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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. A wastewater pumping station that lifts the wastewater to a higher elevation when continuing the sewer at reasonable slopes would involve excessive depths of trench. Also - an installation of pumps that raise wastewater from areas too low to drain in






2. Water that does not contain objectionable pollution - contamination - minerals - or infective agents and is considered satisfactory for drinking.






3. Record of an area's natural and man-made resources - including vegetation - animal life - geological characteristics and mankind's presence in such forms as housing - highways and even hazardous wastes.






4. The movement of water through very small spaces due to molecular forces.






5. A wall that resist horizontal forces applied in the plane of the wall.






6. That part of the precipitation falling on a drainage area which does not escape as surface stream flow during a given period. It is the difference between total precipitation and total runoff during the period - and represents evaporation - transpira






7. The change to an area's natural resources - including animal and plant life - resulting from use by man. Some projects may require conducting of an 'environmental impact study' before development can proceed.






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






9. 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.






10. A community's used water and water carried solids (including used water from industrial processes) that flow to a treatment plant. Storm water - surface water - and groundwater infiltration also may be included in the wastewater that enters a wastewa






11. The taking in or soaking up of one substance into the body of another by molecular or chemical action (as tree roots absorb dissolved nutrients in the soil).






12. An authorization issued by a government agency allowing construction of a project according to approved plans and specifications.






13. The science and management of land - especially rural - agricultural land.






14. The property of a material or soil that permits considerable movement of water through it when it is saturated.






15. 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.






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






17. The condition of water or soil which contains a sufficient amount of acid substances to lower the pH below 7.0.






18. 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.






19. Solid material settled from suspension in a liquid.






20. A line from which heights and depths are calculated or measured. Also called a datum plane or a datum level.






21. A sewer line that receives wastewater from many tributary branches and sewer lines and serves as an outlet for a large territory or is used to feed an intercepting sewer.






22. An agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior charged with the planning and administration of all parks and monuments in the federal park system. The NPS is often referred to as the largest single employer of landscape architects in the United Sta






23. 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.






24. A trained builder or installer of landscapes - retained to implement the plans of landscape architects.






25. A legal means of protecting beautiful views and associated aesthetic quality along a site by restricting change in existing features without government approval.






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






27. Movement of soil from one place to another. Generally accompanies SILTING of a sewer system. Where infiltration is taking place and silt is carried into a sewer system - such silt or soil is removed from the ground around the sewer pipe and the resul






28. An opening or point of access in a building wastewater pipe system for rodding or snake operation.






29. British thermal units; the quantity of thermal energy required to raise one pound of water at its maximum density - 1 degree F. One BTU is equivalent to .293 watt hours - or 252 calories. One kilowatt hour is equivalent to 3412 BTU Back Pressure (wat






30. 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.






31. Pertaining to groundwater - a well - or underground basin where the water is under a pressure greater than atmospheric and will rise above the level of its upper confining surface if given an opportunity to do so.






32. American Society for Testing and Materials






33. The precipitation that cannot be absorbed by the soil and flows across the surface by gravity. The water that reaches a stream by traveling over the soil surface or falls directly into the stream channels - including not only the large permanent stre






34. The excess water running off from the surface of a drainage area during and immediately after a period of rain. See STORM RUNOFF.






35. 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.'






36. A small tank (usually covered) or a storage facility used to store water for a home or farm. Often used to store rainwater.






37. Material used to provide a bedding or foundation for pipes or other underground structures. This material is of specified quality for desirable bedding or other characteristics and is often imported from a different location.






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






39. Sewers are surcharged when the supply of water to be carried is greater than the capacity of the pipes to carry the flow. The surface of the wastewater in manholes rises above the top of the sewer pipe - and the sewer is under pressure or a head - ra






40. A groundwater table that has seasonal changes in depth or elevation.






41. A layer - usually of concrete or mortar - for providing continuous support to such items as bricks - slabs - pipes.






42. The lowest point of the channel inside a pipe - conduit - or canal.






43. 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.






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






45. A site that might appear to be natural but has elements and features that were planned and specified by a landscape architect. Designed landscapes include Central Park in New York to the siting of buildings.






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






47. The running off of water from a land surface or subsurface - such as through sewers or natural means.






48. A water treatment process in which solid particles settle out of the water being treated in a large clarifier or sedimentation basin.






49. A wall that supports any vertical load in addition to its own weight.






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