Dr Katherine Cashell
Senior Lecturer

Research area(s)

• Steel and composite structures.
• Behaviour and design of structures under extreme loads.
• Experimental and numerical methods in structural engineering
• Structural fire engineering.
• Robustness of building structures.
• Innovative materials in construction.
• Stainless steel in structural applications.
• High strength steel in structural applications.
• Steel fibre reinforced concrete.
• Development of more efficient design rules

Research Interests

Overview

Dr Cashell leads an active research group working in the general area of steel and composite structures, focussing on the response during extreme loading conditions such as a fire. Analytical, numerical and experimental methods are employed to perform both fundamental and applied research.  Within the general area of structural engineering, there are a number ongoing research projects and opportunities.

Applications from outstanding candidates are welcome at any time of year. Email for more information: katherine.cashell@brunel.ac.uk.   More information on PhD projects can be found here: https://www.brunel.ac.uk/research/Research-degrees/PhD-Projects.

Collaborators

• The Steel Construction Institute (SCI)
• The Welding Institute (TWI)
• Imperial College
• Tampere University of Technology
• Outokumpu Oy
• Nazarbayev University
• London South Bank University

Completed PhD students

• Dr Alrazi Earij (2017) Nonlinear finite-element analysis of reinforced concrete beams retrofitted with fibre reinforced polymers
• Dr Dorothy Winful (2018) Fire behaviour of high strength steel
• Dr Maxime Bolut (2018) Tailored energy distributions for laser beam welding
• Dr Mustesin Khan (2019) Analysis of perforated steel beams using hybrid simulation
• Dr Mus'ab Rabi (2020) Analysis and design of stainless steel reinforced concrete structural elements 
• Dr Asif Mohammed (2020) Structural behaviour of stainles steel beam-column members
• Dr Rana Al-Dujele (2020)  Behaviour of concrete-filled tubular flange girders
• Dr Alaa Al-Isawi (2020) Steel framed structures subjected to post-earthquake fire
• Dr Reza Keihani (2020)  Enhancing austainability of low to medium-rise reinforced concrete frame buildings in the UK

Current research student supervision

• Javaria Mehwish, Fire behaviour of stainless steel reinforced concrete structures
• Fazal Rehman-ur, Stainless steel reinforcement in fire conditions
• Oday Yabari, Cellular beams in steel framed stuctures, in fire
• Philip Durkin, Digital stone construction

Grants