Curriculum Vitae

ORCID

Science ID DB19-A23A-D10

Professional Situation

Assistant Investigator, LNEC

Academic and Scientific Degrees

• PhD in Civil Engineering, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa (2017)
• Advanced Post-graduate Diploma in Hydraulics and Water Resources, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa (2007)
• Degree in Civil Engineering, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa (2004)
• Certificate of 12th Level (3rd degree of Threshold level) - General English - Wall Street Institute (2003)

Functions and Relevant Public Offices

• Assistant Investigator – LNEC (since 12/2020)
• Postdoctoral Research Fellow, LNEC (since 04/2018)
• Scientific Research Fellow, LNEC – European Project BINGO (from 03/2016 to 09/2017)
• PhD Fellow at LNEC  –  co-financed by FCT/LNEC (01/2011 a 2/2015)
• Scientific Research Fellow, LNEC (10/2006 a 12/2010)
• Civil Engineer Consultant in the hydraulic domain, AQUALOGUS, Engineering & Environment (9/2004 a 9/2006)
• Research Trainee, Université Catholique de Louvain la Neuve (Secteur des sciences et technologies-Génie civil et environnemental), Belgique (2003-2004)
• Monitor of the practical lessons of the course "Mathematical Analysis I”, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa (9/2002 a 06/2003)

Areas of Research / Interest

• Fluvial Hydraulics (physical modelling of the failure of embankments; modelling of the dam failures and propagation of the ensuing floods; risk analysis);
• Hydraulic Structures (design criteria, safety control and physical modelling)
• Hydrology and water resources (water resources analysis, planning and management on river basins.in particular applied to extreme hydrological conditions)
• Instrumentation, measurement methods and data analysis
• Analysis and digital image processing

Research and Professional Activity

• Member of the Leadership Team of the IAHR Committee on Experimental Methods and Instrumentation - https://www.iahr.org/index/committe/1
• Participation in some National and International Research and Development (R&D Projects) - FCT and National Science Foundation (USA)
• Participation in several studies of physical modelling and modelling of flood propagation and risk analysis of dam downstream valleys
• Formal revisions of Scientific articles from peer-reviewed international journals
• Chairman of the Special Session on failure of earth dams and dikes that will take place in IAHR 2019 World Congress

Scientific Orientation

Formal co-supervision of 1 PhD Thesis and 1 Master Thesis. Scientific supervision of 16 trainees

Relevant Publications

Sílvia Amaral is the author of about 67 publications that are divided in:

• 1 PhD Thesis e 1 Final Work Project
• 18 LNEC Technical Reports
• 36 papers in proceedings at national and international scientific meetings
• 1 articles in peer-reviewed national journal
• 6 articles in peer-reviewed international journals
• 1 international book chapter
• 3 posters presented in international meetings

Being the most relevant:

• Amaral, S., Viseu, T., Zhao, G., and Ferreira, R.M.L. (2021) – Recent advances in instrumentation and monitoring techniques applied to dam breach experiment. Capítulo do livro Advances in Testing and Experimentation of Civil Infrastructures, Springer© 2021.
• Amaral, S., Caldeira, L., Viseu, T., Ferreira, R.M.L. (2020) Designing Experiments to Study Dam Breach Hydraulic Phenomena. J. Hydraul. Eng., 2020, 146(4): 04020014.   DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)HY.1943-7900.0001678
• Amaral, S., Viseu, T., Ferreira, R.M.L. (2019). On the continuity of the breach outflow discharge out of overtopped cohesive dams exhibiting a discontinuous breach evolution Journal of Geophysical Research. AGU Publications (under 2nd revision)
• Amaral, S., Ferreira, R.M.L, Viseu, T. (2019) Experimental methods for local-scale characterization of hydro-morphodynamic dam breach processes. Breach detection, 3D reconstruction, flow kinematics and spatial surface velocimetry. Flow Measurement and Instrumentation 70 (2019) 101658. DOI: 10.1016/j.flowmeasinst.2019.101658
• Bento, A. M., Amaral, S., Viseu, T., Cardoso, R., & Ferreira, R.M.L. (2017). Direct Estimate of the Breach Hydrograph of an Overtopped Earth Dam. Journal of Hydraulic Engineering: 06017004-1. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE) HY.1943-7900.0001294.
• Ferreira, R.M.L., Amaral, S. and Spinewine, B. (2014) Mathematical Modelling of Discontinuous Open-Channel Flows Over Granular Beds. ERCOFTAC Bulletin 100, September 2014, pp. 20-28.
• Amaral, S. (2017) Experimental characterization of the failure by overtopping of embankment dams. IST Press, dezembro de 2017 (374 pág.) (Tese de doutoramento)
• Amaral, S., Viseu, T., Bento, A.M., Jónatas, R., Ferreira, R.M.L., Caldeira, L., Cardoso, R. (2016). Experiments on earth dams breaching. Monitoring Instrumentation and methods. Revista da Associação Portuguesa de Análise Experimental de Tensões - Mecânica Experimental, Nº 27, 2016