University of Arkansas Students Compete in National GeoChallenge Competition

Photo Submitted

Civil engineering students constructing GeoWall

Students from the University of Arkansas traveled to Orlando, Florida, to compete in the National GeoChallenge competitions. The competitions took place in March during the International Foundation Congress & Equipment Expo. Arkansas had three teams competing in the competition. One team competing in the GeoWall competition and two teams competing in the GeoPrediction competition.

The GeoWall competition is a challenge where teams are asked to design and build a model retaining wall using kraft paper, the teams are judged based on the performance of their wall and the amount of reinforcement used. The U of A GeoWall team placed 7th overall and the team consisted of Mateo Lopez, Aníbal Santos, Nikki Elliot, and Anh Tran.

The GeoPrediction competition asked teams to predict the capacity of two driven piles, teams are judged based on the accuracy of their predictions. GeoPrediction teams consisted of one graduate and one undergraduate student. Nabeel Mahmood and Esteban Miranda placed third and Johnathan Blanchard and Greg Thomas placed first in the Geoprediction competition. The teams were advised by Richard Coffman of the Civil Engineering Department.