Milap Dhakal

Senior Cement Scientist

Applied Technologies

Making low-carbon cement and concrete

I work as a Senior Cement Scientist in the Applied Technologies research group where I gather insights into fresh and hardened properties of cement-based construction materials. My past experience includes research into alternative cementing materials such as MgO-SiO2 cements and geopolymers. And I also maintain research interests around the structural application of concrete-based materials and sustainability in construction materials.

Working with Callaghan Innovation customers, I led the development of a clay-based MgO and Geopolymer cement system. This was developed to produce concrete mixes for structurally sound concrete elements.

You may not know that concrete, the second-most used construction commodity after water, is the cleanest construction material in market. Cement scientists like me are working hard to reduce its associated carbon footprint.

I enjoy working through seemingly challenging problems and finding ways to make things work with simpler and cheaper processes. That’s applied technology in action.

Areas of expertise

Cement formulation
Fresh properties of cement and concrete
Micro-structures
Performance-based concrete design optimization
Material testing
Concrete durability indices
Structural analysis of RC elements
Designed experiments
Concrete 3D printing

Education

PhD. Civil Engineering, University of Canterbury, 2022
MS. Engineering, Louisiana Tech University, 2013
BE. Civil Engineering, Tribhuvan University, 2008

Memberships and awards

Member, Engineering New Zealand
Award, UoC Publication Awards, 3 times
Scholarship, UoC Doctoral Scholarship

Selected publications

Dhakal, M., Scott, A. N., Dhakal, R. P., & Clucas, D. (2022). Structural and durability properties for magnesia alumina silicate concrete. Construction and Building Materials, 340(April), 127725. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2022.127725
Dhakal, M., Scott, A. N., Dhakal, R. P., Sullivan, T. J., & Clucas, D. (2022). Performance of MgO-Mk based M – S – H concrete column reinforced with steel and BFRP bars under cyclic loads. Structures, 46(April), 1764–1780. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.istruc.2022.11.025
Dhakal, M., Scott, A. N., Shah, V., Dhakal, R. P., & Clucas, D. (2021). Development of a MgO-metakaolin binder system. Construction and Building Materials, 284(May 2021), 122736. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2021.122736
Shah, V., Dhakal, M., & Scott, A. (2022). Long-term performance of MgO–SiO2 binder. Materials and Structures/Materiaux et Constructions, 55(2). https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-022-01901-3
Dhakal, M., Scott, A., Shah, V., Oze, C., Dhakal, R., Clucas, D., Hughes, M. W., & Mueller, R. P. (2021). Magnesia-Metakaolin Regolith Mortar for Martian Construction. Earth and Space 2021, 808–817. https://doi.org/10.1061/9780784483374.075