Geotechnics Cluster

Overview of the Geotechnics Cluster

Overview of the Geotechnics Research group

In Geotechnics, which at Imperial comprises Soil Mechanics and Engineering Geology, our focus is on understanding the mechanics, behaviour and properties of soils and soft rocks in order to provide real solutions to industry including tunnelling, oil and gas, infrastructure and road building. Our work involves numerical modelling, field monitoring and laboratory-based testing.

Available MSc Courses

  • MSc in Soil Mechanics (H2U3)
    or [with Environmental Geotechnics (H2UN)]
    or [with Engineering Seismology (H2U4)] 
    or [with Engineering Geology (H2EG)]

Who works in the Geotechnics section

Geotechnics Academic and Teaching Staff A-Z

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 Antonio Carrero

Antonio Carraro

Senior Lecturer in Experimental Geotechnical Engineering, PhD, MSc, BSc
Fundamental soil mechanics; Advanced laboratory testing of soils; Sustainable geomaterials; Intermediate soils; Offshore sediments.
 Jardine, Richard

Richard Jardine

Professor of Geomechanics, FREng, MSc, DIC, PhD, FICE, FCGI
Deputy Head of Civil and Environmental Engineering Department
Soil mechanics; Constitutive behaviour; Laboratory and field experiments; Instrumentation; Geotechnical design; Soft Ground engineering; Deep foundations; Offshore geotechnics; Geohazards; Cold region geotechnics.
 James Lawrence

James Lawrence

Reader in Geological Engineering, PhD
Undergraduate Year 1 Coordinator
Upper cretaceous carbonates (Chalk); Geological disposal of radioactive waste; Geomechanics; Structural geology; Petroleum reservoir characterisation; Modelling slope instability; Coastal recession related to the impact of climate change and weathering of rock.  
 Truong Le

Truong Le

Lecturer, PhD
Soil properties, advanced laboratory testing, soil characterisation, soft and stiff clayey soils, geotechnical instrumentation.
Email Truong
 Catherine O'Sullivan

Catherine O'Sullivan

Professor of Particulate Soil Mechanics, PhD, MIEI
Chair of the Equality, Diversity and Departmental Culture (EDDC) committee
Discrete element modelling; Particulate soil mechanics; Micro-computed tomography; Internal erosion; Stress wave propagation; Cyclic soil response; Validation of discrete element models (DEM).
 Dave Potts

Dave Potts 

GCG Professor of Geotechnical Engineering, PhD, FREng, CEng, FICE
Application of FEM to geotechnical problems; Geotechnical numerical analysis; Constitutive modelling; Soil-structure interaction.
David Solans 

David Solans Roa

Teaching Fellow in Geotechnics
 Jamie Standing

Jamie Standing

Professor of Ground Engineering, PhD, CEng, MICE
Chair of the Undergraduate Exam Board
Soil-structure interaction; Tunnelling and deep excavations; Field monitoring; Piles; Model testing; Partly saturated soils and residual soils. 
 David Taborda

David Taborda

Reader in Geomechanical Modelling,  DIC, PhD 
Department ICT Representative
Computational geomechanics; Constitutive modelling of soils; Soil dynamics; Cyclic soil behaviour; Soil-Structure interaction; Geothermal energy systems; Thermo-hydro-mechanical behaviour of soils; Optimisation algorithms.
 Katerina Tsiampousi

Katerina Tsiampousi

Senior Lecturer,  PhD
Director of the MSc Programme in Civil and Environmental Engineering
THM modelling of geo-materials; Behaviour of partially saturated media in deep nuclear repositories; Reliability and risk of geotechnical structures (excavations, tunnels, slopes, foundations); Behaviour of railway embankments under seasonal changes in suction.

Ken Vinck

Lecturer in Geotechnics, MSc, DIC, PhD
Director of MSc in Soil Mechanics
Advanced laboratory testing and field experiments, Soil and Site characterisation; Offshore geotechnics; Hydraulic fill; Soil improvement; Planetary geotechnics; Carbonate soils.
 Lidija Zdravkovic

Lidija Zdravkovic

Professor of Computational Geomechanics, DIC, PhD 
Head of Geotechnics Section
Development and application of FEM in geotechnical engineering; Constitutive modelling; Unsaturated soils; THM modelling of geomaterials; Soil-structure interaction; Laboratory testing of soils.
Geotechnics Academics A-Z
Geotechnics Academics A-Z

Download our Departmental Research Brochure‌

Geotechnics Research Staff A-Z

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Ritesh Kumar

Marie Curie Research Fellow
Development of design guidelines for Offshore Wind Turbines under extreme operational conditions.
Email Ritesh
 

Ryan Yin Wai Liu

Research Associate, PhD
Email Ryan
 

Julia (Kika) Moller

Research Assistant
Email Julia
 Tokio Morimoto

Tokio Morimoto

Research Assistant
A DEM analysis of thermal effects on micromechanics of packed granular beds
Email Tokio
Marina Schnaider Bortolotto

Marina Schnaider Bortolotto

Research Assistant
Investigation on the thermal behaviour of granular materials
Email Marina
Geotechnics Research Staff A-Z
Geotechnics Academics A-Z

Administration contacts

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MSc Soil Mechanics Course Director
Dr Ken Vinck
Cluster Administrator
Jess O'Toole
+44 (0)207 594 6077
Administration contacts for the Geotechnics cluster
Administration contacts
Dr Katerina Tsiampousi, the Soil Mechanics MSc course director, gives an overview of the MSc course and introduces our facilities, teaching and assessment approaches. Play video
Dr Katerina Tsiampousi, the Soil Mechanics MSc course director, gives an overview of the MSc course and introduces our facilities, teaching and assessment approaches.

Should I study for a MSc in Soil Mechanics?

Watch Dr Katerina Tsiampousi, the Soil Mechanics MSc course director,  give an overview of the MSc course organization, explain the course options, introduce our facilities,  teaching and assessment approaches, highlight available scholarship opportunities, and outline post-graduation opportunities.