Michael Patrick Collins is a Canadian
structural engineer
Structural engineers analyze, design, plan, and research structural components and structural systems to achieve design goals and ensure the safety and comfort of users or occupants. Their work takes account mainly of safety, technical, economic ...
whose research is focused on the design and evaluation of reinforced and prestressed
concrete
Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wi ...
buildings, bridges, nuclear containment structures and offshore oil platforms.
Biography
Collins received his
BE from the
University of Canterbury
The University of Canterbury ( mi, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was ...
in
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
in 1964 and his
PhD PHD or PhD may refer to:
* Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification
Entertainment
* '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series
* ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic
* Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group
** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...
from the
University of New South Wales
The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensive ...
in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
in 1968. He joined the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
in 1969, was appointed to the
Bahen-Tanenbaum Chair in
Civil Engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewage ...
in 1995 and was selected as a University
Professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...
in 1999. He is currently working on his
Doctorate of Science.
Collins has concentrated his research effort on understanding how cracked reinforced concrete resists
shear stress
Shear stress, often denoted by (Greek: tau), is the component of stress coplanar with a material cross section. It arises from the shear force, the component of force vector parallel to the material cross section. ''Normal stress'', on the ot ...
. Shear failures can cause concrete structures to collapse without warning and hence, accurate analytical models for shear behaviour are critical for public safety. Unfortunately, most traditional shear design procedures rely upon empirical design rules which lack a rigorous theoretical basis and can be dangerous if applied to new situations. The
Compression Field Theory, and subsequently the
Modified Compression Field Theory
The modified compression field theory (MCFT) is a general model for the load-deformation behaviour of two-dimensional cracked reinforced concrete subjected to shear. It models concrete considering concrete stresses in principal directions summed ...
, developed by Professor Collins and his colleagues at the
University of Toronto, Division of Engineering Science, provides a rational basis for shear design and has received worldwide recognition. A
Simplified Modified Compression Field Theory is currently the design standard in the Canadian
CAN/CSA A23.3-04 which is the basic truss model, and soon to be updated and included in the European Building Code. He is the author of over 80 technical papers, 8 of which have received a research prize.
In 2005, Collins was chosen as one of 10 provincial finalists in
TVOntario
TVO Media Education Group (often abbreviated as TVO and stylized on-air as tvo) is a publicly funded English-language educational television network and media organization serving the Canadian province of Ontario. It is operated by the Ontario ...
’s first Best Lecturer competition. In 2011, Collins was elected as a
Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
Fellowship of the Royal Society of Canada (FRSC) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Canada judges to have "made remarkable contributions in the arts, the humanities and the sciences, as well as in Canadian public life ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Michael P.
Canadian civil engineers
Living people
Structural engineers
University of Canterbury alumni
University of New South Wales alumni
Academic staff of the University of Toronto
Engineers from Toronto
Scientists from Toronto
20th-century Canadian scientists
21st-century Canadian scientists
20th-century Canadian engineers
21st-century Canadian engineers
Year of birth missing (living people)
New Zealand emigrants to Canada
Members of the Order of Canada
People from Oakville, Ontario