Research

Research Interest

Earthquake-Resistant Design and Analysis of Structures
Precast/prestressed Structural Systems with Self-Centering Behavior
Vibration-based Structural Health Monitoring
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)-Based Structural Health Monitoring
Image Processing-Based Damage Detection
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Techniques in Civil Engineering
Sustainable and Green Building Construction Materials
High-Performance and Sustainable Concrete Materials
Conservation and Restoration of Ancient Stupas in Sri Lanka

Research Hilights

Digital Twins for Conservation and Management of Ancient Stupa

Stupa structures in Sri Lanka are regarded as world heritage sites with rich archaeological and artistic value, some nearing a lifetime of almost 2 millennia. Conservation and management efforts are currently hindered due to the lack of practice of modern Building Information Modelling (BIM) techniques. Recently, Digital Twins (DT) as a tool for Historic Building Information Modelling (HBIM) has gained traction world-wide.

Publications

Egodawela, S., Buddika, H.A.D.S., Harischandra, N., Mahmoodian, M., Mathota, M.R.S.N.M, (2023), "Conservation and Management of Ancient Stupa Using Digital Twins: A Case Study of UAV Based 3D Photogrammetric Digitization of Sri Lankan Stupa" IESL Kandurata Chapter Annual Sessions 2022.

Egodawela, S., Buddika, H.A.D.S., Harischandra, W.A.N.I., Mahmoodian, M., Mathota, M.R.S.N.M, (2022) "Conservation and Management of Ancient Stupa Using Digital Twins: A Case Study of UVA-Based 3d Photogrammetric Digitization of Rankoth Wehera Stupa" Proceeding of 13th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment (ICSBE 2022), 16-18 December 2022, Kandy, Sri Lanka.

Grants Received

Creating Digital Twins of Ancient Stupa Structures in Sri Lanka to Study Structural Defects and Suggest Remedial Measures, University research grant 2022, University of Peradeniya, (LKR 450,000)

Corrosion Detection and Severity Estimation using Spectral imaging

Imaging techniques have had considerable advancements in metal loss detection and severity quantification during recent decades. Corrosion detection using imaging techniques in steel is well established. However, determining the severity of corrosion-induced metal loss using imaging techniques remains difficult . In this study, a multi-spectral lighting source and an imaging sensor were used to generate spectral data of the cooling excited test specimen. It was found that the reflected intensities at certain wavelengths can indicate not only the presence of defects but also a clear path for the quantification of metal loss.

Publications

Egodawela, S.M.K.C.S.B., Samith Buddika H.A.D., Gostar, A. K., Harischandra, W.A.N.I., Dhammika A.J. and Mahmoodian, M. (2023), Metal Loss Defect Detection and Depth Estimation using Multi Spectral Image Analysis of Cooling Excited Steel Specimen with Corrosion, Structural Health Monitoring, (Under review_SHM-23-0086), Impact factor: 5.710 (2023).

Egodawela, S., Buddika, H.A.D.S., Harischandra, N., Dammika, A.J., Gostar, A.K. Mahmoodian, M., (2022) "Corrosion Detection and Severity Estimation using Spectral imaging and Active Thermography", Proceedings of Society of Structural Engineers, Sri Lanka - Annual Sessions, Aug. 23, 2022.

Crack Detection of Concrete Structures with Image Processing

Concrete structure deterioration is detrimental to the health of civil structures. Novel methods for concrete crack detection and quantification are highly sought-after fields of research. Existing methods for crack detection include manual inspection, Acoustic testing, image data collection methods require inspectors to physically reach the areas in question and perform the relevant tests. This poses a risk to both human life and testing equipment. In this light, imaging hardware mounted on a UAV has been shown to be a convenient way of observing hard to reach areas and gather valuable information on the prevailing condition of the structure. However, inspecting hours of video/image data can be tedious, time consuming and prone to human error. This work suggests an image processing pipeline to automatically classify and segment images with cracks. A transfer learning approach to Classification in employed and the segmentation done using an underlying K-means clustering in RGB image space. Upon testing and validation, the image classification was able to reach an accuracy of 95% and 90% average precision in segmentation.

Publications

Egodawela, S., Buddika, H.A.D.S., Harischandra, W.A.N.I., Dammika, A.J., (2021) "Concrete Crack Detection and Segmentation in Images Collected by Unmanned Aerial Vehicles" IESL Kandurata Chapter Annual Sessions 2021

Engineering performance of waste material blended lightweight alkali-activated slag concrete

The use of sustainable construction materials for replacing Portland cement is becoming an essential global trend, as it helps to reduce the CO 2 emission and the depletion of natural resources. Therefore, alkali-activated materials (AAMs) have attracted significant attention as green alternatives to OPC products. Among those, alkali-activated slag (AAS) is well known for its ability to be activated efficiently at ambient temperature and to attain considerable strength. Meanwhile, biochar is a porous, green material that can improve sustainability and the mechanical properties of construction materials.

However, the literature shows that the usage of biochar along with AAMs has seldom been tested. In this context, this research study was formulated to cover those research gaps in terms of using biochar as a partial replacement of ground granulated blast furnace slag in AAS production. The study aimed mainly at identifying an appropriate biochar type, its dosage and a pyrolysis temperature to determine the influences of biochar on the hydration process and compressive strength of AAS mortar under different curing periods.

Publications

Egodagamage, H. C., Yapa, H. D., Nguyen, K., Samith Buddika, H.A.D, and Navaratnam, S. K. (2023), "Effective use of biochar as an additive for alkali-activated slag mortar production", Construction and Building Materials, JCBM_130487, Impact factor: 7.693 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2023.130487

Egodagamage, H. C., Yapa, H. D., Samith Buddika, H.A.D., Navaratnam, S. K., Nguyen, K. (2022).

“Effective supplementation of biochar in alkali-activated slag production”, 12 th Annual session of the

Society of Structural Engineers, Sri Lanka (SSESL)

Finite Element Analysis of Ancient Stupa - Renovation and Restoration

Ancient Stupas in Sri Lanka are solid structures, mostly composed of burnt bricks. Some of them date back to the third century BC, and some attained gigantic proportions, making them the largest brick structures in the world. My research team at University of Peradeniya helps the Central Cultural Fund of Sri Lanka and the Department of Archaeology Sri Lanka to make decision on renovation and restoration of Ancient Stupa in Sri Lanka by performing 2D and 3D analysis of Stupa using state of the art Finite Element Analysis Packages under various loading conditions.