Dr. Partha Narayan Mishra obtained his PhD in Geotechnical Engineering from the University of Queensland, Australia with the Dean’s Award for Outstanding HDR theses. He was conferred with the Institute Gold and Institute Silver Medals from National Institute of Technology Rourkela, India during his graduation with a dual degree (B.Tech. Hons. In Civil Engineering and M.Tech. in Geotechnical Engineering) for securing the first rank amongst  the graduating dual degree students across all branches and in Civil Engineering, respectively .

Research

Partha is a Geotechnical Engineer and researcher with research interests in the arenas of improvement of soft soils, behaviour of unsaturated soils, electromagnetic characterisation and monitoring of soil processes, biomediated geotechnical engineering and clay barrier systems in hazardous waste disposal facilities. Outcomes of his research have been summarised in 30+ technical articles in top tier international journals, conferences, and book chapters. In academic and research space, Partha has worked as a summer research fellow at IIT Guwahati, India (2013) and at IIT Madras, India (2014), research scholar at IIT Madras, India (2015-2016), casual academic/research assistant in Civil Engineering at UQ, Australia (2016-2020), adjunct lecturer in Civil Engineering at UQ, Australia (2020-cont.) along with at UCSI university, Malaysia (2020-2021), and as a research fellow at sustainable minerals institute (2022).

Industry

As a practicing engineer, Dr. Mishra has worked on several projects pertaining to tailings storage facilities (TSFs) in Australia and overseas. His industry experience comprises of working as a consulting geotechnical engineer with Klohn Crippen Berger (KCB Australia) (2020- 2021) and as an owner’s engineer with Rio Tinto Aluminium (2021-2022). Through these roles, he has developed an intimate understanding of the challenges encountered in engineering, operation, and management of TSFs, some of which he aims to address through his research.

Teaching

Partha has co-supervised 1 Ph.D., 1 masters, 2 bachelors and 3 summer research thesis to completion at UQ. He currently co-supervises 1 PhD student through UQIDAR(UQ-IITD Academy of Research). He has co-delivered Advanced Soil Mechanics (CIVL4230) at UQ in 2021 and 2022. In 2020, Partha initiated the ‘Lecture Series on Advancements in Geotechnical Engineering: from Research to Practice’ (AGERP) in collaboration with Professor Sarat Das. The AGERP lecture series is a pro-bono attempt towards disseminating the coupled learnings from academia and industry on several key topics in Geotechnical Engineering. The AGERP lecture series has reached to participants (academics, practicing engineers and students) from over 125 countries. More on the AGERP initiative is here: https://www.age-rp.com/. Partha was conferred with a fellowship (2021) and an associate fellowship (2019) from the Higher Education Academy, UK for his teaching portfolio benchmarked against UK Professional Standards Framework (UKPSF) for teaching and supporting learning in higher education.

Service

Partha sits in the executive committee of the Australian Geomechanics Society Queensland chapter. He is a member of the Australian Geomechanics Society (AGS), the International Society of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ISSMGE) and the Indian Geotechnical Society (IGS). He is also a committee members of the Unsaturated Soils and Ground Improvement subcommittees of GeoInstitute, ASCE. Partha regularly reviews technical articles (50+ so far) for top tier international journals including Geotechnical Testing Journal, Acta Geotechnica, Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, Construction and Building Materials and Measurement etc. Partha was the President of UQU association of postgraduate students (2016-2017) and chair of the annual conference of the EAIT faculty of UQ (2017-2018). He has also sat in the UQ library advisory committee (2018) and student experience committee of UQ academic board (2017).

[1]. Doctor of Philosophy (Geotechnical Engineering) - [04/2016 - 10/2019 (submitted), 04/2020 (awarded)]

School of Civil Engineering, The University of Queensland (UQ), Australia

Thesis title: Soft Soil Characterisation and Improvement for Reclaimed Land Application

Key recognition: 2020 UQ Dean’s Award for Outstanding Ph.D. Theses

[2]. Dual Degree in Civil and Geotechnical Engineering - (06/2010 -06/2015)

Master of Technology (Geotechnical Engineering) & Bachelor of Technology with Hons. (Civil Engineering)

Department of Civil Engineering, National Institute of Technology Rourkela (NITR), India

[Assessed equivalent as Professional Geotechnical Engineer (233212), Engineers Australia] 

CGPA (on a scale of 10): 9.48 (Overall), 9.98 (MTech), 9.22 (BTech. Hons.)

Key recognitions: 

1. Institute Gold Medal [Rank 1- all dual degree streams in the batch of  2010 - 2015]

2. Institute Silver Medal [Rank 1- Civil (Geotechnical) Engineering in the batch of  2010 - 2015]

Assistant Professor (Geotechnical Engineering) (12/2022 - current) | Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India

Adjunct Lecturer in Civil Engineering (09/2020 - current) | The University of Queensland (UQ), Australia

Research Fellow (Geoenvironmental Science) (01/2022 - 12/2022) | Sustainable Minerals Institute, Australia

Engineer I - Tailings (03/2021 - 01/2022) | Rio Tinto, Australia

Adjunct Lecturer in Civil Engineering (10/2020 - 03/2021) | UCSI University, Malaysia

Geotechnical Engineer (03/2020 - 03/2021) | Klohn Crippen Berger Australia Pty Ltd., Australia

Research Assistant (10/2019 - 03/2020) | The University of Queensland (UQ), Australia

Visiting Research Scholar (01/2019 - 02/2019) | Norges Geotekniske Institutt (NGI), Norway

Casual Academic (06/2016 - 10/2020) | The University of Queensland (UQ), Australia

Research Scholar (07/2015 - 03/2016)

Summer Research Fellow (05/2014 - 07/2014) | Indian Institute of Technology Madras, India

Summer Research Fellow (05/2013 - 07/2013) | Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, India

Project title: Investigation of Coupled Thermal - Hydraulic - Mechanical Behaviour of Buffer Materials in Engineered Barrier Systems (EBS) (2023)

Grant type: Departmental grant

Grant provider: Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Kanpur

Grant amount: 7,50,000 INR (≈9,200 USD)

Investigators: P.N. Mishra (IIT Kanpur, India), P.K. Ashish (IIT Kanpur, India), C.K. Sahu (IIT Kanpur, India)

Project title: Confidential (Codename: Superman) (2022)

Grant type: External grant

Grant provider: Confidential

Grant amount: 40,400 AUD (≈28,110 USD)

Investigators: A. Parbhakar-Fox (UQ, Australia), N. Fox (UQ, Australia), P.N. Mishra (UQ, Australia), K. Guerin (UQ, Australia)

Project title: Geoenvironmental characterisation of mine waste material, Red Chris Mine, Canada (2021)

Grant type: External grant

Grant provider: Newcrest Mining

Grant amount: 54,912 AUD (≈38,200 USD)

Investigators: A. Parbhakar-Fox (UQ, Australia), P.N. Mishra (UQ, Australia)

Project title: Application of biomediated soil processes in addressing the geotechnical challenges in tailings storage facilities (2020)

Grant type: Seed research grant

Grant provider: The University of Queensland, Australia

Grant amount: 5,000 AUD (≈3,478 USD)

Investigators: P.N. Mishra (UQ, Australia), A. Scheuermann (UQ, Australia), J.C. Santamarina (KAUST, Saudi Arabia), L. Li (Westlake University, China), S.K. Das (IIT Dhanbad, India), T.Bore (UQ, Australia)

Fellowships

Fellowship (FHEA)- PR229649 (2021)

Associate Fellowship (AFHEA)-PR175194 (2019)

Higher Education Academy, UK

Experience

Course instructor (2022,2023) - Unsaturated Soil Mechanics (CE732A)

Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India

Lecturer (2021,2022,2023) -Advanced Soil Mechanics (CIVL4230)

Tutor (2016,2017,2018,2019,2020) - Fundamentals of Soil Mechanics (CIVL2210) – Student Evaluation: 4.7/5.0

Tutor (2017,2018,2019,2020) - Geotechnical Engineering (CIVL3210) – Student Evaluation: 4.4/ 5.0

School of Civil Engineering, The University of Queensland, Australia

Awards

[1]. 2020 UQ Dean’s Award for Outstanding Ph.D. Theses (2021)

Awarded by: University of Queensland, Australia

[2]. Finalist, Young Professional of the Year (2020)

Awarded by: India Australia Business and Community Awards (IABCA)       

[3]. International award for best journal paper by early career researcher in unsaturated soil mechanics (Theory) (2018)

For the paper “Electrical Conductivity of Microbially Treated Geomaterials and Industrial Wastes”

Awarded by: TC106 (Unsaturated soils), International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering   

[4]. Finalist, Young Community Achiever of the Year(2018)

By: India Australia Business and Community Awards (IABCA)

[5]. Indian Geotechnical Society-Bangalore Chapter Young Geotechnical Engineers Award (2017)

For the paper “Experimental Investigation and Prediction Models for Thermal Conductivity of Biomodified Buffer Materials for Hazardous Waste Disposal.”

Awarded by: Indian Geotechnical Society, India                                                                             

[6]. Queensland International Education and Training Excellence Awards – Research (2017) 

Research Student of the Year

Awarded by: Trade and investment Queensland, Queensland Government, Australia

Commendation letters from:  

Prof. Peter Høj, Vice Chancellor and President, UQ

Prof. Joanne Wright, Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic), UQ

Prof. Iain Watson, Deputy Vice Chancellor (External Engagement), UQ 

[7]. Institute Gold Medal (2016)

Best Post Graduate Student

(Batch of 2010-2015: All Engineering streams)

Awarded by: National Institute of Technology Rourkela, India

[8]. Institute Silver Medal (2016)

Best Post Graduate in Civil Engineering, Specialization: Geotechnical Engineering

(Batch of 2010-2015)

Awarded by: National Institute of Technology Rourkela, India

[9]. Best Paper Award (2014)

For the paper “Appraisal of safe placement distance between canisters in a typical deep geological repository.”

Awarded by:  National Conference on Geoenvironmental issues and Sustainable Urban Development,

Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology Allahabad, India

[10]. Institute Academic Achievement Awards (2014, 2013, 2012, 2011)

1st rank in branch: 9.84/ 10 (Acad. Year: 2013-2014), 1st rank in branch: 9.77/ 10 (Acad. Year: 2012-2013)

2nd rank in branch: 9.38/ 10 (Acad. Year: 2011-2012), 2nd rank in branch: 8.53/ 10 (Acad. Year: 2010-2011)

Awarded by: National Institute of Technology Rourkela, India

[11]. Chief Minister’s Merit Award (2008)

Awarded by: Govt. of Odisha, India

Travel Grants and Scholarships

[1]. Conference Grant - ICSMGE2022, Sydney, Australia (05/2022)

Grant provider:  International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering

[2]. Travel Grant - Invited presentation, Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (12/2019)

Grant provider: Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India

[3]. Travel Grant - Invited presentation at  Shanghai Civil Engineering and Surveying Young Scholars Forum 2019 (03/2019)

Grant provider: Tongji University, Shanghai, China

[4]. Travel Grant - Visiting Research Scholar 2019, Norwegian Geotechnical Institute Oslo, Norway (01/2019-02/2019)

Grant provider: The University of Queensland, Australia  

[5]. Travel Grant - GETE Winter School 2019, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland (01/2019)

Grant provider:  The University of Queensland, Australia

[6]. Civil Engineering Conference Travel Contribution Award - UNSAT2018, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong (06/2018)

Grant provider:  School of Civil Engineering, The University of Queensland, Australia

[7]. International Postgraduate Research Scholarship (04/2016-10/2019)

Scholarship provider: The University of Queensland, Australia on behalf of Department of Education and Training, Australian Government

[8]. University of Queensland Centennial Scholarship (04/2016-10/2019)

Scholarship provider:  The University of Queensland, Australia  

[9]. School Top-up Scholarship (04/2016-10/2019)

Scholarship provider: School of Civil Engineering, The University of Queensland, Australia

[10]. Travel Grant - GCPF2015, NIT Surathkal, India (2015)

Grant provider:  National Institute of Technology Rourkela, India

[11]. Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme-II Grant for Dual Degree Project (2014)

Grant provider:  National Institute of Technology Rourkela, India

[12]. Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering Fellowship (2014-2015)

Scholarship provider: Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India

[13]. Higher Education Scholarship -Technical (2010-2015)

Scholarship provider: Department of Higher Education, Government of Odisha, India

[14]. Merit Award-Matriculation (2008)

Scholarship provider: Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO), India

Technical Society memberships

Executive Committee Member (02/2021 – cont.) | Australian Geomechanics Society – Queensland Chapter, Australia

Member (ID# 6210560) – (06/2020 – cont.) | International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, UK

Member (ID# 6210560) – (06/2020 – cont.) | Australian Geomechanics Society, Australia

Corresponding Member (04/2023 – cont.) | TC 106 (Unsaturated soils), TC212 (Deep foundations) | International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, UK

Life Member (ID# LM4766) – (02/2020 – cont.) | Indian Geotechnical Society, India

Committee Member (ID#10851012) – (04/2021 - cont.) | Unsaturated Soils, Geo-Institute, USA

Committee Member (ID#10851012) – (04/2021 - cont.) | Unsaturated Soils, Geo-Institute, USA

Reviewer

Acta Geotechnica, Springer (14)

Advances in Civil Engineering Materials, ASTM (3)

Australian Journal of Civil Engineering, Taylor and Francis (1)

Construction and Building Materials, Elsevier (3)

Clays and Clay Minerals, Springer (1)

Geotechnical Testing Journal, ASTM (1)

Heliyon, Elsevier (5) 

Indian Geotechnical Journal, Springer (4)

Information Processing in Agriculture, Elsevier (2) 

Iranian Journal of Science and Technology, Transactions of Civil Engineering, Springer (1)

Journal of Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste, ASCE (4)

Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, ASCE (23)

Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, Elsevier (2)

Journal of Zhejiang University-Science, Springer (1)

Measurement, Elsevier (3)

Sensors, MDPI (2)

Water, MDPI (1)

Administrative responsibilities

Member, Institute International Relations Committee (2023-2024)

Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India

Member, Department level foreign national post graduate admission committee (2023)

Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India

Higher Degree Research (HDR) ambassador for the University of Queensland (2018-2019)

HDR Experience and Employability Project, Queensland Universities Consortium, Queensland Government, Australia

Chair (09/2017 – 06/2018)

EAIT Postgraduate Conference 2018, The University of Queensland

Research Higher Degree Representative Member (03/2018 – 11/2018)

UQ Library Advisory Committee, The University of Queensland

Brisbane International Student Ambassador (India) (04/2017-04/2018)

Appointed by The Lord Mayor of Brisbane Cr. Graham Quirk

Study Brisbane, Brisbane Marketing

Postgraduate Officer (08/2017 – 12/2017)

University of Queensland Union

President (06/2017- 12/2017)

Vice- President (10/2016 – 06/2017)

Association of Postgraduate Students, University of Queensland Union

Research Higher Degree Representative Member (11/2016 – 12/2017)

Student Experience Committee, Academic Board, The University of Queensland