Civil and Environmental Engineering
Faculty
Dr. Balasingam Muhunthan
Department Chair
Professor
Office:
Sloan 102
Phone:
(509) 335-9578
Fax:
(509) 335-7632
Email:
Education
- Ph.D., Civil Engineering, 1991 – Purdue University, Indiana
- M.S.C.E., Geotechnical Engineering, 1987 – Purdue University, Indiana
- B.Sc., Civil Engineering, First Class Honors, 1984 – University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka
Certifications
- Professional Civil Engineer, State of California, License No. C 057492
Professional Experience
- Department Chairman, Civil Engineering, Washington State University, 5/2012 – present
- Professor, Civil Engineering,Washington State University, 8/2004 – present
- Visiting Professor, Engineering Science Department, University of Auckland, 1/2005 – 8/2005
- Associate Professor, Civil Engineering, Washington State University, 8/97 – 2004
- Visiting Professor, Engineering Department, Cambridge University, 8/98 – 8/99
- Assistant Professor, Civil Engineering, Washington State University, 9/91 – 8/97
- Visiting Professor, Georgia Institute of Technology, 5/92 – 8/92
- Teaching Assistant, Civil Engineering, Purdue University, 8/86 – 8/91
- Research Assistant, Civil Engineering, Purdue University, 1/88 – 8/91
- Assistant Lecturer, Civil Engineering, Peradeniya University, 12/84 – 7/86
Awards
- Fellow, American Society of Civil Engineers
- Leon Luck Most Effective Professor, Civil and Env. Engineering, Washington State University (2003, 2008)
- Crampton Prize, Institution of Civil Engineers, UK (2004)
- Outstanding Research Faculty, Civil and Env. Engineering, Washington State University (2003)
- International Research Fellowship, US National Science Foundation (1998)
- Overseas Fellowship, Churchill College, Cambridge, UK (1998)
- Outstanding Teaching Faculty, College of Engineering, Washington State University (1997)
- Outstanding Teaching Faculty, Civil and Environ. Engineering, Washington State University (1997)
- David Ross Fellowship, Purdue University (1988 & 89)
- University Scholarship in Engineering, University of Peradeniya (1984)
Research Interests
- Thermomechanics and Constitutive Modeling
- Bifurcations and instabilities in geomechanics
- Microstructure characterization and simulation of geomaterials
- Pore-scale modeling of fluid flow
- Micropiles
- Fundamentals of soil behavior: critical state soil mechanics, micromechanics of soils, and physico-chemical behavior of clays
Teaching
- Geotechnical Engineering
- Foundations
- Soil and Site Improvement
- Numerical modeling of Geomaterials
- Advanced Geomaterial Characterizationn
Publications
- Muhunthan, B., and Worthen, D. (2010). Critical state framework for liquefaction of fine-grained soils, Engineering Geology.
- Collins, I. F., Muhunthan, B., and Qu, B. (2010). Thermomechanical “State Parameter” model for sands, Geotechnique 60(8): 611 –622
- Muhunthan, B., and Pillai, V. S. (2008). TETON DAM: Uncovering the Crucial Aspect of its Failure, Centennial Volume, Civil Engineering, Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers, 161(11): 35-40.
- Hawlader, B. C., Muhunthan, B., and Imai, G. (2008). “State Based Constitutive Model and the Numerical Solution of Self-weight Consolidation”, Geotechnique, 58(2): 133-141.
- Collins, I. F., Muhunthan, B., Tai, A. T. and Pender, M. J. (2007). The Concept of a “Reynolds Taylor State” and the Mechanics of Sands. Geotechnique, 57(5): 437-447.
- Al Hattamleh, O., Muhunthan, B., and Zbib, H.M. (2007). Multi-slip gradient formulation for microstructure effects on shear bands in granular materials, International Journal of Solids and Structures, 44(10): 3393-3410.
- Razavi, M. R., Muhunthan, B., and Al Hattamleh, O. (2007). Representative elementary volume analysis of sands using X-ray computed tomography, Geot. Testing Jour., ASTM, 30(3): 212-219.
- Collins, I.F, and Muhunthan, B. (2003). On the relationship between stress-dilatancy, anisotropy, and plastic dissipation for granular materials, Geotechnique, 53(7): 611-618 (Crampton Prize 2004)
- Collins, I., and Muhunthan, B. (2003). On the relationship between stress-dilatancy, anisotropy, and plastic dissipation for granular materials, Geotechnique.
- Masad, E., Muhunthan, B., and Martyz, B. (2000). Simulation of fluid flow and permeability of cohesionless soils. Water Resources Research, 36(4), pp. 851-864.