Test your basic knowledge |

Civil Engineering Vocab

Subject : engineering
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Most plumbing codes require a vent pipe connection of adequate size and located downstream of a trap in a building wastewater system. This vent prevents the accumulation of gases or odors and is usually piped through the roof and out of doors.






2. The illustration and description of problem-statements and large-scale design solutions that affect extensive areas of land; the anticipation of problems that will be encountered as human use and development of land continues.






3. A break in a lateral pipe somewhere between the sewer main and the building connection.






4. A structure made of concrete or other durable material to protect bare soil from erosion by splashing or falling water.






5. A U.S. government agency responsible for developing and enforcing regulations that guide the use of land and natural resources.






6. A special valve with a hinged disc or flap that opens in the direction of normal flow and is forced shut when flows attempt to go in the reverse or opposite direction of normal flows.






7. Soil that cannot absorb any more liquid. The interstices or void spaces in the soil are filled with water to the point at which runoff occurs.






8. One or a series of oneinch diameter holes through a manhole lid for purposes of venting dangerous gases found in sewers.






9. Rain and snow water accumulated in the earth's porous rock.






10. Regulations specifying the type of construction methods and materials that are allowable on a project.






11. The legal grant of right-of-use to an area of designated private property.






12. Masonry composed of irregularly shaped stones laid without regularity of coursing - but well bonded.






13. A U.S. government agency charged with administering vast areas of public land.






14. A mixture of storm or surface runoff and other wastewater such as domestic or industrial wastewater.






15. A coordinating agency formed in 1961 for state boards that administer licensing exams and maintain records for landscape architects to practice.






16. Solid material settled from suspension in a liquid.






17. A sewer installed to connect two separate sewers. If one sewer becomes blocked - wastewater can back up and flow through the interconnector to the other sewer.






18. Material used to fill in a trench or excavation






19. A groundwater table that is changed by artificial means. Examples of activities that artificially raise the level of a groundwater table include agricultural irrigation - dams and excessive sewer line exfiltration. A groundwater table can be artifici






20. Downstream opening or discharge end of a pipe - culvert - or canal.






21. A manhole located at the upstream end of a sewer and having no inlet pipe. Also called a TERMINAL MANHOLE.






22. A sewer designed to carry both sanitary wastewaters and storm or surface water runoff.






23. A sewer pipe to which building laterals are connected. Also called a COLLECTION MAIN.






24. A record of each person involved in the handling and possession of a sample from the person who collected the sample to the person who analyzed the sample in the laboratory and to the person who witnessed disposal of the sample.






25. The pipeline extending from the water main to the building served or to the consumer's system.






26. A pipe or conduit that carries wastewater or drainage water. The term 'collection line' is often used also.






27. Sedimentation basin overflow weir. A plate with Vnotches along the top to ensure a uniform flow rate and avoid shortcircuiting.






28. A system used where wastewater collection systems and treatment plants are not available. The system is a settling tank in which settled sludge is in intimate contact with the wastewater flowing through the tank and the organic solids are decomposed






29. Branch or lateral sewers that collect wastewater from building sewers and service lines.






30. Masonry composed of roughly shaped stones - well bonded and brought at irregular intervals vertically to discontinuous but approximately level beds or courses.






31. The force that resists the separation of two bodies in contact.






32. American Society for Testing and Materials






33. Precipitation which has been rendered (made) acidic by airborne pollutants.






34. In zoning - a housing or commercial development composed of individual units that are regulated as a whole.






35. Landscape architecture - (civil) engineering - urban planning and architecture. Agronomy is also often included in this group.






36. The man-made creation of or alterations to a specific area - including its natural resources. This is in contrast to the 'natural environment.'






37. A device that admits surface waters to the storm water drainage system. Also see CURB INLET and CATCH BASIN.






38. Narrowly defined - an extended view or prospect from a site which - many times - is as important as or more important than the site itself.






39. Not easily penetrated. The property of a material or soil that does not allow - or allows only with great difficulty - the movement or passage of water.






40. A structure or chamber which is usually sunk or lowered by digging from the inside. Used to gain access to the bottom of a stream or other body of water.






41. The used household water and watercarried solids that flow in sewers to a wastewater treatment plant. The preferred term is WASTEWATER.






42. A reactor or basin in which baffles or other devices create a series of compartments. The environment and the resulting microbial population within each compartment can be controlled to some extent by the operator. The environmental conditions (food






43. The amount of runoff that reaches the point of measurement within a relatively short period of time after the occurrence of a storm or other form of precipitation. Also called 'direct runoff.'






44. The amount of liquid which a solid material can absorb. Sand - as an example - can hold approximately onethird of its volume in water - or three cubic feet of dry sand can contain one cubic foot of water. A denser soil - such as clay - can hold much






45. A chamber or well used with storm or combined sewers as a means of removing grit which might otherwise enter and be deposited in sewers. Also see STORM WATER INLET and CURB INLET.






46. Narrowly defined - the amount of countryside and/or city that can be taken in at a glance. Also - an area of land or water taken in the aggregate.






47. A type of wastewater or service connection pipe made of a low grade of cast iron. _ In plumbing - a pipe that carries the discharge of toilets or similar fixtures - with or without the discharges from other fixtures.






48. A conservation group that maintains a revolving fund for quickly buying land that is in danger of being developed inappropriately or without regard to proper environmental considerations.






49. In landscape architecture - the organization of areas of land for specific aesthetic or functional purposes. This can range from creating small backyard patios to huge urban plazas.






50. A plan for conserving or protecting various natural or manufactured resources. Such a plan is used as a management tool in making decisions regarding soil - water - vegetation - manufactured objects and other resources at a particular site.