Summary
I am a researcher, engineer, and educator currently working as Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Imperial College London where I lead the Emerging Structural Technologies Research Group. I am the Director of Undergraduate Admissions for the MEng in Civil Engineering and the Departmental Postdoc Champion.
My research is centred on improving the response of structures and infrastructure systems to short-term and long-term stressors through emerging structural technologies. It spans the areas of structural mechanics, applied dynamics and structural design. I leverage innovative technological tools and state-of-the-art numerical and experimental techniques to provide engineering solutions to a wide range of structural questions. Of particular interest are engineering problems arising in extreme or hostile environments such as earthquakes and extra-terrestrial settings; including the development, design, optimization and implementation of passive, semi-active and other protective strategies – my group has made contributions in all these areas. A list of publications can be found in the tab above or in Scopus. My research has received several prizes including the Structures Best Research Paper Prize from the Institution of Structural Engineers, the Tso Kung Hsieh Research Award from the Institution of Civil Engineers and the Unwin Prize from Imperial College London.
Having practiced for five years in large and small infrastructure projects in Latin America, I am continuously involved in specialised consultancy internationally, including providing expert advice on the causes of failure of major infrastructure projects. I also serve on a number of committees related to international code development and the advancement of engineering practice.
Teaching
I am engaged in teaching at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and have contributed to courses internationally in Europe, Latin America, and the UK. I have received a Commendation for Excellence in Structural Engineering Education from the IStructE and students from my group have won many departmental and national awards. A more up to date page including the teaching material developed in the EmergStructTech Group can be found here.
Note to prospective students:
As most of my fellow academics, I receive several PhD applications and emails from prospective students each day. Although many candidates are excellent, it is virtually impossible to respond to each potential applicant personally; besides, the funding opportunities are limited and there are many space constraints. I will do my best to come back to you in a reasonable time but please do not get discouraged if I do not respond to your email.
Videos & Media
- Disasters Engineered Episodes 7 & 8 (TV Series 2019, Discovery Channel)
- Mexico earthquake: Why did only some buildings collapse? (BBC)
- VIDEO: Interview for HispanTV: Living with earthquakes
- What makes Mexico City so vulnerable to earthquakes? (Archinet)
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Seismic Shift: Is CLT the answer for earthquake zones? (The Possible, WSP Magazine)
Selected Publications
Journal Articles
Malaga Chuquitaype C, 2022, Machine learning in structural design: an opinionated review, Frontiers in Built Environment, Vol:8, ISSN:2297-3362
Reza Gharehbaghi V, Noroozinejad Farsangi E, Noori M, et al., 2021, A Critical Review on Structural Health Monitoring: Definitions, Methods, and Perspectives, Archives of Computational Methods in Engineering, ISSN:1134-3060
Freddi F, Galasso C, Cremen G, et al., 2021, Innovations in earthquake risk reduction for resilience: recent advances and challenges, International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, Vol:60, ISSN:2212-4209
Málaga-Chuquitaype C, 2021, Strong-motion duration and response scaling of yielding and degrading eccentric structures, Earthquake Engineering & Structural Dynamics, Vol:50, ISSN:0098-8847, Pages:635-654
Thiers-Moggia R, Malaga Chuquitaype C, 2021, Effect of base-level inerters on the higher mode response of uplifting structures, Journal of Engineering Mechanics, ISSN:0733-9399
Malaga Chuquitaype C, Menendez-Vicente C, Thiers-Moggia R, 2019, Experimental and numerical assessment of the seismic response of steel structures with clutched inerters, Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, Vol:121, ISSN:0267-7261, Pages:200-211