November 28, 2023

Two civil engineering faculty members joined industry professionals and state agencies for the Missouri Society of Professional Engineers (MSPE) Fall PDH Days in October.

Bill Buttlar, Glen Barton Chair in Flexible Pavement Technology, discussed the Stadium Boulevard Resurfacing Project, and Professor Carlos Sun presented his assessment of vulnerable road user safety.

MSPE is the only state professional engineering society and represents all practice area disciplines. The virtual event allows attendees to earn professional development hours.

Buttlar, in partnership with the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT), is testing new types of asphalt mixes along a stretch of Stadium Boulevard in Columbia, Missouri. The asphalt includes recycled materials such as scrap tires and plastic wastes. Earlier this year, the research team expanded on the work, testing polyethylene — a material found in plastic grocery bags — in new asphalt pavement being tested along Interstate 155 in southern Missouri.

Sun and his team have developed a suite of transportation simulators to replicate real-world conditions in safe, controlled environments. The MU ZouSim includes vehicle, bicycle, treadmill and e-scooter simulators, all of which can be used to determine how road users respond to work zones, signage, distractions and other simulated conditions.

Other speakers at the MSPE event included representatives from the Missouri State Emergency Management Agency, Ameren Missouri’s Callaway Energy Center and Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District, as well as from construction, engineering and real estate firms.

Learn more about civil engineering at Mizzou.