Construction

Field construction, hands-on builds, and the soil testing that every construction project depends on.

Status key: Completed = finished, with a deliverable · In Progress = current coursework or work underway · Planned = defined, not yet started

Geotechnical Engineering Lab

IN PROGRESS · CIVE 3475 Geotechnical Engineering & Applications · Fall 2026 · Five-student lab group

Question: how does a campus soil sample behave as its moisture content changes, and how does it classify?

Tests: Atterberg limits (Casagrande liquid-limit cup and plastic-limit thread rolling), oven-dry water content, and flask specific gravity.

Results

  • Liquid limit 31% (read at 25 blows), plastic limit 20%, plasticity index 11%
  • Water content 26.5% (average of 3 samples)
  • Specific gravity 2.61 (typical range 2.54–2.86)
  • Classification: CL, predominantly clay with low plasticity (USCS, ASTM D2487)

Data check: water content rose with blow count, the opposite of the expected trend. The team traced it to a likely moisture or weighing error in one or more trials.

Interactive · Soil classification (USCS)

Classify a soil from its Atterberg limits

Enter a liquid limit and plastic limit to see where the soil falls on the Casagrande plasticity chart. Pre-filled with my CIVE 3475 lab result.

Result
CL
Lean clay
Assumes a fine-grained, inorganic soil (50% or more passing the No. 200 sieve). A full USCS classification also uses grain-size data.

TOPLINE Seamless Gutter Installation

COMPLETED · Assistant Installer · Brownsville, TX · Jun – Dec 2025

Installed residential seamless gutter systems as part of a three-person crew, from roofline layout through installation, paying attention to alignment, slope, water-flow direction, and discharge routing on each jobsite.

My contribution

  • Took measurements so components fit and met project specifications
  • Checked alignment and positioning during installation
  • Set and maintained gutter slope for proper drainage
  • Followed the installation sequence so the finished system worked as intended

What I learned: measurements, alignment, slope, material fit, and installation sequence all decided whether the finished system performed as intended.

Construction and installation experience, not engineering design.

Picnic Table: Design to Build

COMPLETED · Personal project, not coursework

I designed a picnic table in CAD, then built it with a group of friends from pressure-treated lumber.

  • Planned the leg-frame layout and overall table structure
  • Assembled the frame with bolted joints
  • Built the tabletop and benches