The Oregon State University School of Civil and Construction Engineering will host a pair of facility open houses on Thursday, Oct. 16, to introduce two new water research Oregon BEST laboratories. An open house and ribbon cutting for the Multipurpose Hydraulics Research Facility will take place at 11:45 a.m. at the O.H. Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory followed by an open house at 4:00 p.m. for the Green Stormwater Infrastructure Research Facility at the Benton County Avery Facility.
The Multipurpose River Hydraulics Research Facility features a recirculating system with the ability to test two simultaneous and independent experiments with flows of up to 35 cubic feet per second. The facility is ideal for the construction and testing of river and low head pressurized hydraulic structures, and it can also be used for a wide range of research projects, including flood control, reservoir sedimentation, density currents, erosion and scour, aquatic habitat, stream restoration, fish passage and dam removal.
The $600,000 facility, led by OSU water resources professor Arturo Leon, consists of a re-circulating system with a 20-m x 8-m concrete slab (platform for experiments), two independent head tanks, a sediment catchment, a clean water sump, pumps, and impulsion and return pipe lines. Partners for the lab include United State Environmental Protection Agency, Oregon BEST, OSU, and Northwest Research Associates.
To RSVP for the open house, contact OSU professor Arturo Leon.
The OSU-Benton County Green Stormwater Infrastructure Research Facility is a three-celled stormwater research facility for field-scale experiments and testing on green infrastructure (e.g., raingardens, bioswales, etc.). The cells provide the ability to test various stormwater treatment technologies and treatment of various stormwater contaminants. These cells are also instrumented with multiple sensors to enable better data collection and modeling.
Pollutants captured at the $110,000 facility include tractor leaks, fuel tank spills, raw asphalt, road fill sediment, parking lot sediments and chemicals, and road paint spills. In addition to stormwater treatment, this facility supports long term research on stormwater quality to inform current and future projects for treating stormwater using ‘low impact development’ technology.
“The data from this facility will enable us to develop clear recommendations for cities that are facing the overwhelming choices in green stormwater technologies,” said OSU water resources professor Meghna Babbar-Sebens, who is co-director of the facility with Leon. “The facility also provides capabilities for conducting short term as well as long term experiments on different types of innovative green technologies.”
Those in attendance will be able to learn about the partnership project to enhance water quality, provide long-term research and support stormwater and water quality education and outreach. Partners in the project include Benton County, Oregon State University, Oregon BEST, State of Oregon Water Resources Department, and the Pacific Northwest Transportation Consortium.
To RSVP for the stormwater research facilty open house, contact Meghna Babbar-Sebens or Benton County Projects Coordinator Adam Stebbins.
