cracks leads to loss of material by flaking.
• Micro-delaminations, where very thin layers of mortar detach in coherent sheets from the top surface.
• Mortar flaking, which involves the loss of mortar over coarse aggregate particles.

Why should you read this? Meaty, technical article on a common challenge. FCP, December 2014

Similar progress is being made by manufacturers such as Unilever, a global brand leader in food, personal healthcare and other consumer products. In 2013, 75 percent of the company’s manufacturing sites brought their delivery of nonhazardous waste to landfills down to zero. Included among Unilever’s wide array of global waste recovery, recycle and reuse initiatives is the use of overflow plant sludge in prefabricated construction products and as an alternative raw material in cement production.

Increasingly, the waste generated from the manufacturing processes of companies like these and others is also finding its way into major infrastructure projects throughout the nation. The byproducts from manufacturing, as well as other industrial processes such as energy generation, offer a valuable resource for use in civil infrastructure.

Why should you read this? May create some reuse opportunities for you. ASTM, February 2015

Ship access capacity to the Antwerp’s Waasland Canal complex in Belgium will be more than doubled by construction of the world’s largest ship lock at the Deurganck dock. With a construction cost of some $290 million, the lock on the tidal River Scheldt’s left bank—500 meters long, 68 m wide and 17.8 m deep—is due to start operations in spring 2016.

The new lock will be more than 4 m deeper than the current world-record holder, Antwerp’s 25-year-old Berendrecht Lock, which serves docks on the opposite riverbank. It is also longer and wider than the new locks under construction for the third lane of the Panama Canal, but those locks will be up to 18.3 m deep. The Deurganck Lock will be the largest in the world by volume.

Why should you read this? It’s the biggest lock news of the last year! ENR, December 2014

President Obama will propose a one-time tax on foreign profits held by U.S. corporations to pay for an ambitious plan to fix roads and bridges across the country.

The plan is included in the proposed $4 trillion budget that Obama will send to the Republican-held Congress Monday. Like other parts of the budget, it is not likely to pass, but is intended more to frame the debate with Capitol Hill over how to spend taxpayer dollars.

Why should you read this? We kinda need an actual plan guys… Time, February 2015

The study’s lead environmental engineer, Paul Westerhoff, told Science that the sewage treatment systems that collect and try to dispose of the waste could be losing a lot of  precious cargo in the process, citing a city in Japan that collected near 2 kg of gold in every metric ton of ash after burning sludge.

Why should you read this? That’s a lot of gold. Quartz, January 2015

“The big driver is (that) it’s going to stop the overflows,” city engineer Leland Dicus said.

The sewer improvements are the result of problems that started about 15 years ago when the system overflowed during the heavy rains of that hurricane season, Dicus said. The overflow came out through manhole covers and dumped sewage in the street that eventually made its way to the bay. In all, Dicus said, about 30 million gallons of overflow came out of the system.

Why should you read this? Just the numbers: “$37M”, “30 million gallons of overflow.” Tampa Bay Times, January 2015

“Call it former sewer brewing,” said Landers.

Instead of normal tap water to make their beer, the brewers will be using what was once sewer water — straight from the treatment plant. It’s all part of a competition Washington County’s Clean Water Services is putting on to demonstrate different uses for its water.

Why should you read this? It’s the great cycle of life. KXAN, January 2015

Traffic on the eastbound Bay Bridge was snarled Monday evening after a California Highway Patrol vehicle caught fire on the eastbound off-ramp to Treasure Island, injuring the officer, officials said.

Why should you read this? I just like the headline. And, good pics. SF Gate, January 2015

The Village of Ashley project resulted in the Central Ohio Wastewater Services crews in finding significant I/I at the manholes. Crews found 17 manholes next to a creek in the woods that were 16 to 26 ft deep with a very high water table. In looking into the cost for replacement for all the manholes, the cost totaled approximately $300,000.

“The Village of Ashley did a (cured-in-place pipe) CIPP liner project in 2007, removing half the peak flow from 1 million gal/day to 500,000 gal/day at a plant that was designed for 190,000 gal/day,” Howard explains. “We found the infiltration was coming between the CIPP liner and the original pipe releasing at the manholes. The acting engineer at the time had heard of Source One Environmental (S1E) LLC and its product so we gave it a try. Since the start of the project, our average dry time flows have went from 60,000 gal/day to 30,000 gal/day and heavy rain fall events have fallen from 500,000 gal/day to 250,000 gal/day making the plant more efficient.”

Why should you read this? The effectiveness and precise role of chemical grouting is too little understood by sewer network managers, IMNSHO. Trenchless Technology, November 2014

One component of the plan emerged early as particularly challenging and troublesome. Work on one section of the TBI would require installation of 162 feet of 12’x9′ box culvert, which in turn would require removal and replacement of 120 feet of rail operated by BNSF, and in the area of track affected, the top of the sewer tunnel was just five feet beneath the top of rail. Understandably, BNSF was concerned about the effect of any work in the area. This is a very busy section of commercial railway–30 to 40 trains daily–and shutdowns are almost unheard of, and stoutly resisted by BNSF. Still, BNSF agreed to an unprecedented 30-hour suspension of rail activity.

To further complicate work in this section, high groundwater and difficult soils made subsidence an issue, and railway settling was a real concern even without construction work. To allay BNSF’s concerns, Barr devised a technically progressive subsidence monitoring system based on 250 track-mounted prisms and two Leica TM30 optical monitoring sensors. With this worked out, the 30-hour “Big Dig” was set to proceed.

Why should you read this? Monitoring is getting easier, cheaper… and more important. (full disclosure—I wrote this awesome article) The American Surveyor, January 2015