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Tunnel Safety Focus of Research Effort

WVU research team gets ready to test inflatable plug in a Washington, DC, Metro System tunnel recently.

Future travel through transportation system tunnels could be safer, thanks to the work of Julio Davalos, civil and environmental engineering Benedum Distinguished Teaching Professor, Ever Barbero, professor and chair of mechanical and aerospace engineering, and a team of other faculty, post-doctoral fellows, graduate students, and staff.

The team demonstrated its design of a protective inflatable plug in the Washington, DC, Metro system in August, with encouraging results.

The team, its sponsor and cooperating agencies believe such a plug has the potential to seal off tunnels to help prevent the spread of smoke, toxic fumes, gasses or flooding that could occur should there be a fire or breach in a transportation system.

Funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and in close collaboration with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the project began last summer. The idea of a plug - or large airbag - had been contemplated a decade before by European developers, but had never been tested.

The plug, similar to a large airbag, is inflated.

WVU's team did just that, and they are now working on phase two of the project to hone the design based on what they've learned. The final product is expected to be a fully workable design that can be incorporated into transportation systems.

"The test in Washington was exciting and included a number of high-level officials," said Davalos, who's responsible for the concept design. "We're grateful to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority for allowing us access to their system and for working closely with us to help ensure the demonstration's success."

Key agency officials present at the demonstration included Under Secretary for DHS Science & Technology Jay Cohen, TSA Rail and Mass Transit Security Programs Manager Christopher McKay, and various Metro system representatives. Fox News covered the demonstration in a Sept. 5 story.

To read the article and watch a video of the demonstration, go to www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,417461,00.html.

Barbero, who is overseeing the project's modeling and simulation work, praised not only the multidisciplinary nature of the project, but also the dedication of the team in taking the idea to testing in less than a year.

"To take something that had never been tested before and to work to successfully define the right type of fabric and proper design, get it developed, and demonstrate it successfully in a real-world, public way in such a short time frame is impressive," he said. "The entire team - faculty, graduate students, and partners - is to be commended."

Other WVU team members include MAE professors Larry Banta, who's overseeing the sensory system design; Kenneth Means, mechanical design; and Wade Huebsch, fluid dynamics.

The project is being coordinated by post-doctoral researcher Javier Martinez, in collaboration with technicians Jared Grim and David Turner and assistant Sandie Moody. Graduate students include Christopher Griffin, Toms River, N.J., William Sasher, Herndon, Va., Joshua Sill, Cowen, W.Va., Derrick Morgan, Ridgeley, W. Va., and Juan Cruz, Cordoba, Argentina.

09/22/2008