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  • April

    A cold-start battery being tested by the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) is attached to a simulated Stryker engine starter, which sits inside one a cold room inside CRREL’s Cold Room Complex, which consists of 26 refrigerated rooms, each varying in size and in other capabilities, allowing for a variety of environmentally controlled experimentation at low temperatures. These laboratory-grade rooms can maintain temperatures from −30°C to over 43°C (−22°F to 110°F), with an additional standalone unit extending to −40°C (−40°F). The CRREL-designed battery is intended for use with U.S. military Stryker vehicles to ensure they are able to consistently start even in the most extreme cold environments.

    A Cold Start: ERDC tests Stryker batteries in frigid temps

    Many people living in northern regions of the United States have experienced getting in a car on a cold, winter morning, turning the key in the ignition and having the engine starter sputter, but not start. This relatable inconvenience is one that many people have dealt with. However, for U.S. military service members called to action in regions such as northern Alaska, there is no time to deal with a vehicle that won’t start in the extreme cold temperatures. This is a dilemma that engineers like Kathryn Trubac, a research general engineer for the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL), are working to resolve.

  • March

    Sarah Drinkard and Khania Minor, both seniors at Warren Central High School in Vicksburg, Mississippi, meet with top female leadership at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) on March 21, 2022 after a live panel discussion. Drinkard and Minor shadowed the team that facilitated the live, online broadcast featuring ERDC Commander Col. Teresa Schlosser, ERDC Deputy Director Dr. Beth Fleming and ERDC Associate Director Pat Sullivan.

    Local students participate, tune in for live panel featuring ERDC female leaders

    Students from across the Vicksburg-Warren School District sent in questions and joined the conversation during the most recent segment of ERDC Live, a social media broadcast of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC). The theme of the episode, which aired on March 21, was “Women in Innovation: Leading a Better Tomorrow.” Panelists were ERDC Deputy Director Dr. Beth Fleming, ERDC Associate Director Pat Sullivan and ERDC Commander Col. Teresa Schlosser.
  • Dr. Beth Fleming, deputy director of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) gives an overview of core competencies and research priorities at the orientation for ERDC University, which was held on the Waterways Experiment Station in Vicksburg, Mississippi, March 1-2.

    2022 ERDC University participants introduced to world-class research

    Tours of four world-class laboratories mingled with expert briefings highlighted the orientation session for ERDC University, an outreach program of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC). This year, selectees came from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) districts, who visited ERDC’s campus in Vicksburg, Mississippi, March 1-2.

  • Construction Engineering Research Laboratory welcomes Defense Coalition of Campaign for meeting, facility tour

    Researchers at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) Construction Engineering Laboratory (CERL) recently welcomed the Defense Coalition of Champaign County (DC3) for a meeting at CERL’s facilities in Champaign, Ill.
  • Researchers from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineer (USACE) Districts have been selected for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University (ERDC-U). Senior Biologist Sara Thames with the New Orleans District was chosen as a participant for this detail program, which is now in its seventh year.

    New Orleans District’s Sara Thames selected for ERDC University

    Researchers from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineer (USACE) Districts have been selected for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University (ERDC-U). Senior Biologist Sara Thames with the New Orleans District was chosen as a participant for this detail program, which is now in its seventh year.
  • Researchers from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineer (USACE) Districts have been selected for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University (ERDC-U). Environmental Engineer Jesseca Alexander of the Northwest Division’s Kansas City District was chosen as a participant for this detail program, which is now in its seventh year.

    Kansas City District’s Jesseca Alexander selected for ERDC University

    Researchers from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineer (USACE) Districts have been selected for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University (ERDC-U). Environmental Engineer Jesseca Alexander of the Northwest Division’s Kansas City District was chosen as a participant for this detail program, which is now in its seventh year.
  • On Jan. 31, 2022, crews at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) in Vicksburg, Miss., prepare to move the HVS “Titan” to its new, permanent testing location at the Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory. The Titan is a critical research tool used to evaluate new materials, design methods and construction techniques that can help optimize new infrastructure facilities. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers photo)

    ERDC begins testing with world’s largest heavy vehicle simulator

    The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) completed assembly on the world’s largest heavy vehicle simulator (HVS), the “Titan,” at the end of January. The HVS is a critical research tool used to evaluate new materials, design methods and construction techniques that can help optimize new infrastructure facilities.
  • Brandon Meinert of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Kansas City District was selected for the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) University, a detail program in its seventh year that offers partnerships between USACE Division and District participants and relevant ERDC laboratory mentors for six-month research projects.

    Kansas City District’s Brandon Meinert selected for ERDC University

    Researchers from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineer Districts have been selected for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University (ERDC-U). Building Information Modeling (BIM) Manager Brandon Meinert with the Kansas City District was chosen as a participant for this detail program, which is now in its seventh year.
  • Team members at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Information Technology Laboratory test a new set of virtual reality gloves, which allow users to grab and manipulate items within a simulated environment. The gloves are just one step in expanding the augmented and virtual reality research and development capabilities of the lab.

    Virtual reality gloves take ITL to a new level

    As the world of augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) continues to rapidly expand, cutting-edge equipment is increasingly vital to remaining relevant. The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) Information Technology Laboratory (ITL) AR/VR One Team has stepped up to the plate by acquiring two sets of virtual reality gloves that allow users to grab and manipulate items within a simulated environment.
  • View of exposure tanks immediately after the introduction of fine-grain sediment, as part of an experiment conducted by the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Justin Wilkens and Dr. Burton Suedel and the University of Hawaii (UH) at UH’s Kewalo Marine Laboratory February 2021. Middle tank, bottom row, is the control tank, which did not receive sediment. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers photo by Justin Wilkens)

    ERDC researchers complete collaborative effort to deliver results to district, stakeholders

    VICKSBURG, Miss. — Since 2019, U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) Research Biologists Dr. Burton Suedel and Justin Wilkens have been working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Honolulu District to answer questions about whether dredging-induced sediment plumes could affect corals.
  • Researchers from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineer (USACE) Districts have been selected for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University (ERDC-U). Supervisory Environmental Engineer Jennifer Miller, Ph.D., of the Chicago District was chosen as a participant for this detail program, which is now in its seventh year.

    Chicago District’s Jennifer Miller selected for ERDC University

    Researchers from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineer (USACE) Districts have been selected for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University (ERDC-U). Supervisory Environmental Engineer Jennifer Miller, Ph.D., of the Chicago District was chosen as a participant for this detail program, which is now in its seventh year.
  • Researchers from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineer Districts have been selected for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University (ERDC-U). Coastal Engineer Spencer Harper with the South Pacific Division’s San Francisco District was chosen as a participant for this detail program, which is now in its seventh year.

    San Francisco District’s Spencer Harper selected for ERDC University

    Researchers from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineer Districts have been selected for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University (ERDC-U). Coastal Engineer Spencer Harper with the South Pacific Division’s San Francisco District was chosen as a participant for this detail program, which is now in its seventh year.
  • Fulton Carson, a computer scientist at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory, speaks to several Alcorn State University students at ERDC Day on February 23, 2022. The event, which featured a mini career fair, exposed Alcorn students to ERDC career opportunities.

    Inaugural ERDC Day held at Alcorn State University

    Recently, Alcorn State University (ASU) hosted a team of personnel from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) in Vicksburg, Mississippi, for a career day. The event—known as ERDC Day— was the first of its kind to be held on the ASU campus in Lorman, Mississippi.
  • Geophysicist Matthew Glover of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers St. Louis District was chosen as a participant for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University, now in its seventh year. The program offers partnerships between USACE Division and District participants and relevant ERDC laboratory mentors for six-month research projects, resulting in technical solutions benefitting their workplace, the Corps and the Nation.

    St. Louis District’s Matthew Glover selected for ERDC University

    Researchers from five U.S. Army Corps of Engineer Districts have been selected for the 2022 session of the Engineer Research and Development Center University (ERDC-U). Geophysicist Matthew Glover of the St. Louis District was chosen as a participant for this detail program, now in its seventh year.
  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) researchers will use this 25-acre test site in Defiance, Ohio, to find solutions to non-point source pollution in the Great Lakes Basin. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers photo)

    ERDC researchers look for solutions to Great Lakes water quality issues

    The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engneers (USACE) Buffalo District are collaborating with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and other federal and state agencies to find solutions to water quality issues in the Great Lakes.

  • February

    U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) researchers use different graphene concentrations to test graphene’s ability to filter toxins out of water. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers photo)

    ERDC partners with multiple universities on graphene research

    Researchers at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) have started working with multiple applications for graphene, from graphene-infused asphalt and concrete to water filtration systems.
  • Hydraulic engineer John Shelley of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Kansas City District was a member of a four-person team that received a patent in 2021 for developing the ISSDOTv2 bedload transport methodology.

    Meet the inventors: Bed-load transport measurement technique

    What did it take for the four-member research team who developed the “ISSDOTv2 bedload transport methodology” to create a U.S. patent-worthy invention? For this team, it was made possible by varied expertise, a combined 86 years of experience, a desire to solve river sediment challenges and helpful friendships.
  • Receiving a patent in July 2021 for “Bedload transport methodology and method of use,” a Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory (CHL) team at the Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) discuss their invention. It estimates sediment movement rates by measuring the bathymetric elevations in specific areas of a river multiple times. From left, CHL’s research hydraulic engineer David Abraha, research physicist Tate McAlpin and research physicist Thad Pratt invented these methods to answer river engineers’ challenges.

    Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory invention team receives patent for bed-load transport measurement technique

    Utilizing their combined decades of experience in river mechanics, a four-member team of research physicists and hydraulic engineers with the Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) combined their expertise to invent the Integrated Section, Surface Difference Over Time, version 2 (ISSDOTv2) method, which accurately measures the sediment moving on the bed of large sand-bed rivers. The team from ERDC’s Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory (CHL) received their patent, “Bedload transport methodology and method of use,” in July of 2021.
  • Dr. Beth Fleming, deputy director of the ERDC, speaks to Girl Scouts at the annual Society of Women Engineers Girl Scout Engineering Workshop.

    ERDC engineers and scientists participate in Girl Scout workshop

    A group of female engineers and scientists from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) in Vicksburg recently came together to speak to 30 Girl Scouts from the Vicksburg area.
  • Data analytics

    ERDC researchers help prioritize support for Rhode Island hospitals during omicron surge

    When both the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) needed to prioritize hospital support in New England during the COVID-19 omicron variant surge in the beginning of January, they turned to the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s (ERDC) Risk and Decision Science Team (RADST) led by Jeff Cegan.