Postgraduate research (PhD)
Numerical Research
Numerical Research
PhD students enjoying geotechnical finite element analysis
PhD students
PhD students and researchers in geotechnics: Autumn 2017
Laboratory research
PhD students working in the Bishop lab
PhD students are engaged across all of the main research activities in the Geotechnics Section and enjoy many other oppotunities during their time here. Our PhD alumni are spread across the world working in both industry and academia.
For information on current research vacancies, please contact either Dr Stavroula Kontoe or Sue Feller. For more information about the PhD programme, please visit the For more information about the PhD programme, please visit the Department's postgraduate research pages. This page includes details of fees, what to put into an application, and how to apply.
View potential PhD supervisors
Geotechnics Academic and Teaching Staff A-Z
| Photo | Details |
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Antonio CarraroSenior Lecturer, PhD, MSc, BScFundamental soil mechanics; Advanced laboratory testing of soils; Sustainable geomaterials; Intermediate soils; Offshore sediments. |
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Richard JardineProfessor of Geomechanics, FREng, MSc, DIC, PhD, FICE, FCGIDeputy 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. |
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Stavroula KontoeReader in Soil Dynamics, MSc, DIC, PhD, CEng, MICEDirector of the MSc Programme in Civil and Environmental Engineering Computational geomechanics; Earthquake engineering; Site response; Dynamic behaviour of soils and earth structures. |
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James LawrenceSenior Lecturer, PhDUndergraduate 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. |
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Catherine O'SullivanProfessor of Particulate Soil Mechanics, PhD, MIEIChair 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). |
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Dave PottsGCG Professor of Geotechnical Engineering, PhD, FREng, CEng, FICEApplication of FEM to geotechnical problems; Geotechnical numerical analysis; Constitutive modelling; Soil-structure interaction. |
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Jamie StandingReader in Ground Engineering, PhD, CEng, MICEChair of the Undergraduate Exam Board Soil-structure interaction; Tunnelling and deep excavations; Field monitoring; Piles; Model testing; Partly saturated soils and residual soils. |
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David TabordaSenior Lecturer, DIC, PhDDepartment 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. |
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Katerina TsiampousiSenior Lecturer, PhDDirector of MSc in Soil Mechanics 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. |
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Lidija ZdravkovicProfessor of Computational Geomechanics, DIC, PhDHead 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 | |
Download our Departmental Research Brochure
View current researchers and their research topics
Geotechnics Research Students A-Z
| Photo | Details |
|---|---|
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Peter AdesinaStarted Oct 2018Improving the resilience of Africa's dams and levees to internal erosion Supervised by: O'Sullivan, C.; Sufian, A. Email Peter |
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Stewart AgarStarted October 2016DInSAR for Analysis of Ground Deformation in the Rural UK As part of the CDT in Nuclear Energy Supervised by: Lawrence, J.A; Ghail, R.C. Email Stewart |
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Sara BanderaStarted Oct 2017Fundamental analysis of the influence of structure on clay behaviour Supervised by: O'Sullivan, C.; Angioletti-Uberti, S.; Tangney, P. Email Sara |
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Sinead BirksStarted Oct 2020Geological and geomorphological characterisation of West Cumbria Supervised by: Lawrence, J.A; Coleman, C. Email Sinead |
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Anthony CarpenterStarted Sep 2019Long-term nuclear decommissioning InSAR monitoring Supervised by: Lawrence, J.A; Ghail, R.C. Email Anthony |
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Emilia Castillo FuentesStarted June 2021Foundation systems for offshore wind developments in deep waters Supervised by: Zdravkovic, L.; Potts, D.M. Email Emilia |
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Sihua ChenStarted Oct 2017Thermo-hydro-mechanical characterisation of London clay Supervised by: Zdravkovic, L.; Carraro, JAH. Email Sihua |
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Camelia DominguezStarted Oct 2017Advanced experimental characterisation of offshore sediments subjected to multidirectional loading Supervised by: Carraro, JAH.; Zdravkovic, L. |
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Justyna EdgarStarted Oct 2016The origins of Harwich formation As part of the CDT in Sustainable Civil Engineering Supervised by: Lawrence, J.A; Ghail, R.C. Email Justyna |
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Luai ElhusainStarted Jan 2018Experimental investigation into collapsible soils from Sudan Supervised by: Standing, J.R. Email Luai |
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Benjamin GuoStarted Oct 2016The re-use and sustainability of flood defences As part of the CDT in Sustainable Civil Engineering Supervised by: Zdravkovic, L.; Tsiampousi, A.; Onof, C. Email Benjamin |
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Marios KoronidesStarted Oct 2018Numerical investigations of field real-scale experiments involving dynamic soil-structure interaction Supervised by: Kontoe, S.; Zdravkovic, L. Email Marios |
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Ryan LiuStarted Oct 2017Advanced thermo-hydro-mechanical interactions in underground structures Supervised by: Taborda, D. Email Ryan |
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Tony MaherStarted Sep 2019Retardation of radionuclides and contaminants in weathered chalk Supervised by: Lawrence, J.A.; Ghail, R.C. Email Tony |
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Gosia MiderStarted Oct 2017Understanding geological evolution of chalk cliffs and coastal processes using InSAR As part of the CDT in Sustainable Civil Engineering Supervised by: Lawrence, J.A.; Ghail, R.C. Email Gosia |
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Julia Katharina MoellerStarted Mar 2018Seismic response of foundations for offshore wind turbine generators Supervised by: Kontoe, S.; Taborda, D. Email Julia |
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Christos MiltiadisStarted Mar 2021Effect of climate change projections on infrastructure assets Supervised by: Zdravkovic, L.; Tsiampousi, A.; Onof, C. Email Christos |
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Tom MorganStarted Oct 2016 [submitted]The role of faulting in London: How tectonic-scale processes influence site-scale geotechnical behaviour As part of the CDT in Sustainable Civil Engineering Supervised by: Lawrence, J.A.; Ghail, R.C. Email Tom |
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Jose SalomonStarted Apr 2021Undrained instability in saturated sands: Coupled DEM-CFD Analyses Supervised by: O'Sullivan, C. Email Jose |
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Santiago Quinteros AraujoStarted Oct 2017Influence of sampling techniques and fabric on sand behaviour Supervised by: Carraro, JAH.; Jardine, R. Email Santiago |
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Agustin Ruiz LopezStarted Oct 2017Development of advanced numerical models for cast iron tunnel linings Supervised by: Tsiampousi, A.; Standing, J.R. |
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Tara SasselStarted Oct 2018Simulating the build-up of soil pressures behind integral bridges As part of the CDT in Sustainable Civil Engineering Supervised by: O'Sullivan, C. Email Tara |
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Marina Schnaider BortolottoStarted Nov 2019 [Part-time]Investigation on the thermal behaviour of granular materials Supervised by: O'Sullivan, C.; Taborda, D. Email Marina |
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Jennifer ScoularStarted Oct 2017 [submitted]Monitoring tunnel induced ground movements using satellite InSAR, verified with traditional surveying As part of the CDT in Sustainable Civil Engineering Supervised by: Lawrence, J.A.; Mason, P.; Ghail, R.C. Email Jennifer |
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David SolansStarted Mar 2018Seismic performance and design of tailing dams Supervised by: Kontoe, S.; Zdravkovic, L. Email David |
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Ken VinckStarted Oct 2016Advanced laboratory testing to enable sustainable and cost-effective offshore wind turbine design As part of the CDT in Sustainable Civil Engineering Supervised by: Jardine, R.J. Email Ken |
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Kai WenStarted Oct 2019Driveability and axial capacity of piles for offshore wind turbines Supervised by: Kontoe, S.; Jardine, R. Email Kai |
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Jamie Wills SaninStarted Mar 2020Influence of particle level variability in soil stochastic behaviour Supervised by: Standing, J.R.; O'Sullivan, C. Email Jamie |
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Zixiao WangStarted Oct 2018An investigation of ongoing displacements of active faults in Gobi desert using InSAR technique to support the disposal of high-level radioactive wastes (HLW) in China Supervised by Lawrence, J.A.; Ghail, R.C.; Mason, P. Email Zixiao |
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Shawn XueStarted Nov 2018Ground response to tunnelling with an emphasis on arching mechanisms Supervised by: Standing, J.R. Email Shawn |
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Ding ZhouStarted Oct 2017Numerical analysis of double-O-tube tunnelling Supervised by: Zdravkovic, L. Email Ding |
| Geotechnics Research Students A-Z | |
View completed PhD research titles
Geotechnics Alumni 2020-2021
2021
| Name | Title and supervisor |
|---|---|
| Kirkham, Andrew | Development of a new temperature-controlled oedometer Supervised by: Tsiampousi, A.; Potts, D.M. |
2020
| Name | Title and supervisor |
|---|---|
| Ghiadistri, Giulia Marianna | Numerical study of bentonite buffers homogenisation upon re-saturation Supervised by: Zdravkovic, L.; Potts, D.M.; Tsiampousi, A. |
| Nguyen, Hoang | Micromechanics of shear wave propagation and non-linear stiffness of granular materials Supervised by: O’Sullivan C. |
| Sailer, Eleonora | Numerical modelling of thermo-active retaining walls Supervised by: Taborda, D.; Zdravkovic, L. |
| Salim, Hendarto | Assessing local and global displacements from tunnelling and water extraction in Jakarta Supervised by: Standing, J.R. |
Geotechnics 2008-2009
2009
| Name | Title and supervisor |
|---|---|
| Abela, J | Blinding struts in cut & cover excavations Supervised by: Professor D. Potts/Dr R. Vollum/Professor B. A. Izzuddin |
| Aldama Bustos, G | An exploratory study of parameter sensitivity, representation of results and extensions of PSHA: Case Study - United Arab Emirates Supervised by: Professor J. Bommer |
| Barreto Gonzalez, D | Numerical and experimental investigation into the behaviour of granular materials under generalised stress states. Supervised by: Dr C. O'Sullivan/Dr L. Zdravkovic |
| Cavarretta, I | The Influence of Particle Characteristics on the Engineering Behaviour of Granular Materials Supervised by: Professor M. Coop; Dr C. O'Sullivan |
| Zolghadr Zadeh Jahromi, H | Nonlinear Soil-Structure Interaction Supervised by: Professor B. A. Izzuddin; Dr L. Zdravkovic |
2008
| Name | Title and supervisor |
|---|---|
| Bodas Freitas, T M | Numerical Modelling of the Time Dependent Behaviour of Clays Supervised by: Professor D. Potts |
| Zabidi, H | Studies of karst in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Supervised by: Dr M. de Freitas |
Pre-2008 Information about completed PhD research prior to 2009 may be available from the section but is only available to registered members of the Department. Please contact Sue Feller.
Our academic standing
Accreditation
New Programmes We have started the accreditation process for this MSc programme. Accreditation is linked to a formal visit by the accreditation body, originally scheduled for October 2020, but now delayed to October 2021.
Historic Offerings We have started the re-accreditation process for these MSc programmes. This re-accreditation is linked to a formal visit by the accreditation body, originally scheduled for October 2020, but now delayed to October 2021.
MEng Accredited CEng (Full)
Our degrees are accredited as fully satisfying the educational base for a Chartered Engineer (CEng).
See www.jbm.org.uk for further information.
MSc (Technical)
Our degrees are accredited as meeting the requirements for Further Learning for a Chartered Engineer (CEng) for candidates who have already acquired a partial CEng accredited undergraduate first degree.
See www.jbm.org.uk for further information.
League table rankings
National Student Survey
- Overall Satisfaction, 78.1 (2020); 88% (2019); 84% (2018); 94% (2017); 96% (2016)
QS World Universities rankings
- Subject Ranking. Civil Engineering = 6th (2021); 5th (2020); 6th (2019); 3rd (2018); 4th (2017).
- Overall, Imperial was voted 9th best university in the world in this year's QS rankings.
Guardian University Guide (UK)
- Subject Ranking. Engineering: Civil = 1st (2020); Civil = 1st (2019); 1st (2018); 1st (2017); 1st (2016); 2nd (2015); 2nd (2014)
- Overall, Imperial was ranked 7th in this year's Guardian university guide.
The Times Higher Education world ranking
- Subject Ranking. Civil Engineering = 11th (2020); 12th (2019)
- Overall, Imperial was ranked 9th best university in this year's Times Higher Education world rankings.
Complete University Guide
- Subject Ranking. Civil Engineering = 1st (2018); 2nd (2017), 2nd (2016), 2nd (2015)
- Overall, Imperial ranked 5th best university in this year's Complete University Guide.
Research assessments
- REF-14. 47% of research assessed to be 4* (highest rating), 48% assessed to be 3* and 5% assessed as 2*.
- RAE 2008. 40% of research assessed to be 4* (highest rating), 55% assessed to be 3* and 3% assessed as 2*.