Praise for student research into beaver dams
A detailed analysis of a beaver dam has won a Civil Engineering student a top prize. Fourth year MEng student Matthew Duckett presented his research findings at a meeting of the Institution of Civil Engineers south branch graduate and student group on campus and his work was judged the best on the night.
"I was surprised no-one had taken an engineering perspective of such an interesting structure before," he says. "Beaver dams have the potential to cause rivers to flood so it is important to understand their impact on the environment."
As part of research for his Individual Project, Matthew built a similar dam using branches, earth and clay at the University's hydraulics research centre at Chilworth, then measured and recorded what happened when water was directed along the channel towards the three metre wide structure.
"It was an interesting project, especially as beavers are now being re-established into Europe with a trial underway in Scotland," says Matthew. "I made my presentation wider and less technical on the night of the competition and was pleased the audience was interested."
Southampton student Daniel Crisp was also a finalist in the competition and made a presentation on wave energy.