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Designed with convenience and versatility in mind,
it can also be disassembled, and the panels can be used
for practical purposes, such as shelving, at times when
the shelter is not needed.
The project, which is supported by the Alabama
Research and Development Enhancement Fund Program,
has opened the door for numerous collaborative
opportunities in the broader civil and construction
engineering industry and within the College. Aaleti has
partnered with leading companies in the industry and is
planning to conduct rigorous testing and ensure the shelter
prototype meets even the strictest safety standards. In
addition, he has developed a strong working relationship
with Crawford. The data and insights Crawford has
gathered from his building code and community resilience
research work have proven to be invaluable in helping
Aaleti consider all possibilities for the mass production
and distribution of this shelter design concept.
Aaleti hopes that the safe room will one day become
a low-cost and reliable storm preparedness solution that
is sold in retail stores across the state and, eventually,
the country.
“Utilizing the smart panel system created for this
project would make Alabama’s infrastructure more
resistant to natural hazards, while expanding business
prospects for local manufacturers and enhancing the
state’s built environmental resilience,” he said.
For now, though, Aaleti is simply focused on two
things: further testing and re昀椀ning his model. He has
enlisted the help of Dr. Sree Kalyan Patiballa, assistant
professor in the department of mechanical engineering,
to test the ef昀椀cacy of additional materials for inclusion in
the UHPC panels. Utilizing the College’s state-of-the-art
Large-Scale Structures Laboratory and Debris
Cannon Laboratory, the pair are working toward
conducting extensive rounds of 昀椀nal testing to ensure
the revolutionary shelter will soon provide enhanced
protection for individuals no matter where they reside.
EQUIPPING THE NEXT GENERATION
In the same lab in which Aaleti is testing his cutting-edge
design, Dr. Armen Amirkhanian is introducing students
to the ever-important 昀椀elds of civil and construction
engineering. Through his sophomore-level CE 262 course,
the associate professor expertly trains future generations
of engineers to understand the capabilities of various
materials and the role they play in developing structurally
sound buildings.
“The course covers all materials in civil engineering,
ranging from concrete and steel to aggregates and
asphalt,” he said. “At this point in the major, the students
have not taken any structural design classes, but they
must take their limited knowledge of the materials and
solve a problem that’s unfamiliar to them.”
The challenge at hand: designing a concrete panel that
will withstand the impact of a two-by-four being launched
from the debris cannon at approximately 130 mph. It is
a task that even some of the industry’s most experienced
engineers would grapple with, but each semester,
Amirkhanian’s students take it in stride and use their
resourcefulness and put their skills to the test with one
of the College’s most sophisticated pieces of equipment.
The University of
Alabama is one of only a
few institutions in the U.S.
with a debris cannon and
the only university campus
in the world with a quadbarrel debris cannon. The
cannon can independently
or simultaneously launch
debris from each of the four
barrels, simulating realworld scenarios such as
wind-borne debris causing
damage to structures during
tornadoes and hurricanes.
The lab is also equipped
with high-speed cameras
that record the speed of
the debris’ launch, enabling
students to review the footage and determine the primary
area of impact and how their panel failed if it ends up
sustaining damage.
“Students in the course get to see something that no
other undergraduate student in this country gets to see,”
Amirkhanian emphasized. “It helps them better understand
what they are designing as a civil engineer, and it teaches
them important concepts about tornado shelter design code
and why certain requirements are in there.”
Although the semester-long project is far from easy,
the focus and ingenuity it requires of students prepares
them to be the most well-equipped innovators and
builders of tomorrow.
A SAFER FUTURE
Nearly 15 years ago, the powerful EF4 tornado that ripped
through Tuscaloosa left those who witnessed it feeling
powerless. Insurmountable uncertainty lingered over the
city as of昀椀cials and residents questioned how to recover,
rebuild and reestablish a stronger and safer community.
As a result of the unwavering dedication and expertise
of researchers like Crawford, Aaleti and Amirkhanian,
there is now a renewed sense of hope that individuals
might soon be more prepared than ever before to protect
themselves from the deluge of weather-related threats
they face. From conducting community research and
developing a potentially lifesaving product to educating
the industry’s future professionals, the trio’s work has
undeniably led to transformative advancements in storm
research and enhanced safety measures. Although it
certainly has not been easy at times, they have proven
that weathering the storm is often what yields the most
promising results.
ABOVE: Graduate research assistant Tu Luong operates the
quad-barrel debris cannon from the control room.
FALL 2025 | CAPSTONE ENGINEER | 7
