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WHO WE ARE

Dr. Serhan Guner, Ph.D., P.Eng.
Contact: serhan.guner@utoledo.edu

Dr. Guner is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Toledo, Ohio. He received his Ph.D. degree from the University of Toronto, Canada. After receiving his doctorate, he worked as a consulting engineer in Toronto with a focus on industrial, energy, and telecommunication structures and their foundations. During this time, he was awarded the Carson Innovation Award for his retrofit design of a foundation system supporting dynamic equipment. Later, as an Assistant Professor at Ryerson University, Dr. Guner was awarded a five-year Discovery Grant by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada for his research program on structural response under extreme loads. Dr. Guner joined the University of Toledo in 2015. His current research program focuses on structural response to extreme loads, shear behavior of concrete, bridge engineering, deep members, and disturbed regions.

In 2018, Dr. Guner received the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Excellence in Civil Engineering Education (ExCEEd) Fellowship. In 2023, he became an Engineering Unleashed Fellow for bringing entrepreneurially minded learning into Civil Engineering classes.

He is currently serving on six national committees, including the American Concrete Institute (ACI)-ASCE Committee 447 (Finite Element Analysis), Committee 370 (Impact and Blast Load Effects), Committee 351 (Foundations for Equipment and Machinery), Committee 123 (Research and Current Developments), the Deep Foundations Institute (DFI) Helical Piles and Tiebacks Committee, and the DFI Electric Power Systems Foundations Committee.

CURRENT STUDENTS

	Yugesh Maharjan MS Student (2024/1 – present) Contact: yugesh.maharjan@rockets.utoledo.edu Yugesh is a graduate research assistant in Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Toledo. He completed his Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering in Pulchowk Campus, Institute of Engineering, Tribhuvan University, Nepal. His research focuses on bridge evaluation and load rating. He is the chief engineer for the development of an innovative computer tool, AD-BOX, a specialized load rating tool for precast, prestressed adjacent box beam bridges.
	Suraj Dhungel MS Student (2024/1 – present) Contact: suraj.dhungel@rockets.utoledo.edu Suraj is a graduate research assistant in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Toledo. He has completed his bachelor's studies at Tribhuvan University in Nepal with distinction. With notable experience in structural engineering, Suraj's research is focused on the inspection, evaluation, and load rating of bridges. He has developed an independent verification process for 15 different vehicle types required by the evaluation standards.
	Prativa Pathak MS Student(2024/1 – present) Contact: prativa.pathak@rockets.utoledo.edu Prativa is a graduate research assistant in Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Toledo. She completed her bachelor's studies at Tribhuvan University, Nepal. Subsequently, she worked in industry as an engineer to gain practical knowledge. Her research focuses on numerical modeling, machine learning and structural health monitoring.
	Sandeep Bajagain MS Student (2023/8 – present) Contact: Sandeep.Bajagain@rockets.utoledo.edu Sandeep is a graduate research assistant in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Toledo. He completed his bachelor's degree in civil engineering from the Tribhuvan University, Nepal, as a first division student. His research focused on bridge engineering and evaluation, including anchorage zones, prestressing losses, and camber and deflections.
	Ethan Lee Nye MS Student (2022/1 – present) Contact: ethan.nye@rockets.utoledo.edu Ethan is a graduate student in Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Toledo. He obtained his bachelor’s degree from the University of Toledo with distinction. His research interests include structural dynamics, bridge engineering, and computer applications.
	TBA MS Candidate (2025/1 – present) Contact: In the recruitment phase.
	TBA PhD Candidate (2025/1 – present) Contact: In the recruitment phase.

FORMER STUDENTS

	Nirmala Suwal, M.Sc. PhD Candidate (2021/8 – 2023/8) Contact: nirmala.suwal@rockets.utoledo.edu Nirmala is a graduate research assistant in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Toledo. She completed her bachelor’s degree at the Pulchowk Campus, Tribhuvan University, Nepal. She received her master’s degree in structural engineering from the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand. She worked as a structural engineer in the Philippines. Her research interests include seismic hazard and risk analysis, performance-based design of structures, and structural retrofit. Her research focuses on the use of machine learning for nonlinear structural analysis.
	Upendra Chaulagain MS Candidate (2021/1 – 2022/12) Contact: upendra.chaulagain@rockets.utoledo.edu Upendra is a graduate student in Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Toledo. He obtained his bachelor’s degree from the Tribhuvan University in Nepal. His research interest includes the seismic behavior of structures for resilient and long-term performance.
	Salim Khoso, M.Sc. Ph.D. Candidate (2016/8 – 2021/12) Contact: salim.khoso@rockets.utoledo.edu Salim Khoso is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Toledo. He obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from QUEST, Pakistan. Salim completed his Master’s degree in Design of Steel Structures from the University of Naples Federico II, Italy. Salim’s research interests include seismic design, tall buildings, cement-based materials, and rehabilitation of structures. His current research is focused on understanding and modeling the behavior of cracked concrete subjected to extreme loads. His studies are funded by the Institute of International Education, Washington, DC.
	Conrado Praxedes Silva Neto, M.Sc. Ph.D. Candidate (2015/5 – 2020/12) Contact: neto_conrado@hotmail.com Conrado was a Ph.D. candidate at Ryerson University, advised by Dr. Yuan and Dr. Guner. He completed his undergraduate studies at the State University of São Paulo in Brazil where he studied structural modeling with ANSYS. His MSc thesis, at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, was on the discrete modeling based on the fracture mechanics as applied to structural concrete. At Ryerson, his research was focused on probabilistic progressive collapse analysis and structural robustness. He has completed his studies and composed journal and conference papers to disseminate the research results. He held a Brazilian Science without Borders Scholarship to support his studies.
	Renaud Franssen Ph.D. Candidate (2017/5 - 2020/12) Contact: r.franssen@ulg.ac.be Renaud Franssen was a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Liège, Belgium, working with Prof. Boyan Mihaylov. His Ph.D. work was focused on the rehabilitation of bridge piers with ultra-high performance fiber reinforced concrete (UHPFRC) with the help of finite element model, lab tests, and kinematic model. He joined Dr. Guner's research team to create analysis models for UHPFRC members through a finite element procedure, VecTor2. His objective was to advance the diverse-embedment theory to better capture the complex tensile behavior of UHPFRC. He conducted the experimental tests in Liege, the results of which was used to verify the numerical models created. His studies were funded by the Belgium Fund for Scientific Research.
	Rafael de Amorim Salgado Ph.D. Candidate (2015/8 – 2020/8) Contact: rafael.desalgado@gmail.com Rafael de Amorim Salgado was a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Toledo. He is a former undergraduate student of the Federal University of Espirito Santo, Brazil. His research at Toledo was focused on understanding and modeling the response of cross-laminated timber buildings subjected to earthquake and tsunami multi-hazard loads using a probabilistic approach.
	Anish Sharma MS Candidate (2018/1 – 2020/5) Contact: sharma.anish453@gmail.com Anish Sharma was a graduate research assistant at the University of Toledo. He completed his Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering in the Paschimanchal Campus of the Tribhuvan University, Nepal. He worked on the analysis and design of multistory concrete buildings in his undergraduate studies, and as Civil Engineer for two years in design and construction of concrete bridges and one year in the field of earthquake resistant design and retrofitting for the Government of Nepal. His MS research was focused on developing a finite element analysis technique for the load rating of deep concrete beams and foundations. His studies were funded by ODOT.
	Sundar Chiluwal MS Candidate (2018/1 - 2019/12) Contact: sundar.chiluwal@rockets.utoledo.edu Sundar was a graduate research assistant at the University of Toledo. He received his Bachelor's degree from the Pulchowk Campus of the Tribhuvan University, Nepal. He completed a capstone project on the seismic design of a multistory concrete building. His MS research was focused on advancing the understanding of the response and failure modes of helical pile-to-footing connections, and creating an analysis methodology to advance the current design methods. His studies were funded by Deep Foundation Institute.
	Pappu Baniya MS Candidate (2017/1 - 2019/12) Contact: Pappu.Baniya@rockets.utoledo.edu Pappu Baniya completed his Undergraduate from Pulchowk Campus, Tribhuvan University, Nepal. He has worked on Seismic Design and Analysis of High Rise Building during his undergraduate studies. He worked as a Civil Engineer for one year in the field of Earthquake Resistant Design and Construction for Ministry of Nepal. His MS research focused on understanding the behavior and capacity of deep bridge piers using strut-and-tie models. His studies were funded by ODOT.
	Jian Liu Ph.D. Candidate (2016/5 - 2019/8) Contact: j.liu@ulg.ac.be Jian Liu was a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Liège, Belgium, working with Prof. Boyan Mihaylov. Her Ph.D. work was focused on establishing a macro element for the prediction of the shear behavior of reinforced concrete deep beams. This macro element sought to combine the computational efficiency with simulation accuracy. She joined Dr. Guner’s research group during summer 2016 to conduct a feasibility study for creating a mixed-type finite element platform for modeling slender and deep beams with a single model. She completed her studies and composed journal and conference papers to disseminate the research findings. Her studies were funded by an external research agency.
	Salvio Aragão Almeida Júnior MS Candidate (2017/8 – 2019/8) Contact: salvio_almeida@hotmail.com Sálvio was a graduate research assistant at the University of Toledo. He graduated in civil engineering from the Federal University of Sergipe. He conducted research on optimization algorithms for inversion of stiffness matrices and formulated a Timoshenko stiffness matrix for beams, as an exchange student at the University of Toronto, under the supervision of Dr. Guner. His MS research focused on creating hurricane-resilient connections for non-structural elements.
	Abdullah Haroon MS Candidate (2017/8 – 2019/5) Contact: abdullah.haroon@rockets.utoledo.com Abdullah was a graduate research assistant at the University of Toledo. He obtained his Bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Aligarh Muslim University, India, in 2017. As a part of his undergrad dissertation, he analyzed the dynamic response of an Intze tank subjected to an earthquake loading. His MS research focused on understanding and modeling the fatigue fracture behavior in aluminum trusses subjected to combined wind and thermal loads. His studies were funded by ODOT.
	Abraham Bahre MS (2016/9 – 2018/5) Contact: abraham.bahre@rockets.utoledo.edu Abraham Bahre completed his undergraduate studies at the Eritrea Institute of Technology, Asmara, Eritrea. He worked on the structural Design of a hotel during his undergraduate studies. Abraham's MS studies focused on nonlinear numerical modeling to predict the failure modes of moderate aspect-ratio RC walls. He studied how shear effects reduce the flexural capacity, stiffness and ductility of the moderate aspect-ratio RC walls.
	Zhangcheng (Ryan) Pan MASc (2014/9 – 2016/11) Contact: ryan.pan@mail.utoronto.ca Ryan was a MASc candidate at the University of Toronto. He received his Bachelor of Applied Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Toronto. The objective of his studies was to formulate a micro model to capture the nonlinear behavior and failure modes of beam-column joints. This model was integrated into the VecTor5 analysis procedure to allow for more accurate analysis of reinforced concrete frames. He held an Ontario Graduate Scholarship to support his studies.

COLLABORATORS

Yildir Akkaya, Ph.D.
Research Assistant
Contact: akkayayil@itu.edu.tr
Dr. Akkaya is a Research Assistant in the Department of Civil Engineering at Istanbul Technical University, Turkey. He completed his post-doctoral studies at the University of Toronto, in which he created a numerical model (called RDM) to simulate the inelastic buckling behavior of reinforcing bars in compression. The RDM model provides improvements over existing models by providing more accurate results over a larger applicability range. The open-access computer code of the RDM model and the VecTor5 software (including the RDM formulations) are provided online for the use of researchers and practitioners. This study was funded by Tubitak Bursary 2219.

CURRENT STUDENTS

New Students
will be accepted for Summer 2021.
Please contact Dr. Guner if interested to be a part of our team.
[Our summer 2020 undergraduate research program is cancelled due to COVID-19.]

FORMER STUDENTS

	Andrew Coffman Summer Research Intern (2019/5 - 2019/12) Contact: andrewcoffman679@gmail.com Andrew Coffman is an undergraduate student at the University of Toledo, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. His research in the RESIST Group involved the creation of a calculation procedure and associated computer code for the performance prediction of structural connections using neural networks for hurricane resilience. He created the ANN-Customize tool and associated documents and videos.
	Shivani Gandage Summer Research Intern (2019/5 - 2019/8) Contact: shivanig99off@gmail.com Shivani Gandage is a Civil Engineering student at Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology, India. Her research in the RESIST Group focused on numerical modeling of sustainable structures including cross-laminated timber and green concrete structures. She created the Fragility Function Generator (FFG) tool and associated documents and videos.
	Hatim Alattas Summer Intern (2018/6 – 2018/9) Contact: alattas96@outlook.com Hatim Alattas was an undergraduate student at the University of Jeddah, where he studies Electrical and Computer Engineering. His research focused on modeling axially-loaded circular columns subjected to lateral impact loads due to accidental ship collisions. He verified the developed computer models using experimental results available in the literature. Dr. Wei FAN from the Hunan University provided guidance during this study. Hatim's studies are funded by the Mitacs Globalink program.
	Vitor Moraes da Cruz Summer Research Assistant (2016/5 – 2016/8) Contact: vitordacruz_600@hotmail.com Vitor Cruz was an undergraduate exchange student from Brazil, majoring in Civil Engineering at the Universidade Federal de Sao Joao Del-Rei, in Brazil. He attended two semesters at the University of Nevada, Reno under the Brazilian Scientific Mobility Program. His research at the University of Toledo focused on modeling and analyzing concrete structures using the nonlinear analysis platform VecTor5. The main research finding sought was a more effective way of modeling concrete building structures subjected to earthquakes. His studies were funded by the Institute of International Education.
	Roger Lemos Decarli Summer Research Assistant (2016/5 – 2016/8) Contact: roger.l.decarli@hotmail.com Roger Decarli was an undergraduate student at Universidade Federal do Espirito Santo, major in Mechanical Engineering. He attended two semesters at the University of Arizona as part of the Brazillian Scientific Mobility Program. His research at the University of Toledo focused on the creation of a new, faster solution and inversion subroutine using the Fortran language to increase the efficiency of the nonlinear analysis platform VecTor5. His studies were funded by the Institute of International Education.
	Daniela dos Santos Lourenço Summer Research Assistant (2016/5 – 2016/8) Contact: lourencodaniela.s@gmail.com Daniela was an undergraduate student majoring in Computer Engineering at the CEFET-MG, a Brazilian institution specialized in Engineering and Technology. She attended two semesters at the Pacific Lutheran University as an exchange student funded by the Science Without Borders Program. Her summer research at The University of Toledo focused on improving Janus, a graphical damage visualization software, using C++ language and the OpenGL graphics system. Her studies were funded by the Institute of International Education.
	Lucas Assis Rodrigues Summer Research Assistant (2016/5 – 2016/8) Contact: lucas.assis.ro@gmail.com Lucas was a student seeking the major of Computer Engineering at the Universidade Federal de Itajubá, a federal university in Brazil. He attended two semesters at the University of Texas at El Paso as an exchange student under the Brazilian Scientific Mobility Program. His research at the University of Toledo was to establish new functionalities on a graphical damage visualization program, Janus, using C++ language with the MFC framework and OpenGL libraries. His studies were funded by the Institute of International Education.
	Chu Peng Summer Research Assistant (2016/6 – 2016/9) Contact: peng.chu@mail.scut.edu.cn Chu majored in Civil Engineering at the South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China. His research focused on finding a more efficient way of modeling building structures using the platform VecTor5. He modeled 12 beams and 10 frame structures subjected to static, cyclic, reversed-cyclic and dynamic loads. He edited User Bulletins 1 and 2, and created the User Bulletin 5: Determination of Material Properties. He also composed a journal paper for the non-linear finite element analysis of frames. His studies were funded by the Mitacs Globalink program.
	Ethaniel Peng Summer Research Assistant (2016/8 – 2016/10) Contact: ethaniel.unihannover@gmail.com Ethaniel Peng was an undergraduate student majoring in civil engineering at the University of Hannover, Germany. His summer research at the University of Toledo focused on the Strut-and-Tie modeling of beams and frames. His studies were funded by RISE DAAD program from Germany.
	Kyle A. Blosser Undergraduate Student (2016/1 – 2016/5) Contact: kyle.blosser@rockets.utoledo.edu Kyle obtained his Bachelor in Civil Engineering at The University of Toledo. In his last undergraduate term, he completed an independent study, where he modeled, analyzed, and assessed various beam and frame structures using nonlinear analysis procedures. In addition, he worked on writing and publishing User's Manuals and Bulletins and developed tutorial videos for modeling frame structures using the nonlinear analysis methods, available in our YouTube Channel.
	Markus Jesswein Summer Research Assistant (2015/5 – 2015/8) Contact: markus.jesswein@ryerson.ca Markus was attending Ryerson University for his Bachelor’s of Civil Engineering. His summer research focused on the nonlinear analysis of reinforced concrete beams and frames. Markus enjoyed combining math and science to solve problems, and appreciated the capability and accuracy of computers to analyze the behavior of structures. In the future, Markus plans to pursue graduate studies and aid the development and innovation of structures that will benefit society. His summer research was supported by the Ryerson University Faculty of Engineering and Architectural Science Dean’s Research Fund. He published a poster in the ACI Spring 2016 convention in Milwaukee, WI.
	Salvio Aragão Almeida Júnior Summer Research Assistant (2015/5 – 2015/8) Contact: salvio.aragaoalmeidajunior@mail.utoronto.ca Salvio was an undergraduate civil engineering exchange student at the University of Toronto. He had a great interest in structural engineering, including numerical modeling, nonlinear structural analysis, and seismic effects. His research focused on the creation of solution algorithms for the nonlinear analysis of frames. His studies were funded by the Science without Borders program.
	Agneya Sunil Loya Summer Research Assistant (2015/5 – 2015/8) Contact: agneya1994@gmail.com Agneya studied Civil Engineering at Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, India. He was an exchange research intern at Ryerson University. His research focused on the advancement of the graphical pre-processor software Janus using the object-oriented C++ language. His studies at Ryerson were funded by the Mitacs Globalink program.
	Rafael de Amorim Salgado Summer Research Assistant (2014/5 - 2014/8) Contact: rafael.desalgado@gmail.com Rafael de Amorim Salgado was a former undergraduate student of the Federal University of Espirito Santo, Brazil. In 2014, he attended Queen’s University and Ryerson University as an exchange student for the Science Without Borders program. During this time, he created Excel spreadsheets for the modeling of circular and rectangular sections. He also composed documents to illustrate the coding process and the calculation of the unsupported length ratio for modeling reinforcing bar buckling. His studies were funded by the Science without Borders program.
	Harley Francisco Viana Summer Research Assistant (2014/5 – 2014/8) Contact: harley-viana@hotmail.com Harley Francisco Viana was an undergraduate student at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil. He attended Ryerson University in 2014 as an exchange student of the Science Without Borders Program. His research placement was focused on nonlinear analysis of reinforced concrete structures subjected to static loads using VecTor5. In addition, he prepared two technical bulletins to describe the steps for performing a beam and a frame modeling with VecTor5. His studies were funded by the Science without Borders program.