Mithila Achintha

Mithila Achintha is a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Sustainable Infrastructure Materials at the University of Manchester, leading Construction Materials research within the School of Engineering. He is also the Programme Director for Civil Engineering Undergraduate Programmes. Previously, he held roles at the University of Southampton and the University of Oxford. His research focuses on sustainable construction materials, low-carbon technologies, and innovative structural solutions.

Educated at the University of Cambridge (PhD, Structural Engineering) and the University of Moratuwa (BSc, Civil Engineering), he holds professional qualifications including Fellowships from the Institution of Structural Engineers (FIStructE), Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (FIMMM), and Advance HE (FHEA). He is a Chartered Engineer (CEng) and serves on the EPSRC Peer Review College.

Research interests span experimental and computational investigations of concrete, FRP, and glass composites; infrastructure carbon quantification; digital design; and circular economy principles. He has secured over £1M in research funding from UKRI/EPSRC, the European Commission, and industry partners. Notable projects include the Lower Thames Crossings carbon analysis and the EPSRC-funded 'Towards Low Impact Concrete Structures' initiative.

His work has produced over 75 peer-reviewed publications and a book chapter on 'Sustainability of Glass in Construction,' with ongoing projects on graphene-enhanced concrete and biochar carbon sequestration. He supervises six current PhD students and has mentored 11 graduates, including faculty members at Universities of Bath, Ankara, and Nanjing.

Awards include the University of Southampton's Global Partnerships Award and multiple student research prizes. He collaborates with industry leaders like National Highways, Structural Metal Decks Ltd, and Rolls-Royce, emphasizing application-driven innovation.