ME or MEng Master of Engineering Master of Civil Engineering 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: The critical path in a CPM schedule is defined as:
- The path with the most activities
- The sequence of activities with the longest total duration (Correct answer)
- The path with the highest cost activities
- The path requiring the most resources
Correct answer: The sequence of activities with the longest total duration
The critical path is the longest sequence of dependent activities, determining the minimum project duration with zero total float.
Question 2: In open channel flow, the Froude number equals 1.0 at:
- Uniform flow conditions
- Critical flow conditions (Correct answer)
- Supercritical flow only
- Subcritical flow only
Correct answer: Critical flow conditions
Fr = 1 defines critical flow, where specific energy is minimized for a given discharge and flow transitions between subcritical and supercritical states.
Question 3: Which test is most commonly used to determine the unconfined compressive strength (qu) of cohesive soils?
- Standard Penetration Test (SPT)
- Cone Penetration Test (CPT)
- Unconfined Compression Test (UCT) (Correct answer)
- Direct Shear Test
Correct answer: Unconfined Compression Test (UCT)
The Unconfined Compression Test applies axial load to a cohesive soil cylinder with no confining pressure to directly measure qu.
Question 4: The design wind pressure on a building cladding component per ASCE 7 depends on:
- Only basic wind speed and building height
- Wind speed, exposure category, topographic factors, and component area (Correct answer)
- Building occupancy category only
- Design wind speed and seismic zone
Correct answer: Wind speed, exposure category, topographic factors, and component area
ASCE 7 wind pressure calculations incorporate basic wind speed, exposure category, height, topographic effects, and component tributary area for C&C design.
Question 5: A culvert operating under outlet control has its hydraulic performance governed primarily by:
- The inlet geometry and headwall type
- Downstream tailwater, barrel friction, and outlet losses (Correct answer)
- The entrance loss coefficient only
- Upstream headwater depth alone
Correct answer: Downstream tailwater, barrel friction, and outlet losses
Under outlet control, flow through the entire barrel is full-pipe flow governed by headwater, tailwater, barrel length, roughness, and exit losses.
Question 6: In the AASHTO flexible pavement design method, the structural number (SN) accounts for:
- Traffic volume only
- Soil resilient modulus only
- Layer thicknesses and layer coefficients combined (Correct answer)
- Drainage conditions alone
Correct answer: Layer thicknesses and layer coefficients combined
The Structural Number SN = a1D1 + a2D2m2 + … combines each layer's coefficient and thickness, reflecting the pavement's load-carrying capacity.
Question 7: What is the purpose of the 'effective length factor' K in the Euler column buckling formula?
- To adjust for material yield strength
- To account for end boundary conditions affecting buckling length (Correct answer)
- To reduce load for dynamic effects
- To convert between unit systems
Correct answer: To account for end boundary conditions affecting buckling length
K converts the actual column length to an effective length that reflects the restraint provided by end conditions, modifying the Euler critical load.
ME or MEng Master of Engineering Master of Civil Engineering 3
The critical path in a CPM schedule is defined as: