Geotechnical Engineering

The Geotechnical Engineering program within CEE at Illinois has educated generations of experts in the use of natural material such as soil and rock in combination with engineered material such as concrete, steel and geosynthetics, in the design of dams, tunnels, on-shore and off-shore reclamation for airports, landfills, deep excavations, and foundations for structures of all kinds.

Degrees Offered

B.S. Degree in Civil Engineering (Geotechnical Engineering)
M.S. Degree in Civil Engineering (Geotechnical Engineering)
Ph.D. Degree in Civil Engineering (Geotechnical Engineering)

Learn More About the Geotechnical Engineering Program

Alumni of CEE's Geotechnical Engineering program have made significant contributions to major projects like subway systems in the nation’s largest cities, the Hoover Dam and the World Trade Center. Today, geotechnical engineering faculty members have expertise in earthquake engineering, soil mechanics behavior, foundation engineering, rock mechanics and tunneling, and advanced numerical modeling techniques.

Research interests of the Geotechnical Engineering faculty include:

Deep excavations
Earthquake engineering
Numerical modeling
Static and dynamic Soil-structure interaction.
Engineering properties, construction problems, and ground modification technology in soft clays and silts, stiff clays and soft rocks, and granular materials
Soil-structure interaction
Reliability-based design
Mechanically stabilized earth and earth support systems
Ground improvement methods and their effect on structures
Soil liquefaction during earthquakes
The static and seismic stability of natural and excavated slopes
Experimental geomechanics
Rock-fluid interaction
Fracturing of rock
Geological CO2 storage
Unsaturated soil mechanics
Geothermal and geo-exchange systems
Non-isothermal and multiphase flow
Subsurface characterization
Sustainability of geothermal systems