معرفی
Claudia Zapata is an Associate Professor at Arizona State University's School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment. She serves as the Associate Director of the National Center for Infrastructure Transformation (NCIT) under the U.S. Department of Transportation and as Deputy Director of the Engineering Research Center for Bio-Mediated and Bio-Inspired Geotechnics funded by the National Science Foundation.
Her educational background includes a Ph.D. in Geo-Environmental Engineering from Arizona State University (1999), an M.S.E. in Geotechnical Engineering from Arizona State University (1996), and a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Universidad Nacional-Manizales-Colombia (1988).
Dr. Zapata specializes in unsaturated soil mechanics with particular focus on temperature effects on moisture movement, matric suction effects on soil resilience under dynamic loading, and incorporating environmental effects into pavement design methodologies. Her research has significantly advanced mechanistic pavement design practices, including introducing models that account for real-time environmental effects in pavement performance. She has authored over 90 technical publications on unsaturated soils behavior, expansive soils characterization, thermo-hydro-mechanical soil behavior, and soil improvement techniques.
Her recent publications demonstrate a strong trend toward bio-mediated geotechnics, climate-responsive pavement design, and advanced modeling of soil-water interactions. The research spans fundamental unsaturated soil mechanics to practical applications in transportation infrastructure, with increasing emphasis on sustainability and climate adaptation.
- Carl Monismith Award 2025 from ASCE for outstanding contributions to Pavement Engineering
- Victoria Foundation Award 2021 for increasing participation of underrepresented populations in engineering
- Community Service Award 2011 for advancing pavement programs in Arizona
- Recognition in Top 5% of Superior Teaching by Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering (2019)
Dr. Zapata has been instrumental in developing the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide in the United States, creating a database of over 35,000 unsaturated soils properties across the U.S., and leading NSF-funded research through the Engineering Research Center for Bio-Mediated and Bio-Inspired Geotechnics. Her current research activities include moisture measurement for pavement foundations, implementation of environmental effects into ERDC pavement design programs, and enhancements to Pavement ME Design considering shrink/swell soils and frost heave.
She actively leads research teams focused on bio-mediated and bio-inspired geotechnics, with recent work examining microbial-induced desaturation, fungal mycelium effects on soil cracking, and enzyme-based soil stabilization techniques. Her lab work integrates experimental testing with advanced modeling to address infrastructure challenges related to problematic soils and climate effects.
