Melissa E. Landon, Ph.D., P.E.

Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering

319B Boardman Hall
University of Maine
Orono, Maine 04469-5711
Phone: 207.581.2981
Fax: 207.581.3888
Email: melissa.landon@maine.edu

Education:

Ph.D. – Civil & Environmental Engineering
University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2007.

M.S. – Civil & Environmental Engineering
University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2004.

B.S. – Civil & Environmental Engineering
Lafayette College, 2001.

Courses:

CIE 365 Soil Mechanics
CIE 413 Project Management
CIE 565 Shallow Foundations and Underground Structures
CIE 567 Ground Improvement Techniques
CIE 660 Advanced Soil Mechanics
CIE 661 Advanced Soil Mechanics Laboratory 

Research Interests:

Offshore geotechnics, including site characterization, physical modeling of soil-structure interaction, and foundation engineering for offshore tidal and wind infrastructure.
Improvement of in situ and laboratory characterization of natural silty clays related to engineering design and development of tools and protocols for assessment of the susceptibility of silty and clayey soils to geohazards (i.e., earthquake liquefaction and landslides) and subsequent mitigation.

Current Research Projects:

  • 3D Finite Element Analysis of Ultimate Capacity of Suction Caissons under Multi-line Loading for Anchoring Floating Renewable Energy Devices. Sponsor: US National Science Foundation
  • Enhanced Geotechnical Site Investigation of Presumpscot Clay by Seismic Cone Penetration Testing. Sponsor: MaineDOT

Selected Publications:

Offshore Geotechnics & Foundations:

  1. Landon Maynard, M., Schneider, J.A., McEntee, J., and Newberg, E. (2013). “Suction caissons for cross-flow tidal power system,” Proc. ICE – Geotechnical Engineering, 166(2), 99 –110.
  2. Viselli, A., Deese, H., Landon Maynard, M., Dagher, H.J., Jumars, P.A., and Lindyberg, R.F. (2011). “Testing of Intermediate Scale Floating Wind Turbines in the Gulf of Maine: Testing Effort Overview, Seabed Investigation, Metocean Analysis, and Environmental Impact Assessment ” WINDPOWER 2011 Conference and Exhibition, American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), May 22-25, Anaheim, CA.
  3. Landon Maynard, M. and Schneider, J. (2010). “Geotechnics for developing offshore renewable energy infrastructure industries in the US.” 2nd Int. Symp. on Frontiers in Offshore Geotechnics (ISFOG), University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, 8-10 November.
  4. Schneider, J.A., Landon Maynard, M., Senders, M. (2010). “Geotechnical Engineering for Offshore Wind Turbine Foundations” Sea Technology, 51(9), 29-33.
  5. Gaudin, C., Landon, M.M., Pedersen, V., and Kiat, C.-H., (2009). “Design of Rock Berm Cover for an LNG Pipeline in Hong Kong,” Proc. Int. Symp. Offshore and Polar Engineering (ISOPE09), Osaka, Japan, June 21-26.
  6. Landon, M.M., Gaudin, C., and Cassidy, M.J. (2009). “Jack-up installation on an Uneven Seabed: Recommendations from Model Testing in Overconsolidated Clay, “Proc. 28th Int. Conf. Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering (OMAE2009), Honolulu, Hawaii, May 31-June 6.
  7. Lo, H.E., Landon Maynard, M., Randolph, M.F., and DeGroot, D.J. (2011) “Geotechnical Characterizing and Engineering Properties of Burswood Clay.” Géotechnique, 61(7), 575 –591, DOI: 10.1680/geot.9.P.035.
  8. Landon, M.M. and DeGroot, D.J. (2008). “Small Strain Stiffness Degradation of Soft Clays due to Perfect Sampling Disturbance,” Proc., 4th Int. Symp. on Deformation Characteristics of Geomaterials (IS-Altanta 2008), Atlanta, September 22-24.
  9. DeGroot, D.J. and Landon, M.M. (2008). “Synopsis of Recommended Practice For Sampling and Handling of Soft Clays To Minimize Sample Disturbance,” Proc., 3rd International Conference on Site Characterization, Taipei, Taiwan, April 1-4.
  10. DeGroot, D.J., DeJong, J.T., Yafrate, N.J., and Landon, M.M. (2007) “Application of Recent Developments in Terrestrial Soft Sediment Characterization Methods to Offshore Environments,” Proc., 2007 Offhsore Technology Conference, Houston, TX, April 30 – May 3, 2007. 12 pp.
  11. Landon, M.M., DeGroot, D.J., and Sheahan, T.C. (2007). “Sample Quality Assessment using Shear Wave Velocity for a Marine Clay,” J. of Geotech. and Geoenvironmental Engineering, ASCE, 133(4), pp. 424-432.
  12. DeGroot, D.J. and Landon, M.M. (2007). “Laboratory Testing of Undisturbed Soft Clay Samples to Determine Engineering Design Parameters.” Studia Geotechnica et Mechanica, Poland Geotechnical Society, No. 1-2, pp. 23-37
  13. Brothers, L.L., Kelley, J.T., Belknap, D.F., Barnhardt, W.A., Andrews, B.S., and Landon Maynard, M. (2011). “More than a century of bathymetric observations and present-day shallow sediment characterization in Belfast Bay, Maine, USA: implications for pockmark field longevity,” Geo-Marine Letters, DOI 10.1007/s00367-011-0228-0, pp. 1-12, published online 02/08/2011.
  14. Brothers, L.L., Kelley, J.T., Landon Maynard, M., Belknap, D.F., and Dickson, S.M. (2010). “Development in the Gulf of Maine: Avoiding GeoHazards and Embracing Opportunities.” Maine Policy Review, 19(1), pp. 46-57.