Power of ERDC

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Latest Episodes:

#13: Permafrost Basic Research Jan 31, 2022

Show notes

Permafrost, or ground that has been frozen for at least two years, covers roughly a quarter of the Northern Hemisphere. And it is teeming with microbes, including many with unique characteristics that have allowed them to adapt to extremely low temperatures and survive for decades. As climate change threatens to thaw permafrost and revive these microbial multitudes, ERDC is conducting extensive basic research to better understand these tiny organisms, comprehend what will happen when they are activated, and harness their special powers for new technologies. On the latest episode of the Power of ERDC podcast, we talk with Dr. Robyn Barbato, a research microbiologist at ERDC’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory, about how this research will support military operations in extreme cold regions and will improve our understanding of the impact of climate change on Arctic ecosystems. We discuss the hidden power of these frozen microorganisms (3:18), why this research is important to the military (6:32), how it can improve the understanding of climate change (7:46), how ERDC’s people (18:05) and world-class facilities (20:10) enable this research, and what the future holds for this effort (35:09). We also explore how these living microbes can be used for various technologies and applications, such as environmental sensing, cleaning contaminants and producing electricity (22:27). Finally, we talk about basic research and what makes it important (12:26). Visit https://www.PowerofERDCPodcast.org for more information.

#12: Structural Health Monitoring Dec 22, 2021

Show notes

Given the aging condition and economic importance of much of the nation’s navigation infrastructure, asset managers need accurate and real-time information on the conditions of structures operating well beyond their expected design lives. However, visual inspections of structures like locks and dams are often difficult and expensive. ERDC is filling this void with a broad range of structural health monitoring capabilities. It has developed sensors that serve as virtual eyes and ears, providing constant real-time information on structural conditions. Combined with ERDC’s predictive modeling tools – and enhanced by data analytics and machine learning – this capability helps revolutionize and accelerate decision making and better prioritize maintenance funds. On the latest episode of the Power of ERDC podcast, we discuss ERDC’s Structural Health Monitoring program with Dr. Brian Eick and Dr. Matt Smith. Eick is a research civil engineer at ERDC’s Construction Engineering Research Laboratory and the technical lead and program manager for ERDC’s Structural Health Monitoring program. Smith is a technical director at ERDC’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory and until recently oversaw ERDC’s Structural Health Monitoring efforts. We discuss the broad scope of ways ERDC is working to tackle this problem (13:25), new vision-based monitoring approaches being applied by ERDC (11:22), what makes ERDC a unique place for structural health monitoring R&D (21:46), ways each of ERDC’s seven laboratories are involved in this effort and the power of that cross-disciplinary collaboration (24:21), and other current and potential future uses of ERDC’s structural health monitoring tools (31:40). Visit https://www.PowerofERDCPodcast.org for more information.

#11: Rescue Engineering Dec 03, 2021

Show notes

After a structural collapse disaster, the eyes of the public are intensely focused on search-and-rescue efforts. Less familiar is the work of a special team from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) laboring behind the scenes to ensure the safety of those efforts. The USACE Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) program deploys specially trained and equipped structural engineers to augment FEMA US&R task forces. They monitor structural conditions, mitigate hazards, advise leaders, and assure mobility throughout a disaster site to enable rescue and lifesaving operations. ERDC plays an important role in this effort, providing both personnel and knowledge. On the latest episode of the Power of ERDC podcast, we talk with Jeff Qunell and Dr. Oliver Taylor about this world-class team that rapidly responds to some of the nation’s and the world’s most challenging rescue operations to prevent a compound catastrophe. Qunell is a structures specialist at the USACE South Pacific Division and is also program manager for the USACE US&R program. Taylor is a senior researcher at ERDC’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory and a member of the USACE US&R team. We discuss the role of the USACE US&R program (4:08), how it began (8:01), past deployments (11:30), the Surfside condominium response (12:23), how the team keeps its skills sharp between deployments (22:30), how they develop training and national standards for structural collapse response operations (24:10), and the role ERDC plays (27:54). Visit https://www.PowerofERDCPodcast.org for more information.

#10: DamBot Oct 29, 2021

Show notes

There are more than 8,000 major dams in the United States, and many of them are beyond their expected design life and require regular inspections and maintenance. The majority are embankment dams that feature outlet works structures that can be up to a half-mile long and that can be dangerous to inspect. Responding to a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers need, ERDC developed the DamBot, a robotic system capable of producing extremely detailed models of these outlet works systems. The DamBot gives inspectors a first look inside dam outlet works without exposing human operators to unknown conditions. It also collects high-resolution data that allows for more detailed inspections than currently available. On the latest episode of the Power of ERDC podcast, we talk with Dr. Julie Rosati and Dr. Anton Netchaev about how ERDC is enabling better and safer dam inspections. Rosati is a technical director at ERDC’s Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory overseeing ERDC’s Civil Works Research and Development Area. Netchaev is a research computational scientist at ERDC’s Information Technology Laboratory and principal investigator for the DamBot team. We discuss the importance and challenge of dam inspections (3:22), how the DamBot project began (6:55), DamBot’s capabilities (12:36), collaboration with USACE Districts (24:31), other agencies that can benefit from this technology (27:47), future plans including a 17-foot robotic arm (29:18), military applications (30:30), and how the DamBot can be used to operate in GPS-denied environments (31:29). Visit https://www.PowerofERDCPodcast.org for more information.

#9: Protecting the Force in a Post-9/11 World Sep 09, 2021

Show notes

After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, our nation needed new ways to protect its civilians and Warfighters, and the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center answered the call. Leveraging its long history of studying explosive effects and protective structures, ERDC has played a vital role in providing protection solutions throughout the past 20 years. When our Armed Forces and Allies faced changing threats during the Global War on Terror, ERDC wrote new force protection guidelines, delivered decision-support tools to provide clarity in unfamiliar scenarios, and developed rapidly deployable protective structures. As the nation remembers the 20th anniversary of the tragedy, we talk with technical directors Pam Kinnebrew and Nick Boone from ERDC’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory about their memories of that day, how it motivated ERDC to provide solutions, and the research that saved countless Warfighter and civilian lives. We discuss what was unique about the force protection challenges that arose in Afghanistan and Iraq (7:54), how ERDC leveraged past research to help meet these challenges (8:58), the solutions ERDC developed (14:08), the intense operational tempo that followed the 9/11 attacks (25:43), and how the lessons learned during the past 20 years can be applied to future force protection challenges (32:24). Visit https://www.PowerofERDCPodcast.org for more information.

#8: Modeling and Simulation for Unmanned Ground Vehicles Aug 26, 2021

Show notes

Unmanned ground vehicles carry great potential for the Armed Forces, but before these systems can be deployed, they must undergo rigorous testing to ensure their autonomy can be trusted in difficult conditions. Since the early 2000s, ERDC has assisted this process by developing a suite of modeling and simulation tools that explore how autonomous systems will handle a diverse range of challenges that are often difficult to replicate with physical testing. On the latest episode of the Power of ERDC podcast, we are joined by Dr. Gabe Monroe, a research mechanical engineer at ERDC’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory. We talk with Gabe about how ERDC’s research is accelerating unmanned ground vehicle development, increasing their combat effectiveness, and ultimately saving Warfighter lives. We will delve into ERDC’s long-established expertise in mobility modeling (4:18), why the military needs robust modeling and simulation for unmanned ground vehicles (10:49), the importance of exploring edge cases that supplement physical testing (14:52), ERDC’s partnership with the Ground Vehicle Systems Center (28:39), and how ERDC’s suite of modeling and simulation technologies can benefit other branches of the Armed Forces (29:58). Visit https://www.PowerofERDCPodcast.org for more information.

#7: Harmful Algal Blooms Jul 30, 2021

Show notes

Harmful algal blooms occur in freshwater when aquatic microorganisms, called cyanobacteria, grow rapidly and sometimes release toxins that are dangerous to humans and aquatic life. Such events have been known to compromise drinking water reservoirs, disrupt recreation, shut down fisheries, and kill fish, birds and other aquatic species. And scientists largely agree that these events are happening more often and in more diverse locations. Current federal policy identifies harmful algal blooms as one of the most complex and economically damaging aquatic issues threatening the nation’s ecosystems. The 2018 Water Resources Development Act authorized ERDC to implement a five-year technology research program to deliver scalable technologies for harmful algal bloom detection, prevention and management. On the latest episode of the Power of ERDC podcast, we are joined by Dr. Jen Seiter-Moser and Molly Reif from ERDC’s Environmental Laboratory to talk about the key role ERDC is playing in solving this critical national challenge. Seiter-Moser, an ERDC technical director overseeing Civil Works Environmental Engineering and Sciences, discusses the scope of ERDC’s research. Reif, the Geospatial Data Analysis team lead, details a specific project that enables researchers and water managers to use remote sensing technologies to quickly detect the presence of water quality indicators of blooms in small, inland bodies of water. Topics discussed on today’s episode include why ERDC is involved in studying this issue (6:50), the importance of partnerships (8:16), the scope of ERDC’s harmful algal bloom research (10:07), a project that uses remote sensing to detect the presence of blooms (14:40), why that project has resonated so much (19:02), and ways ERDC is able to leverage cross-disciplinary expertise in discovering solutions for harmful algal blooms (25:51). Visit https://www.PowerofERDCPodcast.org for more information.

#6: Ship Simulator Jun 18, 2021

Show notes

The blockage of Egypt’s Suez Canal in March shone renewed focus on just how many goods are shipped around the world and how fragile those routes can be. Given the shipping industry’s importance in the U.S., American planners must have world-class tools to prevent a comparable disaster from congesting American waterways. ERDC has operated a ship simulator for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers since the late 1980s to model the maneuverability of large ships through our nation’s ports and harbors. Benefitting from ERDC’s superior numerical modeling expertise, the simulator precisely models how vessels respond to wind, waves, currents, and other ships. It gives planners the ability to see potential problems in a virtual environment, modify designs and retest to come up with the best plans for a given port. Given its years of success in simulating our nation’s waterways, the versatile simulator is now being used by the military to plan and train for amphibious operations around the world. We are joined by Dr. Keith Martin, a research physicist at ERDC’s Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory and lead of the Ship Simulator program, to talk about how ERDC is enabling safer waterways, better and more efficient port designs and more precise military operations planning. We discuss ERDC’s unique capabilities in ship simulation (8:48), how this technology is being used for both civil works (7:06) and military projects (12:05), how ship simulation can benefit the military (12:48), how it is being paired with ERDC’s ground vehicle simulation technology (16:59), and the expertise ERDC offers (24:02). We also talk about a successful feasibility study involving the port of Long Beach, in which ERDC’s ship simulator was able to identify design flaws and rapidly enable new safer designs (24:39). ERDC is offering a special webinar on June 23 for members of the U.S. military to learn more about the ship simulator’s capabilities to solve tough challenges. Email ERDC-PEVB@usace.army.mil to register or for more information. Visit https://www.PowerofERDCPodcast.org for more information.

#5: Ice adhesion basic research May 21, 2021

Show notes

The rapid accumulation of ice creates significant challenges for U.S. military operations and civilian activities in cold environments. It hampers mobility, disrupts communication, creates power outages and degrades infrastructure. That’s why a team of ERDC researchers is conducting innovative basic research to unravel the physical processes of how ice attaches to different surfaces, paving the way for the future development of advanced protective coating materials and the expansion of existing treatments to broader applications. On this episode of the Power of ERDC podcast, we are joined by Dr. Emily Asenath-Smith, a research materials engineer at ERDC’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) in Hanover, New Hampshire. We discuss why CRREL is the perfect place to conduct this research (3:04), the importance of studying ice adhesion (3:51), basic research and why it matters (4:32), how this research will help the military (11:07), the unique method used by the research team to grow ice (19:08) and long-term practical applications (17:10). Visit https://www.PowerofERDCPodcast.org for more information.

#4: Mapping in GPS-denied environments Apr 20, 2021

Show notes

As Global Positioning System, or GPS, technology becomes more commonplace, so does its usage by the Armed Forces in preparing for and executing battleplans. However, there has also been a growing trend of adversaries using technologies to jam or spoof these signals. This created a need to provide mapping capabilities for use in GPS-denied environments. New ERDC research is solving this challenge with technology that can instantly process 3D data collected from various sensors the Warfighters are wearing and use it to navigate them without the need for GPS. On today’s episode, we talk about mapping in GPS-denied environments with Dr. Ricky Massaro, a physical scientist at ERDC’s Geospatial Research Laboratory. Topics include an explanation of GPS technologies and what makes them so important (5:24), providing situational awareness in GPS-denied environments (7:14), what is novel about this technology (13:04), the extensive work being done with multiple Army Cross Functional Teams and other partners (13:46), and efforts to provide more realistic mission rehearsal scenarios (15:56). Visit https://www.PowerofERDCPodcast.org for more information.

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