Week 6 - End of Year 2

“We must find time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives.” 

~ John F. Kennedy

My second year in the UNH RETE summer program has come to an end and what an adventure it has been! I have learned so much about asphalt and have seen many connections with the math I teach. I think the students will be able to relate to this topic because asphalt is a part of their life in many ways. The common core states often that is ncessary to connect the standard to real world problems. The last two summers I have had the privelege of learning how math is used in the real world and I am grateful for that.

Before I head back to my classroom with all kinds of ideas for implementation I would like to extend a huge thank you to Dr. Daniel and the rest of the asphalt group for their support and guidance this summer. It was an honor to work in a lab with so many collaborative, hardworking, helpful people.

Click here to see poster

Week 5 Year 2

“It’s hard to beat the person who never gives up.” ~ Babe Ruth

More testing!

I finished my testing this week (as long as I don't have to do any emergency testing next week) thanks to help from Dave and Sonja! At the end of last week the group of people that need to use the AMPT (Asphalt Mixture Performance Tester), the machine I am using to measure deformation had a discussion about what the best way to complete the testing that needed to be done.

 It was decided that I would not do the last few temperatures and that Dave, Sonja, and I would work together to get my testing done as soon as possible so I could begin looking at data and so the AMPT could be free for others to use. The plan worked and testing was completed mid-week! The rest of the week was spent curve fitting!

Week 4 Year 2...Testing, Testing, Testing...

“Courage doesn't always roar. Sometime courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I'll try again tomorrow.” ~Mary Anne Radmacher

Testing!

I was able to test most of the week this week, however I was only able to get about 2 of my 7 temperatures done. I has a great time testing and am so grateful that I was able to use this amazing equipment, however I feel it is important to share that there were some “bumps in the road” this week. I think it is important to recognize these “bumps in the road” because they are a large part of the learning process. Learning can be fun, exciting, and challenging, but at times those challenges can become frustrating and overwhelming. It is then that some of the most rewarding learning takes place. I hope that the lesson I bring back to my classroom from RETE will foster a yearning for this challenge and a love for learning.

Watching the test to make sure if anything goes wrong I stop it.

Some of the “bumps in the road” this week included:

• Something strange happening in that only 44 files were created when 104 were supposed to be. This happened to me twice while testing this week. One time I went home for the night after and everything was fine the next morning. The other time I restarted the computer and it worked! I think it had something to do with the hydraulics that run the actuator, but I am still not positive. (While problem solving for this I was able to learn a lot about the machine.)
• At time the LVDTs were not working. As explained in a previous blog post the LVDTs are very intricate and if not set up exactly correct they could misread. Most of the time I was able to get at least a couple of of the LVDTs to work, but there are four and not often were they all working. (Through this process I tried slightly different ways to put the sensors on. After practice and patience I found a way that worked for me.)
  
  

  
  

  

  A close up of the an LVDT.

  

  These are the tools I use to set up the LVDT's on the specimen.

  
  
  

  

  This is the data I am able to see during testing.

  
  
• There was also concern about applying a load too high for too long that the specimen might break. I am applying a load at very low frequencies which means the load is just sitting there for long period of time. After looking at the specifications and discussion it was decided that the test I am doing in nondestructive and my specimen should be fine. It was very nerve-racking for a little bit though. (Through discussion about this I learned a lot about how asphalt reacts to a load being applied to it as well as how to change the load so the microstrain or amplitude was in the range needed.)
  
  

  

  This is the environmental chamber which keeps the specimen at the correct temperature until they are ready to be set up and tested.

  
  

  

  

  This controls the temperature on the AMPT.

Carefully setting up the specimen for the next test.

Everything ready to go!

This week I was also able to meet with Dr. Daniels, my mentor, to discuss how I would be analyzing the data when all the testing is done as well as my lesson plan ideas for when I return to school. I am excited to further develop these ideas as I move forward.

Week 3 Year 2

“It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something.”

- Franklin D. Roosevelt

I started some testing this week. That was fun and nerve-racking all at the same time. The first time I ran the test the machine began to make a strange noise and shake. Both the graduate students who were observing and I reached to stop the test at the same time. After a few minutes of evaluating the template which tells the machine what to do we tried it again. After a trial and errors we were able to run the test through smoothly. Luckily nothing was broken! After a test or two we had a group meeting with Dr. Daniel and I was told that another person in the lab needed to have priority on the machine since they would be on vacation next week.

Specimen ready to be tested!

This is what the computer looks like during my test.

Following the meeting the rest of the week I spent looking at data and working with others in the lab to figure out a better, easier way to look at all the data. The first afternoon I looked at the data I think I crashed the computer two or three times and spent more time watching the “thinking circle” go around then looking at data. Thankfully, Dave, the graduate student I am working with and Sonja, an undergraduate in the lab this summer were able to come up with a MatLab code that filtered my data so it is more reasonable to work with. Though, creating the MataLab code was a slow, daunting task for them it was very valuable for me. I was able to learn a little about MatLab, but more importantly I was able to witness and be part of some of the collaboration and problem solving that takes place in research.

After the code was created I was able to learn the first steps in processing the data. I first need to open MatLab and run the code to filter the data. Then I copy the data into the template that zeros the time and microstrain to give me curves to fit. Once the curves are fit I am able to get dynamic modulus and phase angle through equations in the template. These I believe I will be using to plug into another program to get the information I need for my project. I have had a great time learning more about Excel and all the tools it has for looking at data! This is something I definitely hope to bring back to my classroom.

Unfit curves

Fit curves