Barbara Frigo

Barbara Frigo is an Associate Professor at the Department of Structural, Building and Geotechnical Engineering (DISEG), Polytechnic University of Turin, where she specializes in snow and ice mechanics, avalanche dynamics, permafrost, and structural response to mountain natural hazards. She is a member of the Interdepartmental Center SISCON – Safety of Infrastructures and Constructions, contributing to research on defense structures and structural monitoring.

Her research interests include:

• Snow and ice mechanics
• Avalanche formation, release, and impact
• Snowpack stability and forecasting
• Interactions between snow flows and structures
• Design of buildings and defenses in alpine environments
• Permafrost and frozen ground behavior
• Seismic risk and structural integrity

Her recent publications focus on avalanche risk mitigation, structural ice reinforcement, seismic signatures of avalanches, and constitutive modeling of permafrost. These works reflect a strong interdisciplinary approach combining civil engineering with cryospheric sciences, often involving field data, structural back-analysis, and numerical modeling. Key themes include hazard assessment, structural resilience, and sustainable material use in extreme environments.

Scientific awards and recognitions include:

• Thesis of Regional Interest (2008)
• JCI Best Technical Paper Award (2015)
• Avalanche Divas Awards ISSW (2018)

She is an active member of several international scientific societies, including the International Glaciology Society, International Permafrost Association, and Engineering Mechanics Institute (ASCE). She has supervised PhD students, notably Farmehr Mohammadpour Dehkordi, and has contributed to academic governance as a member of PhD and degree program committees. She also serves on the Topical Advisory Panel and as Guest Editor for the journal Geosciences. Her teaching portfolio includes courses in Snow Mechanics, Snow Engineering, Building Science, and Structural Theory across bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels.

Current and recent research projects involve:

• Structural safety monitoring of the Mont Blanc Tunnel lining (2022–2024)
• Avalanche defense structure field testing (2016)
• Risk assessment for mountain infrastructure (2022–2025)