Chinchu Cherian

Cherian, Chinchu

Postdoctoral Fellowship (University of British Columbia), PhD (Indian Institute of Technology Madras), PEng (EGBC)

Assistant Professor
Phone
Office
10-2548
Campus
Prince George

Biography

Dr. Chinchu Cherian has expertise in soil characterization, chemical soil stabilization, waste treatment and stabilization, smart and sustainable construction materials, and so on. Dr. Cherian is also proficient in advanced microscopic and spectroscopic analysis such as scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM/TEM), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS).
Prior to joining UNBC, Dr. Cherian was a Mitacs Elevate Postdoctoral Research Fellow and Lecturer in the School of Engineering, University of British Columbia (UBC). Dr. Cherian holds a PhD in Civil Engineering (Geotechnical Engineering) from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM), an M.Tech in Environmental Geotechnology from the National Institute of Technology Calicut (NITC), and a B.Tech in Civil Engineering from Mahatma Gandhi University in India.
During the postdoctoral position at Dr. Sumi Siddiqua's Advanced Geomaterials Laboratory at UBC Okanagan, Dr. Cherian was actively involved in a variety of academic and joint industry projects. They also got substantial teaching expertise in the domains of civil and geo-environmental engineering as a lecturer at UBC and Okanagan College. Currently, Dr. Cherian serves on the Education committee and Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) committee of the Canadian Geotechnical Society (CGS).

Research and Expertise

Dr. Cherian 's research interests are diverse, as seen by the list of areas of expertise. However, Dr. Cherian currently focuses on the impacts of climate change on cold-region road infrastructure; assessing the properties and response behavior of local foundation soils in response to seasonal freeze-thaw and permafrost thawing effects; developing high-performing, environmentally friendly construction materials and technology with improved frost resilience.

Research Fields
  • Climate Change
  • Engineering
  • Environment
  • Northern Issues
  • Sustainability
Areas of Expertise
Soil mechanics, Ground improvement techniques, Geosynthetics and Engineering Materials, Sustainable geotechnical practices, Industrial waste management
Languages Spoken
  • English
  • Hindi
  • Tamil
Supervises In
PhD NRES, MASc Engineering
Available to be contacted by the media as a subject matter expert

Selected Publications