Welcome to rilcie.blog.torontomu.ca! RILCIE stands for Risk-Informed Life-Cycle Infrastructure Engineering, a burgeoning research and field field since the dawn of the new millennium.
The progress of human civilization relies on physical infrastructure systems – buildings, roads, rails, water and wastewater systems, power generations, transmission lines, oil and gas pipelines, just name a few – for providing safe shelters and distributing essential services and resources to the public. As time in service accumulates, these infrastructure systems deteriorate and become increasingly vulnerable to extreme events such as earthquakes, hurricanes and snow storms, as well as human-induced disasters such as human errors and terrorist attacks. If left unchecked, the aging can have adverse impacts to public safety, utility’s profits, and even a whole nation’s economy. The bridge collapses in Quebec and Minneapolis just witnessed this.
To ensure safety and reliability throughout the service life, including any extended life, of an infrastructure system, the aging or performance degradation of infrastructure needs to be effectively managed through innovative engineering ideas. The RILCIE research program, led by the PI Dr. Arnold Yuan, is mandated to advance the RILCIE theory and develop essential decision-support tools for the infrastructure industry. RILCIE integrates risk and reliability analysis methods into civil engineering systems design and management, addressing complex questions arising in infrastructure planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance and renewals.
The RILCIE research program provides a unique multidisciplinary research training opportunity for young people who are dedicated to advance and promote the RILCIE theory and its applications to civil engineering design and management.