In recent years, our changing climate has revealed that many of our roads, bridges, and other structures are not up to the task of ensuring resiliency against increasing extreme weather conditions. This, along with changing building codes, new technologies, and new materials in the construction industry is pushing structural design innovation and research forward.
That’s why researchers like Amir Fam have spent the last couple decades studying ways to build better, as well as ways to build faster.
“My new research program will capitalize on and take advantage of some major investments made in the past 10 years, such as our CFI-supported Rolling Load Simulator (ROLLS) to test highway bridges, as well as the state-of-the-art Climate Simulation Chamber” he says. “One of the ways we will take advantage of this infrastructure is to launch new projects that study the longevity of bridges and accelerated bridge construction using durable materials, as well as new designs for energy-efficient and structurally resilient building components”
Fam was recently named a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Climate Change Resilient Infrastructure to support this work. One example includes studying ways to make high impact surfaces like bridge decks more resistant to damage and de-icing salts using materials like ultra high-performance concrete. This particular project unites Fam and his Smith Engineering graduate students with industry partners such as ceEntek North America, local concrete company Sousa Ready Mix and Controlled Demolition. Another example is the development of energy efficient light-weight prefabricated building component in collaboration with the Canadian P recast Concrete Institute through the Institute’s president, a former PhD student of Fam and partners such as MST Rebar Inc., Pultrall, and Schöck North America. Mitacs has also provided matching funding in support of the research. “The building has to carry those walls, so by reducing the weight of those walls, you affect the entire building all the way down to the foundation because you don't have to carry as much dead weight,” he says. “The walls are also insulated in the middle and we use fibreglass shear connectors to hold the two concrete faces together. This means you don't have thermal bridging and you don’t compromise the insulation capacity of the wall in your building.”
Collaborating with Joshua Woods and local company Nidus 3D, Fam is studying new 3D printing technology of resilient concrete building and with Woods they received funding from the federal government department of Housing, Infrastructure, and Communities Canada.
With many infrastructure projects ongoing or recently concluded across the country, there are real world opportunities to apply their findings. Fam’s lab is currently working with a team from the University of Sherbrooke on a project involving the Samuel De Champlain bridge in Montreal, one of North America’s busiest bridges. Fam and his student are examining the effectiveness of repairing steel structures with carbon fibre laminates, and how those laminates can increase the bridge’s fatigue life and increase the steel’s buckling strength. Fam’s research agenda has also attracted support from the National Research Council of Canada.
Building better buildings isn’t just about making the structures more capable of resisting weather and wear and tear, however. Replacing or repairing bridges more efficiently would have less impact on the environment: it can mean less traffic congestion for commuters, meaning fewer emissions from idling, less time on the road, and improved quality of life.
As this work progresses, Fam is keen to ensure Civil Engineering is welcoming to students from all walks of life. His lab has made a concerted effort to recruit female students, which are underrepresented in Civil Engineering, and has conducted outreach with local schools and hosted numerous field trips to his lab to build students’ interest in Civil Engineering.
Fam is one of 16 Canada Research Chairs announced for Queen’s in Fall 2024, including three other professors affiliated with Smith Engineering: Cao Thang Dinh, Bhavin Shastri, and Lidan You.