Overview -Rafik Hariri University

Civil & Environmental Engineering Department

Overview

The Civil Engineering Program at Rafik Hariri University puts what is in the best interest of students, first and foremost. Every little experience the student attains represents a block in the building of a competent, confident, purposeful, problem solving, competitive, responsible, and conscientious individual. This is accomplished by means of a curriculum and facilities that conform to the highest of standards, faculty members committed to the academic and personal growth of the student, and an environment that inspires learning and drives creativity.

MISSION

The mission of the Civil & Environmental Department at Rafik Hariri University is fourfold:

To provide high quality education at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
To prepare students for successful careers in the civil engineering work fields and research.
To equip students with the will and tools to engage in lifelong learning, teamwork, team leading, and continual professional development.
To cultivate in students habitual ethical and tolerant behavior and the desire to positively contribute to the advancement of their community and their profession.

PROGRAM EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES

The educational objectives of the Civil Engineering program are determined to support career advancement of graduates, as they pursue their career goals, the graduates will be able to:

achieve successful careers in civil engineering and related fields;
pursue graduate studies and research in civil engineering and other fields;
effectively function as team members or as team leaders;
continue their lifelong learning process and their professional development; and
participate in community service and positively contribute to their society.

STUDENT OUTCOMES

Student outcomes describe what students are expected to know and be able to do by the time of graduation. These relate to the knowledge, skills, and behaviors that students acquire as they progress through the program. Graduates of the Civil Engineering program will have:

An ability to identify, formulate and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science and mathematics.
An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors.
An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences.
An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental and societal contexts.
An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks and meet objectives.
An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions.
An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.

Student Enrollment and Graduation Statistics

Civil & Environmental Engineering Department Enrollment Record for the Past Five Academic Years
Academic Year	2019/2020	2020/2021	2021/2022	2022/2023	2023/2024
Full-time Students	107	81	71	60	41
Graduates	5	6	4	1	0

Civil & Environmental Engineering Department Graduation Record for the Past Five Academic Years
Academic Year	BS	BE	MS
2019-2020		50	3
2020-2021		24	5
2021-2022		24	2
2022-2023		14	1
2023-2024		15	0
Grand Total		127	11

DEPARTMENT FACULTY

Full-Time Faculty
Mehedeen Machaka Associate Professor and Chairperson machakamm@rhu.edu.lb Ext.: 515	Riad Wardani Associate Professor wardanyrk@rhu.edu.lb Ext.: 504	Rana Haj Chhade Assistant Professor hajchhaderz@rhu.edu.lb Ext.: 505	May Mrad Lab Engineer mradmi@rhu.edu.lb Ext.: 609

Part-Time Faculty
Nada Reslan Instructor reslannf@rhu.edu.lb Ext.: 513

THE BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING IN CIVIL ENGINEERING IS ACCREDITED BY THE ENGINEERING ACCREDITATION COMMISSION OF ABET, WWW.ABET.ORG, UNDER THE COMMISION’S GENERAL CRITERIA AND THE PROGRAM CRITERIA FOR CIVIL AND SIMILARLY NAMED ENGINEERING PROGRAMS.

SUMMARY OUTLINE OF DEGREES

The Bachelor of Engineering (BE) program in Civil Engineering encompasses 147 credit hours spread over eight regular semesters and three summer terms. The Bachelor of Science (BS) program comprises a total of 114 credit hours spread over six regular semesters and three summer terms. In addition to completing the credits requirements, a BS or a BE degree is conferred upon a student if the earned Cumulative GPA, Major GPA and the Summative Learning Project grade are all 70 or above.

For further information related to the MS degree, refer to the RHU undergraduate catalogue.

The Civil Engineering Department offers also an MS degree in civil engineering in three specialized areas. MS students have two paths that they may follow to earn an MS degree in civil engineering.

Thesis option:

Students with a BS degree must complete an additional 48 credits.
Students with a BE degree must complete an additional 15 credits.

Non-thesis option:

Students with a BS degree must complete an additional 51 credits.
Students with a BE degree must complete an additional 18 credits.

For further information related to the MS degree, refer to the RHU graduate catalogue.

Department Publications

Journal Publications

Haj Chhadeh, R., Chehab, G., & Abdul-Malak, M. A. (2023). Avoiding Disputes in PPP Road Contracts: Quantifying Impacts of Increased Allowable Truck Loads. Journal of Legal Affairs and Dispute Resolution in Engineering and Construction, 15(2), 04523003.
Al Basiouni Al Masri, Z., Daou, A., Haj Chhade, R., & Chehab, G. (2018). Experimental and Numerical Assessment of the Behavior of Geogrid-Reinforced Concrete and Its Application in Concrete Overlays. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, 30(12), 04018332.
Haj Chhade, R., Mrad, R., Houssami, L., & Chehab, G. (2018). Formulation of traffic inputs required for the implementation of the ME PDG in data-scarce regions: Lebanon case study. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, 30(9), 04018198.
Meheddene M. Machaka, Hisham S. Basha, Hadi Abou Shakra, Adel M. ElKordi, (2014), “Alkali Treatment Of Fan Palm Natural Fibers For Use In Fiber Reinforced Concrete”, European Scientific Journal, April 2014 edition, vol.10, No.12 ISSN: 1857 – 7881 (Print) e - ISSN 1857- 7431
Hadi Abou Shakra, Meheddene Machaka, (2015), “Allocation Solutions For Recycled Municipalwaste Aggregates”, European Scientific Journal, September 2015 edition vol.11, No.26 ISSN: 1857 – 7881 (Print) e - ISSN 1857- 7431.
Reslan N, Masri A, Machaka M (2018),” Composite Shear Walls an Efficient Seismic Resistant System for Multi-Story Buildings”. J Steel Struct Constr 4: 140. Doi: 10.4172/2472-0437.1000140.
Machaka, M., Khatib, J., Baydoun, S., Elkordi, A., & Assaad, J. J. (2022). The Effect of Adding Phragmites australis Fibers on the Properties of Concrete. Buildings, 12(3), 278.
Mrad, M., & El-Samra, R. (2020). Waste tire management: Lebanon case study. Journal of Waste Management and Disposal, 3(1), 101.
Al Wardany, R., Ballivy, G., Rivard, P., “Condition Assessment of Concrete Hydraulic Structures by Surface Wave Nondestructive Testing,” Materials and Structures, pp. 29, 2008.
Al Wardany, R., Ballivy, G., Gallias, J-L., Saleh, K., Rhazi, J., “Assessment of Concrete Slab Quality and Layering by Guided and Surface Wave Testing,” ACI Materials Journal, 104, (3), pp. 268-275, 2007.

Conference Proceedings

AL MASRI, Z. A. B., CHHADE, R. H., & CHEHAB, G. (2018). EXPERIMENTAL EVALUATION OF THE FLEXURAL BEHAVIOR OF CONCRETE BEAMS REINFORCED WITH STIFF BIAXIAL GEOGRID.
Al Masri, Z. A. B., Chhade, R. H., Daou, A., & Chehab, G. R. (2018, July). Experimental and numerical assessment of the behavior of GRC overlays. In Advances in Materials and Pavement Prediction: Papers from the International Conference on Advances in Materials and Pavement Performance Prediction (AM3P 2018), April 16-18, 2018, Doha, Qatar (p. 481). CRC Press.
Chehab, G. R., Chehade, R. H., Houssami, L., & Mrad, R. (2017, July). Implementation initiatives of the mechanistic-empirical pavement design guide in countries with insufficient design input data–the case of lebanon. In International Congress and Exhibition" Sustainable Civil Infrastructures: Innovative Infrastructure Geotechnology" (pp. 147-167). Springer, Cham.
Basha H., Temsah, Y.A., Masri, A.C.,and Mashaka, M.M., (2010), “Optimization of Wall-Frame Resisting System in Buildings Subjected to Seismic Loads”, Seventh Alexandria International Conference on Structural and Geotechnical Engineering, 7AICSGE, pp. ST121-ST138, 27 th-29th December 2010, Alexandria, Egypt.
Meheddene M. Machaka, Hisham S. Basha, Adel M. ElKordi, (2014), “The Effect of Using Fan Palm Natural Fibers on the Mechanical Properties and Durability of Concrete”, 2014 International Conference on Material Science and Engineering, (ICMSE 2014), March 17-18/2014, paper ID ICMSE2014-2-008, Published International Journal of Materials Science and Engineering, Vol. 2, No. 2, pp. 76-80, December 2014. doi: 10.12720/ijmse.2.2.76-80.
Meheddene M. Machaka, and Adel M. ElKordi, (2017), "The Effect of Using Fan Palm Natural Fibers on the Impact Resistance of Concrete.", Proceeding of the 1st International Turkish World Engineering and Science Congress in Antalya, December 7-10, 2017, Turkey, pp 472-479.
Meheddene M. Machaka, Adel M. ElKordi, (2017), "Experimental Study of the Effect of Adding Fan Palm Fibers on Concrete Durability Exposed to Severe Environments." 2nd International Conference on Bio-based Building Materials & 1st Conference on ECOlogicalvalorisation of GRAnular and Fibrous materials, June 21th-23th, Clermont-Ferrand, France. 2017.
Meheddene Machaka, Jamal Khatib, Adel Elkordi, Hassan Ghanem, Oussama Baalbaki (2019), “Selected properties of concrete containing Municipal Solid Waste Incineration Bottom Ash (MSWI-BA)”, Paper No. IDSCMT5099, 5th International Conference on Sustainable Construction Materials and Technologies (SCMT5), Kingston University London (in Partnership with Coventry University), UK, 14 – 17 July 2019, Vol. 1, (Editors: E Ganjian, M Limbachiya, N Ghafoori, P Claisse, M Bagheri), pp 305-317, ISBN-10: 1078314438 ISBN-13: 978-1078314435.
Hassan Ghanem, Meheddene Machaka, Jamal Khatib, Adel Elkordi, Oussama Baalbaki (2019), “Effect of palm fibers addition on absorption characteristics and mechanical properties of concrete”, Paper No. IDSCMT5098, 5th International Conference on Sustainable Construction Materials and Technologies (SCMT5), Kingston University London (in Partnership with Coventry University), UK, 14 – 17 July 2019, Vol. 1, (Editors: E Ganjian, M Limbachiya, N Ghafoori, P Claisse, M Bagheri), pp 287-304, ISBN-10: 1078314438 ISBN-13: 978-1078314435.
Ghanem, M. Machaka, J. Khatib, A. Elkordi, O. Baalbaki (2019), “Effect of partial replacement of cement by MSWIBA on the properties of mortar”, 3rd ICBBM2019 International Conference On Bio-Based Building Materials, 26-28 June 2019, Queens’ University of Belfast, UK, pp. 82-89. http://qub.ac.uk/sites/ICBBM2019.
Machaka, A. Elkordi, H. Ghanem, J. Khatib, O. Baalbaki (2019), “Selected properties of concrete containing palm fibers”, 3rd ICBBM2019 International Conference On Bio-Based Building Materials, 26-28 June 2019, Queens’ University of Belfast, UK, pp. 279-286. http://qub.ac.uk/sites/ICBBM2019.
Baalbaki, A. Elkordi, H. Ghanem, M. Machaka, J. Khatib (2019), “Properties of concrete made of fine aggregates partially replaced by incinerated municipal solid waste bottom ash”, 3rd ICBBM2019 International Conference On Bio-Based Building Materials, 26-28 June 2019, Queens’ University of Belfast, UK, pp. 532-538. http://qub.ac.uk/sites/ICBBM2019.
Ismail, S., Al Wardany, R., Hajj-Chehade, F., “A Finite Difference Study on the Use of Inclined Micropiles for Soil Slope Stabilization under Seismic Loading,” Proceedings of the 70th Canadian Geotechnical Conference of the Canadian Geotechnical Society (CGS), GeoOttawa 2017, Ottawa, Canada, September 2017.
Younes, D., Meshaymesh, A., Al Wardany, R., “Effect of BASALT & LIMESTONE Powders on the Workability of SCC”, 10th ACI/RILEM International Conference on Cementitious Materials and Alternative Binders for Sustainable Concrete, Montreal, Canada, September 2017.
Condition Assessment of Large Diameter Seawater Concrete Pipes, Mediterranean Gas and Oil International Conference (IEEE Conference), Beirut, Lebanon, April 2015.
Younes, D., Meshaymesh, A., Al Wardany, R., “Effect of Basalt and Limestone on SCC Properties,” Proceedings of the 21st LAAS (Lebanese Association for the Advancement of Science) International Science Conference, Beirut, Lebanon, April 2015.
Toghlby, R., Jbara, B., Kammouni, R., Meshaymech, A., Al Wardany, R., “Effectiveness of Epoxy Resin and Latex bonding agents in Concrete Repair,” Proceedings of the 21st LAAS (Lebanese Association for the Advancement of Science) International Science Conference, Beirut, Lebanon, April 2015.
Ismail, S., Al Wardany, R., Hajj-Chehade, F., “Stability Analysis of Silty-Sandy Earth Slopes Subjected to Earthquake Loading,” Proceedings of the 67th Canadian Geotechnical Conference of the Canadian Geotechnical Society (CGS), GeoRegina 2014, Regina, Canada, September 2014.
Ismail, S., Hajj-Chehade, F., Al Wardany, R., “Slope Stability Analysis under Seismic Loading,” Proceedings of the 2nd European Conference on Earthquake Engineering and Seismology, Istanbul, Turkey, August 2014.
Ismail, S., Hajj-Chehade, F., Al Wardany, R., “Non Linear Numerical Modeling of Earth Slopes under Seismic Loading,” Proceedings of the 20th LAAS (Lebanese Association for the Advancement of Science) International Science Conference, Beirut, Lebanon, March 2014.
Al Wardany, R., Gallias, J-L., “ Évaluation de la qualité du béton en fonction de la profondeur par des méthodes acoustiques,” Colloque semaine de la recherche et d’innovation en Val-d’Oise : Bâtiments et ouvrages en béton, Application en sécurité incendie, control non destructif, 2011.
Al Wardany, R., Ballivy, G., Gallias, J-L., Saleh, K., “Nondestructive Evaluation of Bonding Quality Between Concrete Layers Using Surface Waves,” Proceedings of the 7th International Symposium on Nondestructive Testing in Civil Engineering, Nantes, France, 2009.
Al Wardany, R., “Condition Assessment of Prestressed Concrete Cylindrical Water Pipes,” WCWWA 60th Anniversary Conference, Regina, Canada, 2008.
Rivard, P., Saint-Pierre, F., Al-Wardany, R., Kodjo, S., Ballivy, G., “The Use of Nondestructive Techniques for the Evaluation of Concrete Deterioration Due to Alkalis-Aggregate Reaction in Hydraulic Structures,” Proceedings of Diagnobeton 2007, Aix-en-Provence, France, 2007.
Al Wardany, R., “Nondestructive Characterization of Concrete Structures,” Conference of the Centre for Research on Concrete Infrastructures (CRIB), Université de Laval, Canada, 2005.
Al Wardany, R., “Condition Assessment of In-Service Hydraulic Structure by the FK Multi-channel Method,” Proceedings of the 10th Annual Urban Infrastructure Week INFRA2004, Montreal, Canada, 2004.
Al Wardany, R., Rhazi, J., Ballivy, G., Gallias, J.L., Saleh, K., “Use of Rayleigh Wave Methods to Detect Near-Surface Concrete Damage,” Proceedings of the 16th World Conference on Non-Destructive Testing, Montreal, Canada, 2004.
Al Wardany, R., Ballivy, G., Saleh, K., Rhazi, J., Gallias, J.L., “Near-Surface Characterization of Concrete Structures Using Rayleigh Waves,” Proceedings of the 2004 Joint Assembly, American Geophysical Union, Montreal, Canada, 2004.
Al Wardany, R., Gallias, J.L., Rhazi, J., Ballivy, G., “Evaluation of Concrete Young’s Modulus by Spectral Analysis of Surface Waves,” Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Concrete Repair, St-Malo, France, pp. 373-380, 2003.
Rhazi, J., Dous, O., Al Wardany, R., Ballivy, G., Saleh, K., “Detection of Near-Surface Damage and Cracks in Mass Concrete by Acoustical and Electromagnetic NDT Techniques,” Proceedings of the 6th International Symposium on Non-Destructive Testing in Civil Engineering, Berlin, Germany, 2003.
Rivard, P., Ballivy, G., Rhazi, J., Al Wardany, R., Guissi, G., Dous, O., “Monitoring and Characterization of Alkalis-Aggregate Reaction by Nondestructive Evaluation Methods,” Proceedings of the 10ème Colloque sur la Progression de la Recherche Québécoise Portant sur les Ouvrages d'art, Laval, Canada, 2003.
Ballivy, G., Rhazi, J., Al Wardany, R., Guissi, G., Dous, O., Rivard, P. “Correlation between Physical and Mechanical Properties of Concrete,” 4th Edition of French Scientific Days on Research and Education in Concrete, Sherbrooke, 2003.

Book Chapters

Khatib, J. M., Machaka, M. M., & Elkordi, A. M. (2021). Natural fibers chapter 5. Handbook of Sustainable Concrete and Industrial Waste Management: Recycled and Artificial Aggregate, Innovative Eco-friendly Binders, and Life Cycle Assessment, 85.

Civil & Environmental Engineering Department

Overview

MISSION

PROGRAM EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES

STUDENT OUTCOMES

Student Enrollment and Graduation Statistics

DEPARTMENT FACULTY

SUMMARY OUTLINE OF DEGREES

Department Publications

Journal Publications

Conference Proceedings

Book Chapters

RHU Publication

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