Department: Civil and Environmental Engineering
Contacts
Office: Yang and Yamazaki Building (Y2E2), Rooms 314/316
Mail Code: 94305-4020
Phone: (650) 723-3074; Fax: (650) 725-8662
Web Site: https://cee.stanford.edu/
Courses offered by the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering are listed under the subject code CEE on the Stanford Bulletin's ExploreCourses website.
The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) at Stanford conducts fundamental and applied research to advance the civil and environmental engineering professions, educates future academic and industry leaders, and prepares students for careers in professional practice. Civil and environmental engineers work to protect and sustain the natural environment while creating and maintaining a resilient, sustainable built environment. Civil and environmental engineers are essential to providing the necessities of human life, including water, air, shelter, infrastructure, and energy, in increasingly more efficient and renewable ways.
Research and teaching in the department focus on the theme of engineering for sustainability, including three core areas: built environment, environmental and water studies, and atmosphere/energy. In the area of sustainable built environments, the focus is on processes, techniques, materials, and monitoring technologies for planning, design, construction and operation of environmentally sensitive, economically efficient, performance-based buildings and infrastructure, and managing associated risks from natural and man-made hazards. In the area of environmental and water studies, the focus is on creating plans, policies, science-based assessment models and engineered systems to manage water in ways that protect human health, promote human welfare, and provide freshwater and coastal ecosystem services. In the atmosphere/energy area, research and teaching focus on fundamental energy and atmospheric engineering and science, assessment of energy-use effects on atmospheric processes and air quality, and analysis and design of energy-efficient generation and use systems with minimal environmental impact.
The department oversees undergraduate programs in Civil Engineering and in Environmental Systems Engineering. The department also hosts the School of Engineering undergraduate major in Architectural Design and the undergraduate major in Atmosphere/Energy - both of which lead to a B.S. in Engineering.
Mission of the Undergraduate Program in Civil Engineering
The mission of the undergraduate program in Civil Engineering is to equip students with the knowledge and skills needed for world-class civil engineering practice. This pre-professional program balances the fundamentals common to many specialties in civil engineering and allows for concentration in any of seven areas: structures, construction, environmental, energy/climate, fluid mechanics/hydrology, urban systems, or sensors/analytics. Students in the major learn to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and civil engineering to conduct experiments, design structures and systems to creatively solve engineering problems, and communicate their ideas effectively. The major prepares students for careers in consulting, industry and government, as well as for graduate studies in science and engineering.
Mission of the Undergraduate Program in Environmental Systems Engineering
The mission of the undergraduate program in Environmental Systems Engineering is to prepare students for incorporating environmentally sustainable design, strategies and practices into natural and built systems and infrastructure involving buildings, water supply, and urban coastal regions. Courses in the program are multidisciplinary in nature, combining math/science/engineering fundamentals, and tools and skills considered essential for an engineer, along with a choice of one of three focus areas for more in-depth study: coastal environments, freshwater environments, or urban environments. This major offers somewhat more flexibility in the curriculum than the Civil Engineering degree program, and requires fewer units. The program of study, which includes a capstone experience, aims to equip engineering students to take on the complex challenges of the twenty-first century involving natural and built environments, in consulting and industry as well as in graduate school.
Graduate Programs in Civil and Environmental Engineering
The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) offers graduate degrees structured in three areas of study.
The Atmosphere/Energy Program offers degrees with the designation of Atmosphere/Energy.
The Sustainable Built Environment Program offers degrees with two designations:
Structural Engineering and Geomechanics
Sustainable Design and Construction
The Environmental Engineering Program offers degrees with the designation of Environmental Engineering
For detailed information on these programs and degree designations, see the "Programs of Graduate Study in Civil and Environmental Engineering" section of this bulletin.
Admissions and Financial Aid
Applications require online submission of the application form and statement of purpose, followed by three letters of recommendation and transcripts of all courses taken at colleges and universities. See https://gradadmissions.stanford.edu/. Policies for each of the programs in the department are available on the department website. See: https://cee.stanford.edu/. Successful applicants are advised as to the degree and program for which they are admitted. If students wish to transfer from one CEE program to another after being accepted, an application for the intradepartmental change must be filed within the department. If, after enrollment at Stanford, students wish to continue toward a degree beyond that for which they were originally admitted, a written application must be made to the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.
The department maintains a continuing program of merit-based financial aid for graduate students. Merit-based financial aid consists of teaching assistantships and/or research assistantships for up to half-time work, with the assumption that students spend the rest of their time on coursework and research required for completion of the degree. Fellowship and scholarship awards or loans may supplement assistantships and other basic support. Continued support is generally provided for further study toward the Engineer or Ph.D. degree based on the student’s performance, the availability of research funds, and requisite staffing of current research projects.
Research Centers and Facilities
Environmental engineering research in the department is conducted primarily in the Bob and Norma Street Environmental Fluid Mechanics Laboratory (EFML) and the Environmental Engineering and Science Laboratory (EESL). The EESL is home to the National Science Foundation (NSF) supported Engineering Research Center for Re-inventing the Nation's Urban Water Infrastructure (ReNUWIt), a four-university consortium that seeks more sustainable solutions to urban water challenges in the arid west; the William and Cloy Codiga Resource Recovery Center (CR2C), a new facility for pilot-scale testing of resource recovery technology; and one of the sites for the U.S. Department of Energy supported Energy-Water Desalination Hub entitled the National Alliance for Water Innovation. Other centers and groups in the department related to environmental engineering include the Environmental Informatics Group, the National Performance of Dams Program (NPDP), and the center for Sustainable Development and Global Competitiveness (SDGC). There is also extensive collaboration with research centers and groups throughout the university, including the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, the Stanford Program on Water, Health & Development, the Bill Lane Center for the American West, the Carnegie Institution, the Center for Innovation in Global Health, Stanford Bio-X, the Environmental and Natural Resources Law and Policy Program, the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, and the Precourt Institute for Energy.
Several research centers in the department focus on improving the sustainability of the built environment. The John A. Blume Earthquake Engineering Center conducts research on earthquake engineering including advanced sensing and control, innovative materials, and risk hazard assessment. Research and advanced global teamwork education is conducted in the Project Based Learning (PBL) Laboratory. The Center for Integrated Facility Engineering (CIFE) employs advanced information technologies and concepts to integrate the facility development process and enhance the usability, buildability, operability, and sustainability of the built environment. The Global Projects Center (GPC) is a multi-discipline, multi-university research program aimed at improving the performance of global engineering and construction projects, with a special focus on financing and governance of sustainable civil and social infrastructure projects. The Stanford Sustainable Systems Lab (S3L) aims to advance the state of the art in the design, monitoring and management of built environment systems, with a special focus on smart grid, smart buildings and smart infrastructures.
Programs of Graduate Study in Civil and Environmental Engineering
Atmosphere/Energy Program
The Atmosphere/Energy Program in Civil and Environmental Engineering combines atmospheric science with energy science and engineering. The main goals of the program are to educate students and the public, through courses, research, and public outreach, about the causes of climate, air pollution, and weather problems and methods of addressing these problems through renewable and efficient energy systems. In addition, students learn about feedback between the atmosphere and renewable energy systems and the effects of the current energy infrastructure on the atmosphere.
Major focus areas of energy research include examining the resource availability of renewable energies, such as wind, solar, and wave, and studying optimal methods of combining renewable energies together to match energy supply with instantaneous demand. This type of work is generally done through a combination of data analysis, three-dimensional atmospheric computer modeling of wind, solar, wave, and hydroelectric power resources, and transmission load flow computer modeling. Other energy research, performed through three-dimensional computer modeling, focuses on the effects, for example, of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles on air pollution and the ozone layer and the effects of ethanol and diesel vehicles on air quality and climate. Studies also examine the feedback of wind turbines to the atmosphere and the effects of climate change on wind and solar energy resources.
Atmospheric research in the program generally involves laboratory work, field measurements, or three-dimensional computer modeling of the combined atmosphere, ocean, and land surface. An example of laboratory work includes measuring the properties of organic particulate matter that forms in the atmosphere. Examples of fieldwork include measuring exposures to secondhand smoke, allergens, and emissions from building materials.
Computer modeling is performed at a variety of spatial scales, from the globe down to the size of a building or smaller. Some examples of modeling studies include examining the effects of air pollution particles on clouds, rainfall, water supply, ultraviolet radiation, the stratospheric ozone layer, and climate, simulating the dispersion of toxic contaminants in an urban street canyon, studying the effects of aircraft exhaust and biomass burning on climate, studying the effects of carbon dioxide domes over cities on air pollution mortality, and studying the leading causes of global warming and their impacts.
Students interested in the Atmosphere and also Clean Renewable Energy systems would most likely apply to the Atmosphere/Energy Program. Those interested in the Atmosphere and also Water systems would most likely apply to the Environmental Engineering Program. Those interested in Atmospheric topics alone (e.g. weather, climate, pollution and its impacts) could apply to either, depending on the courses of interest.
Environmental Engineering Program
The mission of the Environmental Engineering program is to develop state-of-the-art knowledge, models, and processes which form the core of environmental engineering practice, and to train and educate current and future academic and professional environmental leaders. We do this by synthesizing physical, biological, and chemical facets of engineering and science along with elements of the social sciences into our research and teaching. Ultimately, the goal is to protect and sustain our natural resources and human health and contribute to the sustainable development of physical infrastructure, including systems for wastewater treatment, water supply, renewable energy, and resilient coastal environments.
Research and coursework in the Environmental Engineering program are centered around five focus areas:
Aquatic Chemistry & Biology, and Process Engineering
Environmental and Geophysical Fluid Mechanics
Environmental Data, Statistics, and Modeling
Human Health and the Environment
Hydrology and Water Resources
Research in the program spans the physical, chemical, and biological dimensions of Environmental Engineering. The physical aspects are the primary focus of research in the Bob and Norma Street Environmental Fluid Mechanics Laboratory (EFML), whereas research on the chemical and biological aspects is conducted in the Environmental Engineering and Science Laboratory (EESL). The EESL is home to the National Science Foundation (NSF) supported Engineering Research Center for Re-inventing the Nation's Urban Water Infrastructure (ReNUWIt), a four-university consortium that seeks more sustainable solutions to urban water challenges in the arid west, the William and Cloy Codiga Resource Recovery Center (CR2C), a facility for pilot-scale testing of resource recovery technology, and one of the sites for the U.S. Department of Energy supported Energy-Water Desalination Hub entitled the National Alliance for Water Innovation. There is extensive crossover between the EFML and the EESL, reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of environmental engineering that seeks to quantify physical, biological, and chemical processes in the environment in an integrated way. Environmental research is also conducted in numerous centers and groups in the department including the Environmental Informatics Group, the National Performance of Dams Program (NPDP), and the center for Sustainable Development and Global Competitiveness (SDGC). There is also extensive collaboration with research centers and groups throughout the university, including the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, the Bill Lane Center for the American West, the Carnegie Institution, the Center for Innovation in Global Health, Stanford Bio-X, the Environmental and Natural Resources Law and Policy Program, the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, and the Precourt Institute for Energy.
Courses in the Environmental Data, Statistics and Modeling, Environmental and Geophysical Fluid Mechanics, and Hydrology and Water Resources focus areas concentrate on developing an understanding of the physical processes controlling the movement of mass, energy, and momentum in aquatic environments and the atmosphere. Specific course topics include experimental methods, fluid transport and mixing processes, the fluid mechanics of stratified flows, natural flows in coastal waters, estuaries, lakes, and open channels, turbulence and its modeling, flow and transport in porous media, stochastic methods in both surface and subsurface hydrology, watershed hydrology and modeling, water resources infrastructure and systems, global atmospheric circulation, the atmospheric boundary layer, air pollution from global to indoor scales, and wind energy.
Courses in the Aquatic Chemistry, Biology, and Process Engineering and Human Health and the Environment focus areas emphasize the chemical, biological, and engineering aspects of air and water quality and pollution fate and transport, along with characterizing human health risks and developing testing strategies to protect public health. Specific course topics include chemical principles and their application to the analysis and solution of problems in aqueous environments, biochemical and biophysical principles of biochemical reactions, physical and chemical unit operations for water treatment, microbial processes for the transformation of environmental contaminants, microbial metabolic pathways in microbial bioenergy systems, the movement and survival of pathogens in the environment, use of microbial bioreactors for degradation of contaminants and recovery of clean water, quantification of human exposure to toxic chemicals and pathogens in the environment, methods to enumerate and isolate organisms used to assess risk of enteric illnesses in drinking and recreational waters, and the impacts of water supply and wastewater management approaches on public health around the globe.
Sustainable Built Environment Program
The Sustainable Built Environment program includes subprograms in Structural Engineering and Geomechanics, and Sustainable Design and Construction. These programs focus on educating practitioners and researchers to plan, design, build, and operate more sustainable buildings and infrastructure.
The Structural Engineering and Geomechanics (SEG) subprogram educates designers and researchers who want to progress beyond traditional life safety code-based design, to develop and disseminate performance-based structural and geotechnical engineering methods and tools that maximize the lifecycle economic value of facilities.
The Sustainable Design and Construction (SDC) subprogram provides courses in sustainable, multi-stakeholder design methods and tools that incorporate lifecycle assessment, project planning and entitlement, green architectural design, lighting, and energy analysis, power systems, transportation, water supply and wastewater treatment to educate students interested in promoting more sustainable development of buildings and infrastructure.
Admission is managed separately for these two subprograms; prospective students should indicate their preference on their application.
Structural Engineering and Geomechanics
The Structural Engineering and Geomechanics (SEG) subprogram encompasses teaching and research in structural design and analysis, structural materials, earthquake engineering and structural dynamics, advanced sensing and structural health monitoring, data science for smart structures and cities, risk and reliability analysis, disaster resilience, computational science and engineering, solid mechanics, computational mechanics, and geomechanics. The SEG subprogram prepares students for industrial or academic careers.
Students can balance engineering fundamentals with modern computational and experimental methods to customize programs to launch careers as consultants on large and small projects, designers, and engineering analysts.
Structural design and analysis focuses on the conceptual design of structural systems and on computational methods for predicting the static and dynamic, linear and nonlinear responses of structures.
Structural materials research and teaching focuses on the design and analysis of high-performance as well as low-environmental impact materials.
Earthquake engineering and structural dynamics addresses earthquake phenomena, ground shaking, and the behavior, analysis, and design of structures under seismic and other dynamic forces.
Advanced sensing and data science focuses on development and application of sensing, signal processing, and machine learning for structural systems. The goal is to better understand those systems and improve their performance as well as user experience. Applications include structural health monitoring, intelligent transportation system, occupant activity/health monitoring, and interactive space.
Reliability and risk analysis focuses on assessing damage and losses to structures and lifeline systems under earthquakes, wind and other hazards; insights from these assessments are used to engineer more sustainable structures and more resilient communities.
Computational science and engineering emphasizes the application of modern computing methods to structural engineering and geomechanics, and encompasses numerical, structural, and geotechnical analysis.
In the area of geomechanics, students focus on the application of the principles of computational and applied mechanics to problems involving geologic materials including soil and rock, as well as on the use of computational methods for analysis and design of foundations and earth structures.
Sustainable Design and Construction
The Sustainable Design and Construction (SDC) subprogram prepares students for careers in managing the planning, design, construction, and operation of sustainable buildings and infrastructure so that their lifecycle economic value, their net contribution to environmental functions and services, and their social equity are maximized. To give students the breadth and depth necessary to become leaders in practice or research in sustainable design and construction, the SDC program offers four tracks of study: construction, energy, structures, water and sustainable urban systems. In addition to providing critical skills and the necessary industry context, each track offers courses in the following areas of competency: Construction engineering and management; building and infrastructure development; structural performance, design, and analysis; infrastructure systems; energy systems, energy efficiency, and atmosphere.
Classes address advanced topics like modern company and project management methods; cutting-edge information technology, metrics and tools to enhance lifecycle sustainability of the built environment; sensor networks embedded in intelligent buildings and infrastructure; strategy, economics, entrepreneurship and organization design for new businesses; and corporate or governmental initiatives aimed at enhancing the sustainability of buildings and infrastructure.
The SDC subprogram is intended for students with undergraduate degrees in architecture, engineering, science, construction management, economics, or business who wish to pursue careers that enhance the sustainability of the built environment.
Employers of past SDC graduates include: architectural and engineering design firms, constructors, design-build firms, and developers focused on delivering green buildings and infrastructure; energy and sustainability consultants; facility management or sustainability departments within large companies; clean-tech start ups, and venture funds.
SDC Construction (SDC-C)
The SDC-C track includes courses in construction engineering and management and introduces advanced modeling and visualization methods and tools - including artificial intelligence and data science applications - known as virtual design and construction. This track prepares technically qualified students for leadership roles in engineering and management in all phases of the development of major constructed facilities. It emphasizes management techniques useful in organizing, planning, and controlling the activities of diverse specialists working within the unique project environment of the construction industry, and it covers construction engineering aspects of heavy, industrial, and building construction. Additional related course work is available from other programs within the department, from other engineering departments, and from other schools in the University such as Earth Sciences and the Graduate School of Business. SDC-C allows students substantial flexibility to tailor their program of study for careers with general contractors, specialty contractors, real estate or infrastructure developers, or facility owners and operators.
SDC-Energy (SDC-E)
The SDC-Energy (SDC-E) track includes courses on design and construction of buildings and infrastructure systems to produce, distribute, and consume energy sustainably. SDC-E prepares students for careers in design and construction of building energy systems, renewable power generating systems, and smart power grids connected to smart buildings and infrastructure, cleantech venture capital, sustainability-focused public policy, green real estate development, and sustainability management positions.
SDC-E includes courses from the CEE department and several other departments at Stanford on sustainable HVAC design and construction of small scale and large structures, the planning, design and construction of renewable power systems, and sensing and control technologies to link integrated smart grids with intelligent buildings, data centers and infrastructure systems.
SDC-Structures (SDC-S)
The SDC-Structures (SDC-S) track includes courses from construction engineering and management and Structural Engineering and Geomechanics (SEG) to prepare students for careers in design and construction firms that provide integrated design-build project delivery, construction management, and pre-construction services.
This track prepares students for multidisciplinary collaborative teamwork in an integrated design and construction process. The subprogram extends a student's design or construction background with core courses in each of these areas and develops the background needed to understand the concerns and expertise of the many project stakeholders. It includes a comprehensive project-based learning experience.
The SDC-S track is intended for applicants with backgrounds in engineering and science. Applicants should also have a background in the planning, design, or construction of built structures by virtue of work experience and/or their undergraduate education. Knowledge in subjects from the traditional areas of civil engineering is necessary for students to receive the degree and to satisfy prerequisite requirements for some of the required graduate courses. Students with an undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering, and who expect to pursue careers with design or construction firms that emphasize design-build, EPC, or turnkey projects should consider SDC-S.
SDC-Sustainable Urban Systems (SDC-SUS)
The SDC-Sustainable Urban Systems (SDC-SUS) track combines courses by several faculty from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering with courses on sustainable design and construction to focus on the urban scale of the built environment. The SDC-SUS track prepares students for careers in sustainable design, construction, and operation of infrastructure systems and communities.
This track offers courses in frameworks for urban-scale planning of infrastructure systems, technologies to model, simulate, analyze, and visualize the built environment at the urban scale, urban planning, and data analysis. The track includes a significant project-based experience on an actual project in a community.
This track is intended for students with a background in urban planning and systems-level understanding of the built environment from economic, environmental, or social perspectives with an interest to enhance the sustainability of the built environment through leadership roles in public agencies, city government, financial institutions, engineering firms, or technology providers.
Faculty
Emeriti: (Professors) James O. Leckie, Raymond E. Levitt, Gilbert M. Masters, Perry L. McCarty, Leonard Ortolano, Henry W. Parker, Martin Reinhard, Haresh C. Shah, Robert L. Street, Clyde B. Tatum, Paul M. Teicholz
Chair: Sarah L. Billington
Associate Chairs: Michael D. Lepech, Nicholas T. Ouellette
Co-Directors of Graduate Studies: David L. Freyberg, Christian Linder
Professors: Jack W. Baker, Sarah L. Billington, Alexandria B. Boehm, Ronaldo I. Borja, Craig S. Criddle, Jennifer Davis, Gregory G. Deierlein (on sabbatical Spring Quarter), Martin A. Fischer, Oliver B. Fringer, Lynn M. Hildemann (on sabbatical Autumn and Spring Quarter), Mark Z. Jacobson, Anne S. Kiremidjian, Peter K. Kitanidis (on sabbatical Autumn and Winter Quarter), Jeffrey R. Koseff (on sabbatical Winter Quarter), Kincho H. Law, Michael D. Lepech, Richard G. Luthy (on sabbatical Spring Quarter), Eduardo Miranda, William A. Mitch, Stephen G. Monismith, Nicholas T. Ouellette, Alfred M. Spormann
Associate Professors: David L. Freyberg, Christian Linder, Meagan Mauter, Haeyoung Noh, Ram Rajagopal
Assistant Professors: Sarah Fletcher, Catherine Gorlé, Rishee Jain
Emeritus Courtesy Professor: Peter M. Pinsky
Courtesy Professor: Margot G. Gerritsen
Courtesy Associate Professor: Leif Thomas
Courtesy Assistant Professor: Jenny Suckale
Senior Lecturer: John Barton
Lecturers: Michael Bennon, Stanley Christensen, Daniel Colvard, Kyle Douglas, Derek Fong, Renate Fruchter, Diana Gragg, Darryl Goodson, Robert Groves, Glenn Katz, Nelson Koen Cohen, Royal Kopperud, Amy Larimer, Michael Lyons, Renë Morkos, Jose Luis Moscovich, Andrew Peterman, Alexander (Sandy) Robertson, Peter Rumsey, Anand Subramani, Sebastien Tilmans, Jon Wren, Jiaona Zhang
Adjunct Lecturers: Thomas Beischer, Annalisa Boslough, Beverly Choe Harris, Charles Debbas, Dimitris Farmakis, Kenneth Hayes, David Kleiman, Erik Kolderup, Drew Krafcik, Ashby Monk, Peter Rumsey, Kristen Stasio, Christopher Wasney, Allison Williams, Ethen J. Wood
Adjunct Professors: Howard Ashcraft, Vladimir Bazjanac, Terry Beaubois, James Cloern, Angelos Findikakis, Robert Groves, Robert Hickey, Jeremy Isenberg, Calvin Kam, Michael Kavanaugh, Gloria Lau, Mike Lyons, Andrew Manning, Martin McCann Jr, Paul Meyer, Pedram Mokrian, Piotr Moncarz, Jose Luis Moscovitch, Colin Ong, Wayne Ott, Benedict Schwegler, Brian Sedar, Patrick Shiel, Michael Steep, Avram Tucker, Jie Wang, Jane Woodward, Jon Wren
Visiting Professor:
* Recalled to active duty.