Meet our faculty, Dr. Mohammad Rayhani
Dr. Mohammad Rayhani is an Associate Professor of Civil Engineering at Carleton University, where he has established an innovative research program on geotechnical engineering (foundations, shoring, and landfills). In the past 10 years, his research group has contributed substantially to the advancement of science and technology in foundation systems and landfill barriers. He completed his PhD at Western University studying seismic soil-structure interaction using centrifuge tests and numerical modelling, and his PDF at Queen’s University on long-term performance of landfill liners. Since joining Carleton in 2009, he completed the design and construction of a novel shaking table facility with network interface capability, a new landfill research lab, and established an innovative field scale pile testing facility in Geotechnical Site #1 in Gloucester, ON.
Dr. Rayhani’s Geoengineering Research Group is focused on developing advanced foundation systems (e.g., FRP and Hook piles), geotechnical implications of climate change (e.g., mitigation of methane emissions from waste sites, and foundation improvements in warming permafrost), and design and operations of modern landfills. His research program has been successful in publishing numerous articles and two US/PCT registered patents. These innovations led to establishing a start-up firm in Ottawa and a patent assignment to a leading company in Toronto.
Besides research, he teaches six different geotechnical engineering courses at the graduate and undergraduate levels. To engage students in soil mechanics classes and demonstrate the importance of geotechnical testing in the real field, he developed a series of YouTube videos providing the students with an opportunity to prepare for their lab in advance and help them to visualize the concepts of soil mechanics and understand them well. The video clips have received more than 240,000 views on YouTube.
Dr. Rayhani is also actively involved in mentoring, outreach, and community activities. He is the past chair of the Canadian Geotechnical Society – Ottawa Section, and is a member of the task group for updating foundation design standards for National Building Code of Canada (NBCC). Outside these professional activities, he is a soccer player and enjoys swimming and hiking.