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.