Civil Engineering and Architecture Vol. 12(2), pp. 712 - 721
DOI: 10.13189/cea.2024.120205
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Analyzing the Life-Cycle Cost of Manholes: Cement Concrete Versus Polymer Concrete

Kishor Shrestha ^1,*, Pramen P. Shrestha ², Jacimaria Batista ^2
1 School of Design and Construction, Voiland College of Engineering and Architecture, Washington State University, United States
² Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Construction, Howard R. Hughes College of Engineering, University of Nevada Las Vegas, United States

ABSTRACT

In the United States sewer networks, cement concrete (CC) manholes are widely utilized. However, due to their great susceptibility to chemical corrosion, these manholes have shorter lifespan. In comparison to CC manholes, polymer concrete (PC) manholes in sewer networks are shown to have greater resistance to chemical corrosion and longer lifespans. Despite this advantage, use of PC manholes in public works has been limited by their higher initial installation cost. There are very limited studies conducted in this subject; therefore, the key objective of this study is to compare CC and PC manholes and identify the most cost-effective option based on life-cycle costs (LCC). This study collected 60-inch and 48-inch diameter manhole data from the Clark County Water Reclamation District, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Since the data were not normally distributed, non-parametric tests were carried out to determine the group differences. The findings showed that the LCC costs of CC manholes, considering both installation and replacement costs, are significantly less than those of PC manholes. However, the differences were not significant for both sizes of pipes when the LCC costs were computed considering the installation costs only. The practical application of this study is that public agencies can employ the CC manholes as the cost-effective option for 60-inch and 48-inch sizes. The results of this study may assist public agencies in choosing cost-effective manhole options in future manhole projects. This study has a limitation in that the findings are directly applicable to 60-inch and 48-inch manholes; public agency engineers should take caution to implement the findings to other sizes.

KEYWORDS
Life-Cycle Cost Analysis, Manhole, Cement Concrete, Polymer Concrete

Cite This Paper in IEEE or APA Citation Styles
(a). IEEE Format:
[1] Kishor Shrestha , Pramen P. Shrestha , Jacimaria Batista , "Analyzing the Life-Cycle Cost of Manholes: Cement Concrete Versus Polymer Concrete," Civil Engineering and Architecture, Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 712 - 721, 2024. DOI: 10.13189/cea.2024.120205.

(b). APA Format:
Kishor Shrestha , Pramen P. Shrestha , Jacimaria Batista (2024). Analyzing the Life-Cycle Cost of Manholes: Cement Concrete Versus Polymer Concrete. Civil Engineering and Architecture, 12(2), 712 - 721. DOI: 10.13189/cea.2024.120205.