Rice University Civil and Environmental Engineering

05/07/2026

Professor Philip Bedient and Rice's SSPEED Center (Severe Storm Prediction Education & Evacuation from Disasters) are working alongside The University of Texas at Arlington's Water Engineering Research Center to design a flood warning system for the Texas Hill Country, one that could give communities the lead time they need to act before waters rise.

Bedient is collaborating with Rice alumnus and WERC director Nick Fang to develop FEWS, the Hill Country Flood Early Warning System. The system is designed to give emergency managers a clear picture of where flooding is headed before it arrives, matching live radar rainfall data against a precomputed library of flood scenarios to deliver color-coded inundation maps with one to two hours of advance warning.

Read more in Rice Magazine: https://magazine.rice.edu/spring-2026/after-storm
📷 Jared Jones/Rice University | Joshua Lott/The Washington Post via Getty Images

05/06/2026

Join us for the CEE Specialty Seminar Series featuring Dr. Alexandros A. Taflanidis, Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences at the University of Notre Dame, presenting "Machine learning applications to storm-surge risk estimation supporting planning and emergency response management decisions."

Dr. Taflanidis will examine how machine learning advances address computational challenges in high-fidelity storm surge modeling. The seminar will cover the integration of surrogate modeling techniques using databases of high-fidelity synthetic storms, graph neural networks and multi-fidelity approaches to support regional flood studies and real-time emergency response management, and how these developments can gain acceptance among planners and emergency response managers.

📅 Friday, May 22, 2026
⏰ 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
📍 Ryon Engineering Building, Room 201, Rice University
Pizza will be served. Please RSVP to assist us with catering coordination.
https://events.rice.edu/event/428804-cee-specialty-seminar-dr-alexandros-taflanidis

04/29/2026

👏 We are thrilled to announce that Professor Satish Nagarajaiah has been named the recipient of the 2025 George W. Housner Structural Monitoring & Control Medal by the American Society of Civil Engineers and the Engineering Mechanics Institute!

This prestigious medal recognizes his outstanding contributions to structural control and health monitoring, including innovations in seismic isolation and adaptive damping systems now implemented in critical buildings, high-rises and bridges across the country.

A true example of Rice Engineering and Computing's commitment to solving for the greater good.https://engineering.rice.edu/news/satish-nagarajaiah-selected-recipient-2025-george-w-housner-structural-monitoring-control-0

04/28/2026

The American Society of Civil Engineers has recognized Rice Civil and Environmental Engineering faculty with its highest membership distinction and two of its most competitive research prizes, reflecting the excellence and impact our department continues to build.

🔹 Pedro Alvarez, George Brown Professor and director of the Rice WaTER Institute, has been named an ASCE Distinguished Member for more than three decades of work in water quality engineering and environmental remediation.

🔹 Jamie Padgett, Stanley C. Moore Professor and CEE chair, will receive the 2026 Alfredo Ang Award for her research on infrastructure resilience under natural hazards.

🔹 Lauren Stadler, associate professor, will receive the 2026 Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize, the highest mid-career research award in civil engineering, for establishing wastewater surveillance as an early-warning system for infectious diseases.

Congratulations, Pedro, Jamie and Lauren — a proud moment for Rice Engineering and Computing and the future of civil and environmental engineering!

https://cee.rice.edu/news/rice-civil-and-environmental-engineering-faculty-earn-top-honors-american-society-civil

04/21/2026

Join us for the Civil and Environmental Engineering Seminar Series featuring Karl G. Linden, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor, Mortenson Professor in Sustainable Development, and Chair of the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering at University of Colorado Boulder, presenting "Protecting public health at the speed of (UV) light: How novel UV sources are transforming disinfection and oxidation in water treatment and reuse."

📅 Thursday, April 23, 2026
⏰ 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
📍 Ryon Engineering Building, Room 201, Rice University
https://events.rice.edu/event/428535-cee-seminar-speaker-series-karl-linden-phd

04/10/2026

Professor Jim Blackburn and Rice University's SSPEED Center are joining the new Coastal Texas Research Council to help advance the Galveston Bay Barrier System — the largest coastal protection project in U.S. history.

The council brings together experts from Rice University, Texas A&M University, and TU Delft to provide independent, science-driven guidance for the project.

Learn more: https://news.rice.edu/news/2026/rice-among-top-research-institutions-advancing-largest-coastal-protection-effort-us

04/08/2026

From Colombia to Rice: Ph.D. graduate Raul Rincon reflects on transformation, community and what's next.

Civil engineering Ph.D. graduate Raul Rincon came to Rice University from Colombia after completing his undergraduate and master's degrees. Over five years, he built a strong community through Fulbright and Latin American graduate groups — and found that earning a doctorate was about far more than research.

Read his full story:

For Raul Rincon, earning a Ph.D. in civil engineering from Rice University was about more than research — it was a journey of personal transformation.

03/31/2026

Join us for the Rice University Civil and Environmental Engineering Seminar Series featuring Dr. Detlef Knappe, James Ellen Distinguished Professor in the Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering at NC State University, presenting "PFAS Releases from Fluoropolymer Production: Community Impacts and Interventions to Reduce Human Exposure."

📅 Thursday, April 2, 2026
⏰ 3:00 PM
📍 Ryon Engineering Building, Room 201, Rice University
https://events.rice.edu/event/426096-spring-2026-cee-seminar-series-pfas-releases-from

03/31/2026

Rice experts shared sustainability strategies for Argentina's Vaca Mu**ta shale boom.

A delegation from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, including Pedro Alvarez, Menachem Elimelech, Qilin Li and Mason Tomson, alongside Rice Water Institute Executive Director Eric Willman, traveled to Neuquén province this month to present at a technical conference at the Neuquén Scientific and Technological Center.

The group also completed a field tour of Vaca Mu**ta operations prior to the conference. Discussions focused on produced water treatment, water recycling, mineral recovery, and bioremediation strategies for impacted land. "As Vaca Mu**ta continues its rapid rise on the global energy stage, its long-term success will require striking a balance between harnessing its vast potential while protecting the natural systems that sustain it," said Eric Willman, executive director of the Rice WaTER Institute.

Read more: https://news.rice.edu/news/2026/rice-experts-share-sustainability-strategies-argentinas-vaca-muerta-shale-boom

03/30/2026

Join us for a Rice University Civil and Environmental Engineering Seminar in collaboration with the Ken Kennedy Institute featuring Dr. David Pittman, Ph.D., Former Director at the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), presenting "The Role of Responsible AI in Understanding, Predicting, and Shaping a Sustainable and Resilient Operational Environment."

📅 Thursday, April 16, 2026
⏰ 12:00 PM
📍 Ryon Laboratory Room 112, Rice University

Lunch will be provided. Please RSVP to assist us with catering coordination. https://events.rice.edu/event/425725-cee-k21-specialty-seminar-david-pittman-phd-