Assessment and Conservation of Old Masonry Structures in UNESCO World Heritage Site of Historic Cairo

Synopsis

The management and conservation of heritage sites in Historic Old Cairo represent various challenges due to the ever-increasing threats such as population growth, urbanization, pollution, natural hazards, among others. These threats lead to the gradual deterioration of these sites, and hence result in significant economic losses. The presentations will discuss these challenges as well as the efforts made to address them through suggested engineering solutions and community engagement strategies. On the structural engineering side, the presentations will also summarise recent investigations carried out on the structural and material response of heritage clay brick and lime mortar masonry elements representative of those used in many heritage structures in Historic Cairo and elsewhere. The assessments include experimental and numerical studies at the material and structural levels with due consideration of environmental and seismic effects and discuss possible strengthening and rehabilitation techniques.

About the Speaker

Sherif A. Mourad is a Professor at the Structural Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University, Egypt. He obtained his Ph.D. 1990 at the University of California, Irvine, U.S.A. He served as Dean at the Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University from 2012 to 2016, and as Vice Dean for Graduate Studies and Research 2009 to 2012. 
His research interests include earthquake engineering, health monitoring, progressive collapse, and assessment of historical buildings. He is a registered Consulting Engineer, and currently a board member of the Civil section of the Egyptian Society for Engineers.

Dan Bompa is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Surrey. He is a visiting academic at Imperial College London where he previously held postdoc posts. His research is at the intersection between structural engineering and civil engineering materials with a particular focus on the performance of hybrid structures, extreme loading, and seismic design. He worked as a practising design engineer for a period of more than five years, is a Member of the Institution of Structural Engineers and a European Engineer.

Ahmed Elghazouli is Professor and Head of Structural Engineering at Imperial College London. His main interests are related to the behaviour and design of structures under seismic and other extreme loads. He has many publications in related areas and made significant contributions to Eurocode development activities. He is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, Institution of Civil Engineers, Institution of Structural Engineers, and a former Chair of SECED.

Further information

This event is organised by SECED. The event will be chaired by Prof. Ahmed Elghazouli (Imperial College London). Attendance at this meeting is free for members and non-members alike.

In-person attendance

The event will be held in-person at the Institution of Civil Engineers (see map below). Prior registration is not required. Seats are allocated on a first come, first served basis. Tea, coffee and biscuits will be served from 5.30 - 6 pm. We encourage everyone to attend in person if they can.

Online attendance

This event will be broadcast online. Please register for the event prior to joining. The registration process will provide you with the link you need to join the main event.  Link here