Dr Matthew Frost

CEng FICE FPWI SFHEA PhD BEng PgCHE DIS

  • Reader
  • Associate Dean – Education & Student Experience
  • Director of Undergraduate Studies, Senior Lecturer Geotechnical Engineering

Research groups and centres

Publications
ORCiD Google Scholar
Matthew Frost

Research and expertise

I am a Chartered Civil Engineer with over 25 years of experience in geotechnical and transport engineering research and practice. I have published over 100 refereed publications, supervised over 15 Doctoral students to successful conclusion. I have won, supervised and managed grants worth over £1.5m in research, consultancy and testing. My work tends to be industry focused and applied (see projects list below).

Key research areas include Transport, Railway and Highway Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering, Railway and Highway material performance assessment, sustainability evaluation/assessment, non-destructive testing, drainage and permanent way engineering.

Current research activity

  • HS2 Earthworks Performance Assessment. A new four year EngD project co-funded with HS2 to look at the earthwork compliance assessment during construction. The project aims to look at ways the performance of the earthworks can be monitored during the construction stage to give assurance that the specification end product can be met. This has specific challenges based on the need to achieve specific shear wave velocity on the earthworks to control critical velocity issues as well as stringent settlement and transient deflection criteria.

  • Network Rail Drainage Challenge, NDT Assessment of Cess Drainage. This is a Network Rail funded PhD project looking at transferring the research recently undertaken in highway filter drainage assessment using GPR into the permanent way.

  • Evaluation of the Nottingham Go Ultra Low Project. A project with Nottingham City Council evaluating of the impact of the on the City of measure to encourage electric vehicle uptake.

Past research projects

  • Highway Filter Drain Maintenance Management,:- A project with Connect Roads to look at predictive maintenance tools and techniques to manage and maintain highway filter drains based on NDT methods of assessment.

    Performance Parameters of Railway Track Support- A project with L B Foster Rail UK, investigating railway track support to predict performance of railway track joints. This project has used the video gauge to measure track deflection and then use this data to validate IBJ performance against FE modelling. This work is also looking at measurement of track stiffness assessment based on deflection of rail and sleepers measured using the pixel tracking system of the video gauge. 

  • Evaluation of the Nottingham Work Place Parking Levy. - A project with Nottingham City Council evaluating of the impact of the Nottingham Work Place Parking Levy on the City.
  • Sports Suds  A PhD project sponsored by the Institute of Groundsmen, SAPCA and Sport England to investigate the development and transfer of sustainable drainage technologies to sports pitch design and construction.
  • Geosynthetics and Sustainability - A project sponsored by IGS UK chapter to develop criteria to compare the carbon impact of geosynthetics relative to conventional construction techniques particularly in earthworks remediation.

    Serviceability Design of Geo-grid Reinforced Walls  - Working with Huesker UK to evaluate in-service deflection of geogrid reinforced retaining walls using laser scanning and FE predictive modelling. 
  • Routine Assessment of Railway Vibration - A project with AECOM to produce tools to routinely characterise the ground for predictive modelling of railway vibration transmission to property. This work used a source path receptor model.  Novel testing of the ground using an LWD and geophones was undertaken to establish ground performance. Train vibrations were then measured at the same sites. From this the train vibration profiles could be separated from the ground information. Then if similar tests, at different sites, assessing vibration transfer from the ground to buildings could be performed, the train data could be added back in to predict the overall vibration performance. 
  • The Development of a LCA Framework for Materials Selection in Road Pavement Construction –
  • An EngD Project with Aggregate Industries to develop an Life Cycle Analysis framework for material selection in highway projects. 
  • The Determination of a Carbon Hierarchy and Carbon Reduction Action Plan for Highway Managers and Maintenance  - An EngD Project with Balfour Beatty to develop a carbon assessment tool for highway maintenance projects. 
  • Futurenet (Infrastructure and Climate Change Resilience) (£440k) - An EPSRC funded project in collaboration with Birmingham and Nottingham Universities as well as infrastructure stakeholders to assess the climate change resilience of the UK transport network. This looked at predicting what the Rail and Road network would look like in 50 years and superimposing climate affects to assess areas where there may be climate susceptibility of the infrastructure assets, including earthwork performance due to seasonal ratcheting, flood venerability and other failures. Much of the work centred on cases studies and predictive models for the West Coast Main Line, (A paper written on the work won an ICE journal award.) 

Recent publications

Dixon, N, Fowmes, G, Frost, M Global Challenges, Geosynthetic Solutions and Counting Carbon, Geosynthetics International, ISSN: 1072-6349.

Mohamed, A, El-Hamalawi, A, Frost, M, Connell, A (2018) External loads on buried steel pipelines: 3D finite element simulation, Journal of Pipeline Engineering, 17(6/2018), pp.91-103, ISSN: 1753-2116.

Gallou, M, Frost, M, El-Hamalawi, A, Hardwick, C (Accepted for publication) The application of track deflection measurements made by the video gauge, Proceedings of the ICE - Transport, ISSN: 0965-092X. Full text: http://www.icevirtuallibrary.com/toc/jtran/0/0. DOI: 10.1680/jtran.18.00003.

Gallou, M, Frost, M, El-Hamalawi, A, Hardwick, C (2018) Assessing the deflection behaviour of mechanical and insulated rail joints through finite element analysis, IMechE Part F: Journal of Rail and Rapid Transit.

Dale, S, Frost, , Ison, SG, Quddus, M, Warren, P (2017) EVALUATING THE IMPACT OF A WORKPLACE PARKING LEVY ON LOCAL TRAFFIC CONGESTION: THE CASE OF NOTTINGHAM UK, Transport Policy, 59, pp.153-164, ISSN: 1879-310X. DOI: 10.1016/j.tranpol.2017.07.015.

Dale, S, Ison, Frost, M, Warren, P, Nettleship, K (2017) An evaluation of the economic and business investment impact of an integrated package of public transport improvements funded by a Workplace Parking Levy, Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 101, pp.149-162, ISSN: 0965-8564. DOI: 10.1016/j.tra.2017.04.034.

Gallou, M, Barnaby Temple, Chris Hardwick, Frost, MWF, EL-HAMALAWI, AEH (2016) Potential for external reinforcement of insulated rail joints, Proc IMechE Part F: J Rail and Rapid Transit, 684278, DOI: 10.1177/0954409716684278.

Scotland, I, Dixon, N, Frost, M, Fowmes, GJ, Horgan, G (2016) Modelling Deformation during the Construction of Wrapped Geogrid Reinforced Structures, Geosynthetics International, 23(3), pp.219-232, ISSN: 1072-6349. DOI: 10.1680/jgein.15.00049.

Stylianides, T, Frost, M, Fleming, P, ElJaber, A, Mageean, M, Huetson, A, Klimczak, T (2015) Highway filter drains: precursors for maintenance management, Infrastructure Asset Management, Ahead of Print(0), pp.0-0, ISSN: 2053-0242. DOI: 10.1680/jinam.15.00005.

Raja, J, Dixon, N, Fowmes, GJ, Frost, M, Assinder, P (2015) Obtaining Reliable Embodied Carbon Values for Geosynthetics, Geosynthetics International, 22(5), pp.393-401, ISSN: 1072-6349. DOI: 10.1680/jgein.15.00020.

Frost, MW (2015) Editorial, Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Transport, 168(1), pp.1-2, ISSN: 0965-092X. DOI: 10.1680/tran.2015.168.1.1. 

Itoya, E, EL-Hamalawi, A, Ison, S, Frost, MW, Hazel, K (2014) Development and Implementation of a Carbon tool for Highway maintenance, ASCE Journal of Tranportation, 141(5), ISSN: 0733-947X. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)TE.1943-5436.0000742.

Dale, S, Ison, S, Frost, MW, Warren, P (2014) Workplace Parking Levies: The answer to funding large scale local transport improvements in the UK?, research In transportation Economics, DOI: 10.1016/j.retrec.2014.09.068.

Raja, J, Dixon, N, Fowmes, G, Frost, M, Assinder, P (2014) Comparison of carbon dioxide emissions for two landfill capping layers, Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Engineering Sustainability, 167(5), pp.197-207, ISSN: 1478-4629. DOI: 10.1680/ensu.14.00006.

Dijkstra, T, Dixon, N, Crosby, CJ, Frost, M, Gunn, D, Fleming, P, Wilks, J (2014) Forecasting infrastructure resilience to climate change, ICE Proceedings Transport, 167(5), pp.269-280, DOI: 10.1680/tran.13.00089.

Frost, MW and Ison, S (2014) Editorial, Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Transport, 167(3), pp.123-123, ISSN: 0965-092X. DOI: 10.1680/tran.2014.167.3.123.

All publications

Teaching

Programme Director for Civil Engineering

As Programme Director I am responsible for the delivery of the Civil Engineering Degrees, I run the Civil Engineering Sponsorship Scheme and I contribute to learning and teaching activities across the Schools programmes including: 

Undergraduate

  • Geotechnical engineering modules on civil engineering programmes; 
  • The geotechnics component of the residential field course;
  • Integrated design projects; 
  • Highway/Railway and Infrastructure Engineering Modules
  • Team Work and Leadership Modules
  • Year out placement preparation 
  • Supervision of dissertations on topics aligned to my research interests

Postgraduate

  • Supervision of dissertations on topics aligned to my research interests

Enterprise

Short courses

  • CPD and industry training events run the University, including courses for Aggregate Industries, Brett Paving, Grontjmi, SAPCA. 

Past consultancies

I have undertaken a number of consultancy projects mainly linked to the laboratory testing of products. Including but not limited to:

  • Components for rail systems including novel track forms,
  • paving and sports surface products, 
  • structural and hydraulic testing of geotechnical and drainage products.

Profile

I graduated from º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ in 1992 with a degree in Civil Engineering. On graduation I initially spent about five years working in industry for consulting engineers. 

My industry experience encompasses working on large multi-million pound motorway schemes, large and small water and sewage/drainage projects, through to small structural and civil engineering remediation projects including work in rail and ports. This work encompassed taking schemes from outline feasibility to detailed design and construction. 

From November 1996 to June 2000 I spent almost four years employed by º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ as a salaried researcher on a Highways Agency research project looking at creating a performance specification for pavement foundations. From this work I was awarded PhD in November 2000. 

I then moved into academia firstly at Nottingham Trent University where I taught and helped run a variety of courses up to MSc level and undertook a wide variety of research and consultancy work. In 2004 I re-joined º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ (further details above). For 10 years I rean the Schools year out placements and then in 2014 became programme Director for Civil Engineering. 

I am the Hall Warden in Rutherford Hall of Residence.

Professional affiliations

  • Chartered Engineer
  • Member of The Institution of Civil Engineers
  • Fellow of the Permanent Way Institution
  • Fellow of the Higher Education Academy

Awards

External activities

  • Chair of the Academic Panel for the Permanent Way Institution
  • Vice Chair of the Permanent Way Institution Membership Committee
  • Professional Reviewer for CEng/IEng/EngTech for the Permanent Way Institution 
  • Chair of the Editorial Board, ICE Transport Journal (2014 to 2017) 
  • Member of the Editorial Board, ICE Transport Journal (2011 to 2017)
  • Member of the organising committee of a number International and National Conferences 
  • Committee member, PWI Nottingham and Derby Section (2002 - 2019)
  • Committee member East Midlands Geotechnical Group (EMGG) of the Institution of Civil Engineers (2000 to 2005).
  • External Examiner, MEng/BEng/BSc in Civil Engineering, Nottingham Trent University (2018–)
  • Reviewer for a number of Academic Journals
  • Member of University Senate 2014 to 2017
  • Chair of Governors, Academic Scrutiny Committee, Charnwood College, º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ

Key collaborators

My research and enterprise activities are conducted with a range of academic and stakeholder partners: (see projects list above)