Ali Abbas

Dr Ali Abbas

Associate Professor

Department of Engineering & Construction , School of Architecture Computing and Engineering (ACE)

Course Leader for MSc Civil Engineering and MSc Structural Engineering

Qualifications

  • PhD in Civil Engineering (Structural Engineering), from Imperial College London

Areas Of Interest

 Numerical and Experimental Modelling of Structural Systems, Behaviour and design of Concrete Structures, Concrete Ground-Floor Slabs (such as Industrial Floors, Road and Airfield Pavements), Fibre-Reinforced Concrete, Seismic and Impact Modelling

Ali Abbas
a.abbas@uel.ac.uk 020 8223 6279 ORCID: 0000-0002-0114-4511 EB.1.82, Docklands
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OVERVIEW

Dr Ali Abbas is an Associate Professor of Structural Engineering and Course Leader for MSc Civil Engineering and MSc Structural Engineering. He has a broad interest in structural analysis and design and has led successful research projects in this field. He has strong links with industry. Before joining UEL, he was a Lecturer at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Imperial College London and prior to that spent several years in industry working on a variety of structural engineering projects with Atkins. He completed his PhD research degree at Imperial College London and has been active in publication in highly-regarded journals such as the Proceedings of the ICE (Structures & Buildings), Engineering Structures, Computers & Structures and Magazine of Concrete Research.

He has published in proceedings of international peer-reviewed conferences (e.g. Computational Methods in Structural Dynamics COMPDYN). 

Dr Abbas was instrumental in developing the MSc courses with Industrial Placement and is ACE Academic Lead overseeing the delivery of the placements on these key courses. He is also the Academic Lead for  postgraduate courses in engineering and leads the MSc courses in civil engineering and structural engineering including revalidation and professional accreditation activities. Dr Abbas leads the teaching of structural design on undergraduate and MSc courses and has won a national prestigious design competition with MSc students three times in 2019, 2018 and 2016 (including the Sustainability Prize). He has also won international prizes with undergraduate students. 

Accordion

External roles

  • Member of the fib (International Federation for Structural Concrete) Commission 4 (COM4): Concrete & Concrete Technology Task Group TG4.8 on Low Carbon Concrete.
  • Member of the Institution of Structural Engineers (IstructE) Research Panel + Design Practice Com. (2020-22).
Accordion

Industry partners

  • Collaboration with JP Concrete, a leading manufacturer of precast retaining walls, on low-carbon concrete and innovative new designs of concrete walls.  
  • Collaboration with Lytag, the main manufacturer of recycled lightweight aggregate concrete in UK examining lightweight concrete structures reinforced with steel fibres. 
  • Recently, augmented with a collaborative project with ARUP, a leading global engineering consulting firm, to make this innovative construction material more sustainable. 

CURRENT RESEARCH

 

Dr Abbas has a wide practical experience in the analysis and design of structures, encompassing numerical modelling and experimental work. He has over 20 publications in leading journals and international conference proceedings. The overriding aim is improving current design guidelines. A major current interest is the non-linear finite-element modelling of concrete structures. He also has a special interest in fibre-reinforced concrete structures under monotonic, seismic and impact conditions and is currently investigating its application to pile-supported and suspended slabs as well as studying recycled light-weight aggregate concrete. A further interest is on earthquake engineering. He has also carried out seminal research work on concrete industrial ground-floor slabs.

Areas of Interest and Expertise

  • Numerical and Experimental Modelling of Structural Systems
  • Behaviour and design of Concrete Structures
  • Concrete Ground-Floor Slabs (such as Industrial Floors, Road and Airfield Pavements)
  • Fibre-Reinforced Concrete
  • Seismic and Impact Modelling (of Reinforced-Concrete and Fibre-Reinforced Concrete      

PUBLICATIONS

Accordion

Peer Reviewed Journal Papers

  1. Kanavaris, F, Gibbons, O, Walport E, Shearer, E, Abbas, A A, Orr, J and Marsh, B. Reducing embodied carbon dioxide of structural concrete with lightweight aggregate, Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Engineering Sustainability, August 2021, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1680/jensu.21.00021.
  2. Albarram, A J, Qureshi, J, and Abbas, A A, Effect of Rib Geometry in Steel–Concrete Composite Beams with Deep Profiled Sheeting, International Journal of Steel Structures, April 2020, ISSN 1598-2351, DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/s13296-020-00333-5.
  3. Behinaein P, Cotsovos, D M, Abbas, A A, Behaviour of steel-fibre-reinforced concrete beams under high-rate loading, Computers and Concrete, September 2018, Vol. 22, No 3, pp. 337-353, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12989/cac.2018.22.3.337.
  4. Abbas, A A, Syed Mohsin, S, Cotsovos, A simplified finite element model for assessing steel fibre reinforced concrete structural performance, Computers and Structures, Vol. 173, September 2016, pp. 31-49, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compstruc.2016.05.017.
  5. Abbas, A A, Syed Mohsin, S, Cotsovos, D M, Ruiz-Teran, A M, Statically-indeterminate SFRC columns under cyclic loads, Advances in Structural Engineering, Oct. 2014, Vol. 17, No. 10, pp. 1403-1417, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1260/1369-4332.17.10.1403.
  6. Abbas, A A, Syed Mohsin, S, Cotsovos, D M, Ruiz-Teran, A M, Shear behaviour of SFRC simply-supported beams, ICE Proc. Structures and Buildings, Sep. 2014, Vol. 167, No. SB9, pp. 544-558, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/stbu.12.00068.
  7. Abbas, A A, Syed Mohsin, S, Cotsovos, D M, Seismic response of steel fibre reinforced concrete beam-column joints, Engineering Structures, Feb. 2014, Vol. 59, pp. 261-283, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.engstruct.2013.10.046. 
  8. Abbas, A A, Syed Mohsin, S, Cotsovos, D M, Nonlinear analysis of statically-indeterminate SFRC columns, Structural Concrete, Vol. 15, No. 1, pp. 1-12, March 2014, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/suco.201300004. 
  9. Abbas, A A, Pullen, A D, Cotsovos, D M, Structural response of RC wide beams under low-rate and impact loading, Magazine of Concrete Research, 2010, Vol. 62, No. 10, pp. 723-740, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1680/macr.2010.62.10.723.  
  10. Pullen, A D, Abbas, A A, Experimental investigations of partially-damaged RC beams and columns, Structural Concrete, 2010, Vol. 11, No. 3, pp. 139-148, https://www.icevirtuallibrary.com/doi/abs/10.1680/stco.2010.11.3.139.   
  11. Abbas, A A, Pavlovic, M N, Kotsovos, M D, Discussion: Elastic analysis of ground-floor slabs under multiple loads, ICE Proc. Structures and Buildings, 2008, Vol. 161, No. SB1, pp. 41-41, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1680/stbu.2007.160.3.151. 
  12. Abbas, A A, Pavlovic, M N, Kotsovos, M D, Post-elastic behaviour of ground-floor slabs. Part 1: Plain-concrete slabs, Magazine of Concrete Research, 2007, Vol. 59, No. 6, pp. 387-400, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1680/macr.2007.59.6.387. 
  13. Abbas, A A, Pavlovic, M N, Kotsovos, M D, Post-elastic behaviour of ground-floor slabs. Part 2: Fabric-reinforced concrete slabs, Magazine of Concrete Research, 2007, Vol. 59, No. 6, pp. 401-411, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1680/macr.2007.59.6.401. 
  14. Abbas, A A, Pavlovic, M N, Kotsovos, M D, Elastic analysis of ground-floor slabs under multiple loads, ICE Proc. Structures and Buildings, 2007, Vol. 160, No. SB3, pp. 151-164, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1680/stbu.2007.160.3.151. 
  15. Abbas, A A, Pavlovic, M N, Kotsovos, M D, Aisle-width considerations in ground-floor slabs, Structural Concrete, 2007, Vol. 8, No. 3, pp. 125-131, https://www.icevirtuallibrary.com/doi/abs/10.1680/stco.2007.8.3.125. 
  16. Abbas, A A, Pavlovic, MN, Kotsovos, MD, Permissible-stress design of ground-floor slabs, ICE Proc. Structures and Buildings, 2004, Vol. 157, No. SB6, pp. 369-384, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1680/stbu.2004.157.6.369. 
Accordion

Book Chapters

  1. Abbas, A A, Pavlovic, M N, Kotsovos, M D, Recent advances in the design of industrial ground-floor slabs with special emphasis on permissible deformations, Book Chapter 7, in Structural Materials and Engineering, Nova Science Publishers, New York, 2009, pp. 245-279, ISBN: 978-1606929278.  
Accordion

Conference Keynote Speeches

  1. Abbas, A A, Keynote Speech: The Role of Engineering Modelling in Ensuring a Resilient, Smart & Sustainable Infrastructure, iCITES 2018 International Conference on Innovative Technology, Engineering and Sciences, Pekan, Pahang, Malaysia, 1–2 March, 2018.
Accordion

Conference Proceedings

  1. Olugbenga B S and Abbas, A A, Load-Carrying Capacity of SFRC Suspended Slabs with Different Support Conditions, RILEM-fib X International Symposium on Fibre Reinforced Concrete, RILEM-fib X International Symposium on Fibre Reinforced Concrete, Valencia, Spain, P. Serna et al. (Eds.): BEFIB 2020, RILEM Bookseries 30, pp. 1-14, 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58482-5_54.
  2. Kanavaris, F, Gibbons, O, Walport E, Shearer, E, Abbas, A A, Orr, J and Marsh, B, Reducing the carbon footprint of lightweight aggregate concrete, International Conference on Low Carbon Cement and Concrete, October 5-6, 2020, University of Kentucky, USA. https://whova.com/embedded/session/liclc_202010/1158283.
  3. Al-Naimi, H K and Abbas, A A, A constitutive model for steel-fibre-reinforced lightweight concrete, RILEM-fib X International Symposium on Fibre Reinforced Concrete, RILEM-fib X International Symposium on Fibre Reinforced Concrete, Valencia, Spain, P. Serna et al. (Eds.): BEFIB 2020, RILEM Bookseries 30, pp. 1-18, 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58482-5_81. 
  4. Al-Naimi, H K and Abbas, A A, Structural behaviour of steel-fibre-reinforced lightweight concrete, RILEM-fib X International Symposium on Fibre Reinforced Concrete, RILEM-fib X International Symposium on Fibre Reinforced Concrete, Valencia, Spain, P. Serna et al. (Eds.): BEFIB 2020, RILEM Bookseries 30, pp. 1-15, 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58482-5_65. 
  5. Al-Naimi, H K and Abbas, A A, Shrinkage of steel-fibre-reinforced lightweight concrete, RILEM-fib X International Symposium on Fibre Reinforced Concrete, Valencia, Spain, P. Serna et al. (Eds.): BEFIB 2020, RILEM Bookseries 30, pp. 1-9, 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58482-5_33.
  6. Al-Naimi, H K, Abbas A A, Ductility of steel-fibre-reinforced recycled lightweight concrete, COMPDYN 2019 7th ECCOMAS Thematic Conference on Computational Methods in Structural Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, M. Papadrakakis, M. Fragiadakis (eds.), Crete, Greece, 24-26 June 2019.
  7. Albarram, A J, Qureshi, J, Abbas, A A, Effect of large stud shear connectors on the behaviour of composite beams with 146 mm deep decking, Proceeding of the 3rd International Conference on Structural Architectural and Civil Engineering, Pattaya, Thailand, 8-9 July 2017, pp. 99-103.
  8. Albarram, A J, Qureshi, J, and Abbas, A A, Developing the strength and ductility of shear stud connection in deep profiled decking, Proceeding of the 2017 World Congress on Advances in Structural Engineering and Mechanics, Ilsan, South Korea, 28 August-1 September 2017, pp. 1-12.
  9. Albarram, A J, Qureshi, J, and Abbas, A A, Behaviour Of Composite Beams with Narrow and Wide Parallel Ribbed Steel Decking, Proceeding of the 382nd International conferences on Engineering and Natural Science (ICENS) London, United Kingdom 7-8 May 2018.
  10. Behinaein P, Abbas, A A, Cotsovos, D M, FE modelling of SFRC beams under impact loads, ECCOMAS Congress 2016 VII European Congress on Computational Methods in Applied Sciences and Engineering, M. Papadrakakis, V. Papadopoulos, G. Stefanou, V. Plevris (eds.), Crete Island, Greece, 5-10  June 2016. 
  11. Abbas, A A, Cotsovos, D M, Numerical investigation of the behaviour of RC wide beams under impact loads, COMPDYN 2015 5th International Conference on Computational Methods in Structural Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, M. Papadrakakis, V. Papadopoulos, V. Plevris (eds.), Crete Island, Greece, 25-27 May 2015. 
  12. Abbas, A A, Syed Mohsin, S, Cotsovos, D M, Steel-fibre-reinforced concrete beams under cyclic loads, 8th RILEM International Symposium on Fibre-Reinforced Concrete BEFIB2012, J. Barros et al. (eds.), Guimarães, Portugal, 19-21 September 2012. 
  13. Syed Mohsin, S, Abbas, A A, Cotsovos, D M, Shear Behaviour of Steel- fibre-reinforced concrete beams,  11th International Conference on Concrete Engineering and Technology 2012, Putrajaya, Malaysia, 12-14 June 2012. 
  14. Abbas, A A, Cotsovos, D M, Pullen, A D, Wide RC beams under low and high loading rates, 9th HSTAM International Congress on Mechanics, Limassol, Cyprus, 12-14 July 2010. 
  15. Abbas, A A, Syed Mohsin, S, Cotsovos, D M, A comparative study on modelling approaches for fibre-reinforced concrete, 9th HSTAM International Congress on Mechanics, Limassol, Cyprus, 12-14 July 2010. 
  16. Abbas, A A, Syed Mohsin, S, Cotsovos, D M, Numerical modelling of fibre-reinforced concrete, The International Conference on Computing in Civil and Building Engineering icccbe 2010, University of Nottingham, June 30-July 2 2010. 
  17. Cotsovos, D M, Zeris, C A, Abbas, A A, Finite element modelling of structural concrete, Computational Methods in Structural Dynamics COMPDYN 2009, Rhodes, 22-24 June 2009. 
  18. Abbas, A A, Analysis and design of industrial ground-floor slabs using the finite element method, Young Researchers Conference, IStructE, 2001. 
Accordion

Media Contributions

  1. Abbas, A A, Ronan Point: ‘Grenfell Tower also had construction defects’, Newham Recorder, 18 May 2018, http://www.newhamrecorder.co.uk/news/ronan-point-grenfell-tower-also-had-construction-defects-1-5522956. 
  2. Abbas, A A, Offsite Construction: a closer look at the pros and cons of offsite construction, Builder and Engineer, Issue 1945, April-May 2016, pp. 18-19.

TEACHING

MEng Civil Engineering (Integrated Masters)

This degree is a fast track into civil engineering. It covers much of the same ground as the BEng as well as giving you a postgraduate award.

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BEng (Hons) Civil Engineering

This course will give you a solid grounding in the design, construction and management of civil engineering works.

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MSc Civil Engineering

Improve your engineering expertise and develop valuable industry experience with our degree and optional placement year.

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MSc Structural Engineering

Develop your engineering expertise in line with the ever-changing demands of the profession. Get your engineering career off to the best start.

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PGDip Civil Engineering

Develop your engineering expertise and acquire comprehensive understanding of the most up-to-date practices and theories in civil engineering.

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PGDip Structural Engineering

We have designed our Postgraduate Diploma in Structural Engineering to develop your engineering expertise in line with the ever-changing demands of the profession.

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MODULES

  • EG7005 Design in Steel and Concrete
  • EG7006 Advanced Structural Analysis
  • EG7030 MSc Research Dissertations Co-ordinator 
  • EG6024 Structural Engineering