UA receives $5 million to establish seismic systems testing center

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has awarded $5 million to researchers at the University of Arkansas to develop a center for large-scale testing of seismic systems, the university announced Tuesday (Nov. 5).

The new center is expected to test systems to improve the performance of civil infrastructure, such as buildings and bridges, in the event of an earthquake. The money will allow for the purchase of hydraulic loading equipment, materials testing equipment, data acquisition devices, and upgrades to the existing 37,400-square-foot facility, the Grady E. Harvell Civil Engineering Research and Education Center.

Gary Prinz, professor of civil engineering and director of Grady E. Harvell Civil Engineering Research and Education Center, is the principal investigator. Cameron Murray, associate professor of civil engineering, is the co-principal investigator.

“When it comes to natural disasters from seismic activity, learning from experience is extremely costly,” Prinz said. “Learning through controlled testing in a laboratory setting allows for more rapid progress and the development of new seismic solutions that can lead to more resilient, cost-effective infrastructure.”

The success of this project will be measured by the resulting competitive research grants awarded, the successful training of students to use the equipment, and by implementing new equipment in research projects during the first five years of ownership.

The equipment is expected to transform the capabilities of the facility, making the Grady E. Harvell Civil Engineering Research and Education Center a nationally competitive structures laboratory.

Grady E. Harvell Civil Engineering Research and Education Center opened in 2021 and provides full-scale structural testing and a teaching laboratory, which had not previously existed in Arkansas. Since it opened, researchers affiliated with the testing center have received more than $21.5 million in research awards.