Research Associates:
Marialuigia Sangirardi (email: marialuigia.sangirardi@eng.ox.ac.uk)
BSc in Civil Engineering, Technical University of Bari (Italy)
MSc in Structural Engineering, Technical University of Bari (Italy)
PhD in Civil (Structural) Engineering Technical University of Bari, (Italy) and University of Minho (Portugal)
Marilù’s research interests include modelling of masonry mechanical behaviour, computer vision-based structural monitoring, constitutive modelling formulation, numerical simulations of boundary value problems, with emphasis on historical constructions, retrofitting techniques and soil-structure interaction. She serves as reviewer for international journals in preservation, structural engineering, and mechanics. She has been working as research fellow in UMinho - ISISE (Portugal), La Sapienza, and Roma Tre (Italy). She joined the Department of Engineering Science of Oxford University to work on the mechanical identification of historic masonry, developing Virtual Fields based material characterisation techniques. She also worked on full-field monitoring of full-scale vault tests, funded by EPSRC IAA. She is currently engaged in research on tunnel-soil-structure interaction, funded by Rome Metro Line C.
Research students:
Yilong Yang (matric. Oct 2022)
(email: yilong.yang@mansfield.ox.ac.uk)
MEng with First Class Honours in Engineering, University of Oxford (United Kingdom)
Yilong's MEng research investigated the use of Deep Learning to extract diagnostic information from 3D models (point clouds) of human hearts reconstructed from MRI images. The research culminated in a conference paper titled "3D Shape-Based Myocardial Infarction Prediction Using Point Cloud Classification Networks." His DPhil degree, under the joint supervision of Gunes Baydin and Bora Pulatsu, employs 3D computer vision, deep learning, and discrete element simulation methodologies to analyse masonry structures. He aims to develop improved point cloud algorithms for masonry quality evaluation, defect detection and displacement monitoring.
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Janet Botha (matric. Oct 2022)
(email: janet.botha@eng.ox.ac.uk)
BEng in Civil Engineering, University of Edinburgh (United Kingdom)
In her final year project at Edinburgh, Janet experimentally assessed the viability of a novel fibre-reinforced powder prepreg system for strengthening concrete structures. Janet also worked as a research intern on the RC3 project on the development of a risk model to predict damage to traditional timber buildings in Madagascar due to cyclones. Janet’s undergraduate studies were supported by the MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program. Her DPhil research aims to assess the impact of climate change on masonry buildings at risk of damage due to soil subsidence/heave driven by climate and trees. By modelling the entire process of damage to buildings using finite elements and incorporating a multi-scale model, she aims to predict potential damage to buildings in the UK. She is co-supervised with Harvey Burd (Oxford) and supported by the Rhodes Trust.
Eduarda Vila-Cha (matric. Oct 2022)
(email: eduarda.mendesvila-cha@visiting.ox.ac.uk)
MSc in Civil Engineering, University of Minho (Portugal)
Advanced Masters in Structural Analysis of Monuments and Historical Constructions (University of Minho- Portugal, University of Padova-Italy)
EVC completed an Integrated Master’s Degree in Civil Engineering at the University of Minho (Portugal), specialising in Structures and Geotechnics. She then pursued the Advanced Master’s Degree in Structural Analysis of Monuments and Historical Constructions (SAHC) at the University of Minho and the University of Padova (Italy). She is currently pursuing her PhD at the University of Minho, investigating the cumulative damage of historic masonry structures subjected to sequential ground settlement and ground motion. Her research involves experimental testing of dry-joint masonry specimens, including settlement and tilting-table tests, block tracking using Digital Image Correlation (DIC), and numerical modelling to study the evolution of cumulative damage and structural response. Eduarda's primary supervisors are Alberto Barontini and Paulo Lourenco.
Past members
Burcu Gulen (grad. Feb 2024)
BSc in Civil Engineering, ITU (Turkey)
MSc in Soil Mechanics and
Geotechnical Engineering, ITU (Turkey)
DPhil in Engineering Science, University of Oxford, UK.
Burcu graduated as the highest ranking student for her BSc. Her MSc work was in the area of geotechnical earthquake engineering. Her experimental study investigated altering the fully saturated condition of loose sands to become partially saturated, in order to increase their liquefaction resistance. Her DPhil was on developing computationally efficient models to aid the prediction of excavation-induced damage in masonry assets. She was co-supervised with Harvey Burd (Oxford). She is currently working at Jacobs as a geotechnical engineer.
Huanian Zhu (grad. April 2024)
BSc in Civil Engineering, Zhejiang
University of Technology (China)
MSc in Civil Engineering, Tongji University (China)
DPhil in Engineering Science, University of Oxford, UK.
Huanian's research is on earthquake engineering. During his MSc, he developed, tested and analysed asymmetrical viscous dampers which can be incorporated into slender braced frame structures. His DPhil work (co-supervised by Manolis Chatzis) is explored the fundamental dynamics of flexible rocking structures, and featured the development of new impact models, including bouncing and sliding. He also conducted shake table experiments on flexible rocking bodies. His DPhil work was supported by the China-Oxford scholarship. He is currently working as a Research Scientist at the AIOI R&D LAB.
Yiyan Liu (grad. Jan 2024)
BSc in Civil Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University (China)
MSc in Earthquake and Civil Engineering Dynamics, Sheffield (UK)
DPhil in Engineering Science, University of Oxford (UK)
Yiyan worked as a tunnel engineer at Jacobs and Geotechnical Data Manager at HS2 for six years before joining Oxford. His DPhil (co-supervised with Harvey Burd and Ben Gilson Arup) was on the development of displacement, strain and crack monitoring of assets using point cloud data. Yiyan conducted further work on this subject as a postdoc to transform his research code into widely applicable and easy-to-use software for site applications. He is currently working as the HS2 data manager and continues to co-supervise point cloud deformation monitoring research.
Yixiong Jing (grad. April 2025)
BEng in Civil Engineering, Harbin
Institute of Technology (China)
MSc in Civil and Environmental Engineering,
Kyoto University (Japan)
Jing's MSc research explored the seismic performance of skew bridges considering the effects of pounding. During this time, developed a new interest in deep learning applications in bridge engineering and maintenance. His DPhil (co-supervised by Brian Sheil) was focussed on the development of deep learning techniques to assist bridge geometry characterisation and defect identification. He is now a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Cambridge.
Zhiqi Hu (left Sep 2025)
BEng in Automation, Zhejiang University (China)
MSc in Intelligent Building, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Hong Kong)
PhD in Engineering, University of Cambridge
Zhiqi’s research interests include digital twin generation and maintenance, computer vision-based point cloud and image processing, Scan-to-BIM and Scan-vs-BIM. She pursued her PhD degree at the University of Cambridge, focusing on maintaining geometric building digital twins from spatial and visual datasets, where she obtained Marie Curie Fellowship. Her previous working experience includes IT, venture capital, and real estate companies. She joined the Department of Engineering Science at the University of Oxford to work on point cloud-based displacement and deformation monitoring, in collaboration with Harvey Burd and Yiyan Liu. She is currently a lecturer at the University of Loughborough.
Jiaxu Zuo (grad. Nov 2025)
BSc in Mechanical Engineering, Beijing
Institute of Technology
BEng in Mechatronic Systems (Honours),
Australian National University
MSc in Biomedical Engineering, University of Bristol
Jiaxu’s MSc project was about software development and image feature extraction in relation to video compression and processing. Her DPhil, co-supervised by Brian Sheil, has addressed monitoring historic ceiling structures using acoustic emission sensors. With the help of machine learning techniques. she developed failure localisation techniques to help building owners manage these ceilings.
Miles Judd (grad. March 2026)
BSc in Mechanical Engineering, Technical University of Munich (Germany)
During his BSc at the Technical University of Munich, Miles researched “High-speed camera-based Operational Modal Analysis” using contactless, vision-based sensing technologies, thereby accumulating knowledge in Digital Image Correlation techniques (DIC). He worked as a DPhil student on the project “Masonry in-situ testing and material identification (MINT)” which characterised mechanical properties of masonry materials using DIC and the Virtual Fields Method (VFM). His DPhil was co-supervised by Marialuigia Sangirardi. Miles is now working as a Machine Learning Engineer at Quantum Diamonds.
Zheng-You Zhang (grad. March 2026)
BEng with First Class Honours in Civil
Engineering, University of Canterbury
(New Zealand)
MSc in Civil Engineering, Georgia Institute of
Technology (United States)
During his undergraduate final year project, Zheng-You and his supervisors developed a calibration method for a novel elemental damping model, to be used in the practical assessment of building response under earthquakes. This work resulted in a conference paper. During his graduate study, Zheng-You explored how to apply the interval finite element method to account for the uncertainty in structural joints. His DPhil research, co-supervised by Manolis Chatzis, wass on the earthquake engineering of rocking structures, with a focus on improving analytical and numerical models that are used to describe rocking interfaces. He is now a postdoctoral researcher in China.
Co-supervised graduates from other institutions:
- Giulio Sergio Sacco. The development and applications of the physics informed iterative closest point algorithm for masonry vault point cloud inspection (main supervisor: Chiara Calderini). University of Genoa. PhD thesis.
- Yunus Arca. The response of St George Sarilar Orthodox church to the 2023 Kahramanmaras earthquakes (main supervisor: Medine Ispir). Istanbul Technical University. MSc thesis.
- Kerem Kurnaz. The response of St Ilyas Orthodox church to the 2023 Kahramanmaras earthquakes (main supervisor: Medine Ispir). Istanbul Technical University. MSc thesis.
Former members and visitors:
Nathan Gibson (MEng, 2026), Giacomo Destro-Bisol (Academic Visitor, 2025), Idris Bedirhanoglu (Academic Visitor, 2024), Rhea Wilson (PhD visitor, 2023/2024), Moslem Shahverdi (Academic Visitor, 2024), Dylan Squires (MEng. 2024, w/Sangirardi), Baran Bozyigit (Postdoc visitor, 2023), Anil Ozdemir (Postdoc visitor, 2022) Jack Ruelle (MEng, 2022, w/Powell), Yusuf Benkraouche (MEng, 2021, w/Selvakumaran), Jonathan Melia (MEng, 2021, w/Powell), Jingyi Huang (Summer Internship, 2021 w/Rossi), Yilong Yang (EUROP, 2021 w/Burd,Gulen), El-Amin Ahmed (MEng, 2021), Heng Ghee Ng (MEng, 2021 w/ Liu), Jingjing He (MEng 2021 w/Burd), Jasper Threadingham (EUROP, 2020), Yilong Yang (EUROP, 2020), Isabel Mason (MEng, 2020 w/ Burd), Ruth Faherty (MEng, 2020), Keong Yeoh (MEng, 2020), Baran Bozyigit (PhD Visitor, 2019), Paul Gredigui (MSc visitor, 2019), Eugene Wong (MPhil 2019, w/Viggiani, Franza), Jack Smith (MEng, 2019), Sally Croysdale (MEng, 2019), Luke Jackson (MEng, 2019), Antonio Luciano (MSc visitor, 2018, w/Bilotta), Marco Nunzio Pascariello (MSc visitor, 2018, w/Bilotta)