PE Civil - Breadth Exam Study Guide
This guide covers key concepts and formulas from the five major disciplines on the PE
Civil Breadth exam: Geotechnical, Structural, Water Resources/Environmental,
Transportation, and Construction
1. bulldozer earthmover: A powerful track-laying tractor with caterpillar tracks
and a broad curved upright blade at the front for clearing the ground.
2. dredger: The machine or ship is used for removing sand and mud from the
bottom of a river or a habour.
3. excavator: Is a heavy construction equipment consisting of a boom, dipper,
bucket and cav on rotating platform known as the „house". It sits on the top of
an undercarriage with tracks or wheels.
4. plate girder: Is a large supported beam out of steel used in construction. It is
the main horizontal support of a structure which supports smaller beams.
5. pylon: Are usually cone-shaped markers. They are placed in roads or footpath
to temporarily redirect traffic in safe manner.
6. road roller: The machine is used for rolling tarmac flat on a road surface.
They are also used at landfills or in agriculture.
7. shovel: tool used for digging. They are hand tools fixed to a medium- length
handle.
8. Higher rates of loading (tension test): increases the apparent yield point of
a material and modulus
9. higher temperature (tension test): ductility, yield strength, fracture strength
and material modulus all increase
10. Hooke's Law: stress is proportional to strength through modulus of elasticity
(DOES NOT APPLY TO NONLINEAR MATERIAL)
,11. steel strain hardening stage: as dislocation of atoms occurs, the number of
dislocated atoms increases. Therefore, density dislocation builds up and
subsequent slip is difficult so material hardens.
12. Necking: center cross section decreases significantly 13. stress strain
curve:
14. elastic range: after being loaded, will return to intial shape and position
15. plastic range: will deform
16. heat treatment: generation of grain boundaries. changes temperature of
material in its solid state
17. quenching: heating steel to 1650 and suddenly cooling. Results in hardened
but brittle steel
18. Tempering: re-heating the steel object to at least 1150 degrees and allowing
to cool in air. Results in internal stresses creating more ductility and toughness
19. Annealing: heating steel above transformation range holding at that temp and
cooling at a slow, controlled, rate. Adds ductility but reduces yield stress,
tensile strength, and hardness.
20. Higher carbon: harder, more brittle
21. Steel is an alloy of: iron adn carbon
22. high carbon equivalence (CE): reduction in weld-ability
23. Hot rolling: melt steel and change shape
24. Welded shapes: Push together for shape
25. Relaxation: Dissipation of stress over time
Causes members in tension such as steel cables to loosen and therefore support
less force
26. Prestressed Steel Rebar: Steel cables are stretched in a steel frame and
locked in place, concrete is then poured in and let to dry. Bars are then
released and cut at ends.
27. Post Tensioned Rebars: Grout is used as encasing material in the Steal
frame instead of concrete.
28. Ambient Temperature: Optimal Temperature for material use
, 29. Transition Temperature: Temp where some materials acquire or lose some
distinctive properties.
-steel becoming very elastic at high temp or very brittle at low temp
30. Civil: Relating to ordinary citizens and their concerns, as distinct from military
or ecclesiastical matters.
31. Absolute: Complete; totally unlimited; certain.
32. Absorbance: The amount of light absorbed by a sample
33. Abrasion: A wearing away or rubbing away by friction.
34. Abutment: The place where projecting parts meet; junction.
35. Acoustics: the study of sound
36. Sludge: Solid waste material from wastewater
37. Actuator: a mechanism that puts something into automatic action
38. Acute: sharp
39. Adhesion: An attraction between molecules of different substances
40. Adiabatic: no heat transfer
41. Afocal: no focal point
42. Albedo: Ability of a surface to reflect light
43. Barometer: An instrument that measures atmospheric pressure
44. Binomial: A polynomial with two terms
45. Buoyancy: Ability to float
46. Bulk: large amounts/ the largest part or most of something:
47. Casting: an object made by pouring molten metal or other material into a
mould
This guide covers key concepts and formulas from the five major disciplines on the PE
Civil Breadth exam: Geotechnical, Structural, Water Resources/Environmental,
Transportation, and Construction
1. bulldozer earthmover: A powerful track-laying tractor with caterpillar tracks
and a broad curved upright blade at the front for clearing the ground.
2. dredger: The machine or ship is used for removing sand and mud from the
bottom of a river or a habour.
3. excavator: Is a heavy construction equipment consisting of a boom, dipper,
bucket and cav on rotating platform known as the „house". It sits on the top of
an undercarriage with tracks or wheels.
4. plate girder: Is a large supported beam out of steel used in construction. It is
the main horizontal support of a structure which supports smaller beams.
5. pylon: Are usually cone-shaped markers. They are placed in roads or footpath
to temporarily redirect traffic in safe manner.
6. road roller: The machine is used for rolling tarmac flat on a road surface.
They are also used at landfills or in agriculture.
7. shovel: tool used for digging. They are hand tools fixed to a medium- length
handle.
8. Higher rates of loading (tension test): increases the apparent yield point of
a material and modulus
9. higher temperature (tension test): ductility, yield strength, fracture strength
and material modulus all increase
10. Hooke's Law: stress is proportional to strength through modulus of elasticity
(DOES NOT APPLY TO NONLINEAR MATERIAL)
,11. steel strain hardening stage: as dislocation of atoms occurs, the number of
dislocated atoms increases. Therefore, density dislocation builds up and
subsequent slip is difficult so material hardens.
12. Necking: center cross section decreases significantly 13. stress strain
curve:
14. elastic range: after being loaded, will return to intial shape and position
15. plastic range: will deform
16. heat treatment: generation of grain boundaries. changes temperature of
material in its solid state
17. quenching: heating steel to 1650 and suddenly cooling. Results in hardened
but brittle steel
18. Tempering: re-heating the steel object to at least 1150 degrees and allowing
to cool in air. Results in internal stresses creating more ductility and toughness
19. Annealing: heating steel above transformation range holding at that temp and
cooling at a slow, controlled, rate. Adds ductility but reduces yield stress,
tensile strength, and hardness.
20. Higher carbon: harder, more brittle
21. Steel is an alloy of: iron adn carbon
22. high carbon equivalence (CE): reduction in weld-ability
23. Hot rolling: melt steel and change shape
24. Welded shapes: Push together for shape
25. Relaxation: Dissipation of stress over time
Causes members in tension such as steel cables to loosen and therefore support
less force
26. Prestressed Steel Rebar: Steel cables are stretched in a steel frame and
locked in place, concrete is then poured in and let to dry. Bars are then
released and cut at ends.
27. Post Tensioned Rebars: Grout is used as encasing material in the Steal
frame instead of concrete.
28. Ambient Temperature: Optimal Temperature for material use
, 29. Transition Temperature: Temp where some materials acquire or lose some
distinctive properties.
-steel becoming very elastic at high temp or very brittle at low temp
30. Civil: Relating to ordinary citizens and their concerns, as distinct from military
or ecclesiastical matters.
31. Absolute: Complete; totally unlimited; certain.
32. Absorbance: The amount of light absorbed by a sample
33. Abrasion: A wearing away or rubbing away by friction.
34. Abutment: The place where projecting parts meet; junction.
35. Acoustics: the study of sound
36. Sludge: Solid waste material from wastewater
37. Actuator: a mechanism that puts something into automatic action
38. Acute: sharp
39. Adhesion: An attraction between molecules of different substances
40. Adiabatic: no heat transfer
41. Afocal: no focal point
42. Albedo: Ability of a surface to reflect light
43. Barometer: An instrument that measures atmospheric pressure
44. Binomial: A polynomial with two terms
45. Buoyancy: Ability to float
46. Bulk: large amounts/ the largest part or most of something:
47. Casting: an object made by pouring molten metal or other material into a
mould
