Transforming Urban Underground Infrastructure

George Mason University, Fairfax VA

Investigators

Abstract

The objective of this project is to support effort in mobilizing a collaboration of researchers and practitioners to create innovative, minimally disruptive and potentially transformative solutions to how we design, build and operate urban underground infrastructure systems. Cities in the United States and across the world have been a major driver of economic growth, technological innovation, and cultural vitality. However, their infrastructure systems are often patchworks of legacy and new components with incompatible standards, materials, and governance structures. As a result, the performance of such systems can be unpredictable under normal conditions and more so when subject to extreme events. The current economic paradigm requires seamless and continuous service delivery, supporting uninterrupted movement and commerce. The challenges to delivering such services that are faced by underground infrastructures, such as water and wastewater, transportation, telecommunications, and power systems, are exacerbated by difficulties in access and the harsh environment in which these systems reside. Key knowledge gaps remain a barrier. Through meetings, exchanges, workshops, resource sharing, training and more, the Transforming Urban Underground Infrastructure (TUUI) Collaborative provides a forum for information sharing, idea generation and opportunity creation. It fosters new collaborations and partnerships, develops a community of experts around urban underground infrastructure and advances science and a vision for the future in urban underground infrastructure systems. The collaborative brings together experts from across disciplines, technical specialties and geographical locations to advance fundamental knowledge in designing, constructing, operating, controlling, maintaining, protecting, and improving urban underground infrastructure systems. It fosters activities around advancing technologies, fundamental theories, designs, operations, methods and practices for urban underground infrastructure systems and the underground surroundings. Activities enable communications, coordinate teaming opportunities, and develop an online repository of training and educational materials and other resources. With its working group structure and open, expert-led avenues for participation, new research partnerships and paths for coordination are formed that aim at transforming urban underground infrastructure given recent breakthroughs in computing, sensing, machine learning, automation, materials, and more. This project promotes the progress of science in underground infrastructure, assists in advancing national prosperity and welfare, and bolsters knowledge that can support national defense. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.