Physical Sciences & Engineering
Civil & Structural Engineering Research
Civil and structural engineering research covers the design, construction and performance of the built environment: buildings, bridges, foundations, pavements, water systems, coastal works and the materials they are made of. Wikipedia lists coastal, construction, earthquake, environmental, forensic, geotechnical, materials, structural, transportation and water resources engineering among its sub-disciplines; most have their own page in this hub.
Professional societies organise much of the technical work. The American Society of Civil Engineers, founded in 1852, runs nine institutes, including the Structural Engineering Institute and the Geo-Institute, plus technical groups such as the Forensic Engineering Division. It publishes 35 journals. The Institution of Civil Engineers, founded in 1818, publishes about 30 journals through ICE Publishing, including Geotechnique, and the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute publishes Earthquake Spectra.
In the United States, the National Science Foundation funds the field mainly through the Division of Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation, whose Engineering for the Built Environment programme supports infrastructure research from materials to networked systems and contributes to the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program and the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program. NSF also supports the Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure. The Transportation Research Board's cooperative research programmes manage more than 500 projects at a time, and the NIST Disaster and Failure Studies Program has studied more than 40 events since 1969.
Anyone working in the area should settle early which design standards govern the work, such as the Eurocodes in Europe, how structural and building models will be exchanged, for example through IFC, which is ISO 16739-1:2024, and where data and preprints will be deposited. Pages here cover research practice, not design advice.
New to the field? What is Civil & Structural Engineering? →
Reviewed 5 November 2026 by CASRAI Editorial Board
- ASCE institutes and technical groups(read 5 November 2026)
- NSF CMMI(read 5 November 2026)
- NSF EBE programme(read 5 November 2026)
- NSF NHERI solicitation(read 5 November 2026)
- Transportation Research Board: About(read 5 November 2026)
- Civil engineering (Wikipedia)(read 5 November 2026)
- American Society of Civil Engineers (Wikipedia)(read 5 November 2026)
- Institution of Civil Engineers (Wikipedia)(read 5 November 2026)
- EERI(read 5 November 2026)
- NIST Disaster and Failure Studies(read 5 November 2026)
- FEMA earthquake and NEHRP(read 5 November 2026)
- JRC Eurocodes(read 5 November 2026)
- Industry Foundation Classes (Wikipedia)(read 5 November 2026)
- engrXiv(read 5 November 2026)
- TRID(read 5 November 2026)
- Report Card for America's Infrastructure(read 5 November 2026)
- FHWA InfoBridge(read 5 November 2026)
- FHWA LTPP InfoPave(read 5 November 2026)
Field at a glance
Journals
- ASCE journals, Civil Engineering magazine and the ASCE Library
- ASCE publishes 35 technical and professional journals plus the monthly magazine Civil Engineering, conference proceedings, standards and manuals of practice.Website ↗
- ICE Publishing journals (ICE Proceedings, Geotechnique, Magazine of Concrete Research)
- The Institution of Civil Engineers' publishing arm produces about 30 journals and about 30 books a year, according to Wikipedia.Website ↗
- Earthquake Spectra
- The journal of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute; its archive runs back to the first edition in 1984.Website ↗
Societies
- ASCE institutes and technical groups
- Nine institutes (AEI, COPRI, CI, EMI, EWRI, Geo-Institute, SEI, T&DI, UESI) and technical groups such as Forensic Engineering and Infrastructure Resilience.Website ↗
- Civil engineering: sub-disciplines and professional bodies
- Wikipedia lists the sub-disciplines of the field and bodies such as ICE, Engineers Australia, ISSMGE and the Institution of Structural Engineers.Website ↗ · Our guide →
Funders and programmes
- NSF Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation (CMMI)
- The NSF Engineering division whose core programmes are AMDO, EBE, FRR, IIDS and MAMS; it also names NHERI as research infrastructure.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- NSF Engineering for the Built Environment (EBE)
- Funds fundamental infrastructure research from materials to large networked systems, including hazards and extreme events.Website ↗
- NSF Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI)
- A distributed national facility with a coordination office, SimCenter, RAPID facility, cyberinfrastructure and experimental facilities; it replaced NEES.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP)
- Created by Congress in 1977; FEMA, NIST, NSF and USGS coordinate their earthquake work under it.Website ↗
- Transportation Research Board cooperative research programmes
- TRB, part of the National Academies, runs NCHRP, ACRP, TCRP and others (500+ projects at a time); it publishes the Highway Capacity Manual and Transportation Research Record.Website ↗
Archives, facilities and data
- NIST Disaster and Failure Studies Program
- Studies building and infrastructure failures; more than 40 events since 1969, including Champlain Towers South, under the NCST Act.Website ↗
- Report Card for America's Infrastructure
- ASCE's graded assessment of 18 national infrastructure categories; the 2025 edition gives an overall C.Website ↗
- FHWA InfoBridge (LTBP)
- FHWA portal for bridge data, analytics and tools such as bridge condition forecasts and a Bridge Deck Preservation Tool.Website ↗
- FHWA LTPP InfoPave
- Portal for Long-Term Pavement Performance data from in-service test sections in the US and Canada, with analysis-ready datasets.Website ↗
Standards and formats
- Eurocodes (EN 1990 to EN 1999, EN 19100)
- The European structural design standards; the JRC runs the Eurocodes website, the Nationally Determined Parameters database and a helpdesk.Website ↗
- Industry Foundation Classes (IFC, ISO 16739-1:2024)
- Open buildingSMART data schema for exchanging building and construction data in BIM projects.Website ↗
Preprints and indexes
- engrXiv
- Engineering preprint server run by the nonprofit Open Engineering Inc.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- TRID
- Transportation research database combining TRB's TRIS and the OECD ITRD, with about 1.5 million records.Website ↗
21 pages across 6 topic areas
Laboratory Operations & Safety
- 3D-Printed Concrete: How It Works, Printability and Standards
3D-printed concrete explained: layer-by-layer extrusion, the printability triad, and what ISO/ASTM 52939 and ACI 564 do and do not cover.…
- AASHTO Green Book: What It Is and Which Edition Applies
What the AASHTO Green Book covers, how functional and context classes work, and which edition 23 CFR 625.4 names.…
- Automation in Construction: Engineering Guide
A technical guide to automation in construction covering robotics, ISO/ASTM 52939 additive printing, BIM metrology, and site safety frameworks.…
- Drinking Water Treatment: Processes & Standards
Drinking water treatment processes, multi-barrier unit operations, EPA log-removal criteria, DBP regulations, and laboratory monitoring protocols expl…
- Flood Risk Mapping: Standards & Methods Guide
Flood risk mapping combines hydrologic modeling, HEC-RAS hydraulics, and LiDAR terrain data to delineate flood hazard boundaries and water surface pro…
- HEC-HMS: What It Models, Methods and Free Use Terms
What HEC-HMS models, the method options for loss, transform, baseflow and routing, and its no-charge terms for non-Corps users.…
- Recycled Asphalt Pavement (RAP): Uses and Lab Limits
What recycled asphalt pavement is, where it is used, and what FHWA says changes in binder and mix design as RAP content rises.…
- USGS National Water Information System (NWIS): Data Types and the 2027 API Change
USGS National Water Information System data types, and how the legacy WaterServices shutdown on February 22, 2027 maps to the new Water Data APIs.…
Research Data Management
- CUAHSI HydroShare: The Collaborative Repository for Hydrology Data
HydroShare is CUAHSI's NSF-funded domain repository for hydrology and water-resources data, models, and time series. Learn what it supports, how DOIs…
- DesignSafe-CI: The NHERI Data Repository for Natural Hazards Engineering
DesignSafe-CI is the NSF-funded data repository and cyberinfrastructure for NHERI, hosting experimental, simulation, and field-reconnaissance data for…
- National Bridge Inventory: Research Data Guide
A researcher guide to the National Bridge Inventory (NBI): dataset structure, 445-character layouts, SNBI transition, June 15 updates, and citation ru…
- NOAA Atlas 14: Precipitation Frequency Guide
NOAA Atlas 14 delivers precipitation frequency estimates across the U.S. Learn volume coverage, PFDS access, and the transition to NOAA Atlas 15.…
Research Methods & Statistics
- Civil Engineering vs. Environmental Engineering: What Is the Difference?Comparison
Civil engineering designs, builds and maintains infrastructure such as structures, transportation and water systems; environmental engineering, which…
- What Is Civil Engineering? Research Areas, Funding, and Career Paths
A thorough answer to "what is civil engineering" — what it studies, its major subfields, who funds the research (NSF, FHWA, USACE, NIST, EPA), typical…
- What Is Environmental Engineering? Research Areas, Funding, and Career Paths
A thorough answer to "what is environmental engineering" — what it studies, its major subfields, who funds the research (NSF, EPA, NIEHS, DOE, USDA),…
- What Is Hydrology? Research Areas, Funding, and Career Paths
What hydrology studies, its major subfields, who funds the research (NSF, USGS, NASA, NOAA), core field and modeling methods, and career paths.…
Grants Management & Research Funding
- Lean Construction Institute: LCI Framework Guide
Learn how the Lean Construction Institute (LCI) applies the Last Planner System, core lean tenets, and LCI-CPC certification to eliminate project wast…
- Water Research Foundation: Grants & Rules
Water Research Foundation guide: funding programs, 15% indirect cost ceiling, proposal evaluation criteria, PAC oversight, and compliance under 2 CFR…
Scholarly Publishing
- Journal of Building Engineering: Scope & Guide
A guide to the Journal of Building Engineering (JOBE), covering Elsevier lifecycle scope, impact metrics, Editorial Manager submission, and peer venue…
- SAP2000: Structural Analysis Software Explained
What SAP2000 does: analysis types, code-based design, IFC/Revit/CIS/2 exchange and how it differs from ETABS, CSiBridge and SAFE.…
Patient Safety & Infection Prevention
- NFPA 101 Life Safety Code in the Hospital Survey: K-Tags, Form CMS-2786R, and the FSES Route
CMS incorporates the 2012 edition of NFPA 101 at 42 CFR 482.41(b) with TIAs 12-1 to 12-4. What a K-tag actually is, how the seven banded sections of F…
