CERIS - CIVIL ENGINEERING RESEARCH AND INNOVATION FOR SUSTAINABILITY

CERIS joins the expertise of 200 PhD researchers and 200 PhD students. Income from research and consultancy contracts has averaged around 3 M€ per year in the recent past. Besides five Master courses, CERIS researchers are currently engaged in PhD courses leading to nine Doctoral degrees, promoted by its host institution, Instituto Superior Técnico (IST), Universidade de Lisboa (UL), and in cooperation with national and international consortia.

MISSION

The mission of CERIS is to create and disseminate scientific knowledge and to promote innovation in the Built and Natural Environment sector through the active involvement in fundamental and applied research, atboth national and international levels, and to enhance higher education and research training.

To accomplish its mission, CERIS operates under a clear set of objectives and organizes its activity in thematic strands selected according to national and European policy guidelines.

OBJECTIVES

CERIS coordinates, under the same host institution, knowledge and skills in theBuilt and Natural Environment sector under the following objectives:

a) To promote quality research based on PhD programs;

b) To transfer its expertise by providing specialized training, services and consulting;

c) To ensure a wide dissemination of its results.

To promote quality research, the policy of CERIS is to organize the PhD programs in the framework of national and international networks and consortia and to integrate doctoral theses in competitive research funding projects. CERIS also benefits from the direct participation of IST in international networks and programs set up to promote the mobility of students and researchers, namely CLUSTER, CESAER, TIME, ATHENS, MAGALHÃES-SMILE, WELCOME and TRANSPORTNET.

CERIS participates in international initiatives promoted by IST and cooperates with national professional associations to deliver high quality specialized Continuing Professional Development. Its main partner in this endeavour is FUNDEC, the knowledge transfer interface created by DECivil in 1995 in partnership with major firms operating in the built environment sector.

To develop mutually beneficial relationships with industrial and engineering firms, central and local administration and with governmental agencies, CERIS focuses on the formulations of public and private policies and advice, and on innovation programmes that address specific needs of the sector, principally through the Portuguese Construction Technology Platform and the Portuguese Water Partnership.

CERIS strongly values the dissemination of research results through the best-ranked journals and the best-established conferences. They have a decisive impact in terms of recognition and visibility and, consequently, in the participation in contracted research and the recruitment of young researchers. The partnerships mentioned above play an important role in the dissemination of knowledge transfer initiatives and are instrumental in enabling a closer relationship with public and private institutions.

WATER RESEARCH GROUPS

HIGHLIGHTS OF RESEARCH ACTIVITY

RG2 - Hydraulics

1 COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS, CFD, MODELLING OF HYDRAULIC CIRCUITS, STRUCTURES AND FISH PASSES

2. DAM-BREAK FLOWS AND OVERLAND TSUNAMI PROPAGATION

3. MORPHODYNAMICS OF RIVER CONFLUENCES AND SCOURING AROUND BRIDGE PIERS

4. TURBULENCE IN VEGETATED CHANNELS

HYDRODYNAMIC AND SAFETY ANALYSIS OF PRESSURIZED PIPE SYSTEMS

6. PUMP, HYDROPOWER AND PUMPED-STORAGE SYSTEMS

7. HYDRAULICS AND AERATION ALONG STEPPED SPILLWAYS AND CASCADE DROPS

8. FISH BEHAVIOUR ASSESSMENT IN POOL-TYPE FISHWAYS AND UNDER HYDROPEAKING REGIMES

9. MODELLING OF EXTREME EVENTS NEAR THE COAST AND SHORELINE EVOLUTION

10. RESIDUAL AGITATION INSIDE HARBOURS

11. WIND-WAVE MODELLING AND COASTAL MORPHODYNAMICS

                                                            RG3 - Environment and Water Resources

1. SUSTAINABLE ASSESSMENT, DESIGN AND MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL AND BUILT ENVIRONMENTS

2. WATER POLICY FORMULATION AND GOVERNANCE

3. INTEGRATED WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

4. HYDROLOGIC PROCESSES MONITORING AND MODELLING

5. CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS ASSESSMENT ON NATURAL AND MAN-MADE WATER SYSTEMS AND ADAPTATION STRATEGIES

6. WATER ASSET MANAGEMENT

7. DYNAMIC MODELLING OF TREATMENT OPERATIONS AND SEWER PROCESSES

8. NATURE BASED SOLUTIONS AND WATER AND SANITATION SERVICES

9. WATER SUPPLY AND SANITATION OF PERI-URBAN AREAS OF LOW INCOME COUNTRIES

10. GROUNDWATER POLLUTION AND RISK ASSESSMENT

11. GROUNDWATER AND ECOSYSTEMS

12. STOCHASTIC AND DETERMINISTIC GROUND WATER MODELLING

13. GROUNDWATER AND GLOBAL CHANGE

14. URBAN HYDROGEOLOGY

15. DEVELOPMENT OF EFFECTIVE METHODS FOR RISK-BASED ENVIRONMENTAL DECISION-MAKING UNDER UNCERTAINTY

16. DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMS FOR WATER CATCHMENT MANAGEMENT

17. LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT, LCA, OF SOIL AND GROUNDWATER REMEDIATION WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF TOOLS BRINGING SOIL AND GROUNDWATER IMPACTS INTO LCA

Department of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Georesources

Instituto Superior Técnico - Universidade de Lisboa

Av. Rovisco Pais 1049-001 Lisboa - Portugal