Mario Manassero

Mario Manassero is a Full Professor in the Department of Structural, Geotechnical and Building Engineering (DISEG) at the Polytechnic University of Turin, where he is a member of the College of Civil and Building Engineering. His academic and research activities are deeply rooted in environmental geotechnics and geosynthetics, with applications in waste disposal, contaminated site remediation, and sustainable urban development.

His research interests include:

• Environmental geotechnics
• Geosynthetics and contaminant barriers
• Numerical modeling of transport phenomena
• Soil and groundwater contamination
• Waste disposal facilities
• Soil remediation technologies

His recent scholarly work focuses on the performance of bentonite-based barriers, contaminant transport through landfill liners, and the effects of geomembrane defects—critical for environmental protection and regulatory compliance. These studies reflect a strong trend toward understanding and improving engineered containment systems using both theoretical and experimental approaches.

Notable scientific recognition includes:

• Vice-President, International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ISSMGE), 2017–2022

He has served as Scientific Director for multiple nationally and regionally funded research projects (PRIN), including those on coupled phenomena in contaminated site remediation and landslide risk mitigation. He has also led commercial research on resin injection, bentonitic geocomposites, and incineration slag characterization. Manassero has contributed to doctoral education as a member of PhD colleges in Water and Land Management Engineering and Geotechnical Engineering. He has taught Environmental Geotechnics at the PhD level and Geotechnics at the undergraduate level in Civil Engineering. He has also chaired scientific committees for international conferences on environmental geotechnics.