Professor Bill Murphy

Profile

Bill Murphy is Professor of Engineering Geology with almost 30 years of experience of research, teaching and consulting in the broad geotechnical field. He his interested in how geological processes acting over different times scales impact on the performance of the ground. Such processes can be of the order of seconds or minutes in terms of considering earthquake processes or over hundreds to thousands of years for long design life stuctures. His main expertise is landslides and slope stability, with a specific interest in how the ground performs under strong shaking. Recently he is developing interests in understanding geological processes acting on rock masses at the ground surface and in underground space to develop predictive tools for future performance. Field areas include New Zealand, Califronia, Italy and the UK amongst others. In addition to his research activities Bill has been a consultant to Arup; Halcrow; SRK and URS/Scott Wilson amongst others. He has consulted on aspects of large engineering projects such as the Queensferry Crossing and Hinkley Point C.

Bill Murphy was the program leader for the MSc Engineering Geology from 2001 to 2014. He holds a BSc from the University of Strathclyde and a PhD from University College London. Dr Murphy is a Fellow of the Geological Society and a chartered geologist. He served two consecutive terms of office as a member of the Geotechnique Advisory Panel and sits on the Editorial Board for 'Engineering Geology'. He is Faculty Pro Dean for Internationalisation. Bill was one of the co-authors of the CIRIA Guide to Rock Netting and is working on the CIRIA Guide to the management of natural slopes.

Responsibilities

• Pro Dean International

Research interests

• Engineering geology
• Landslides
• Earthquakes
• Rock Engineering

• 4D Geophysical Monitoring of Landslide Processes
• Degree of adversity of discontinuity orientation in relation to rock slope instability
• Hydromechanical and Biogeochemical Processes in Fractured Rock Masses in the Vicinity of a Geological Disposal Facility for Radioactive Waste
• Seismically-induced landslides in Chile: New tools for hazard assessment and disaster prevention
• The Origin and Properties of Upper Cretaceous Flints

Qualifications

• PhD Geology
• BSc (Hons) Geography & Geology

Professional memberships

• The Geological Society of London
• Fellow of the Geological Society
• Chartered Geologist

Student education

I contribute teaching on various parts of the MSc Engineering Geology. MSc teaching is mainly on the broad area of Geological Hazards. I also teach elements of engineering geology to Civil Engineering undergraduates.

Research groups and institutes

• Institute of Applied Geoscience
• Petrophysics and Geomechanics

Current postgraduate researchers

• Tom Berry
• Amanda Norman