Abner (Chien-Chung) Chen, Ph.D., P.E.

Biography

Abner Chen joined Marian University in fall 2022 as an Associate Professor of Civil Engineering for the E. S. Witchger School of Engineering. Dr. Chen has been teaching and conducting research in structural engineering since 2009. He has diverse research experiences in both analytical and experimental aspects. His research interests include applications of innovative materials and structural systems for sustainability, composite members, seismic engineering, multi-hazard mitigation, fracture mechanics, advanced finite element analysis, structural health monitoring, and bridge engineering. His recent research projects include axial behavior of concrete encased steel columns and concrete filled steel box columns, self-healing concrete, and structural health monitoring utilizing digital image processing techniques. Currently, Dr. Chen is working on applying machine learning techniques to assist with structural health monitoring for steel bridges.

Education

• Ph.D., Structural Engineering, Pennsylvania State University
• M.S., Structural Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology
• B.S., Civil Engineering, Chung Yuan Christian University

Research Interests and Expertise

Steel structures, reinforced concrete structures, encased composite structures, concrete filled box columns, seismic design for buildings, bridge engineering, structural health monitoring, self-healing concrete.

Selected Papers

• Chen, C.-C., Chen, C.-C., and Chan, K.-S. Design of Confinement Reinforcement for Encased Composite Columns. Engineering Structures 250(1), 113342, 2022.
• Wu, M.-C., Chen, C.-C., and Chen, C.-C. Size effect on axial behavior of concrete-filled box columns. Advances in Structural Engineering 21(13): 2068-2078. 2018. 
• Chen, C.-C., Chen, C.-C., and Shen, J.-H. Effects of steel-to-member depth ratio and axial load on flexural ductility of concrete-encased steel composite columns. Engineering Structures 115: 157-166, 2018. 
• Chen, C.-C., Chen, C.-C., and Hoang, T.T. Role of concrete confinement of wide-flange structural steel shape in steel reinforced concrete columns under cyclic loading. Engineering Structures 110: 79-87. 2016.
• Chen, C.-C., Diaz, I., Menozzi, K., and Murillo, L. An experimental study on slag/fly ash-based geopolymer concrete. International Journal of Mechanical and Production Engineering 3(8): 13-17. 2015.
• Chen, C.-C., Jaffe, N., Koppitz, M., Weimer, W., and Polocoser, A. Concrete mixture with plastic as fine aggregate replacement. International Journal of Advances in Mechanical and Civil Engineering 2(4): 49-53. 2015.
• Chen, C.-C. and Linzell, D. G. Numerical simulations of dynamic behavior of polyurea toughened steel plates under impact loading. Journal of Computational Engineering, Vol. 2014, Article ID 416049, 7 pages. 2014.
• Chen, C.-C. Accuracy of AISC methods in predicting flexural strength of concrete encased composite members. Journal of Structural Engineering 139(3): 338-349. 2013.
• Sharafbayani M., Linzell D. G., and Chen C.-C. Web plumb influence on skewed I-girder, steel bridges during construction. Bridge Structures 7: 115-122. 2011.
• Chen, C.-C. and Linzell, D. G. Modeling end notched flexure tests to establish cohesive element mode II fracture parameters. Engineering Fracture Mechanics 77(8): 1338-1347. 2010.

Professional Activities

• Reviewer for the following journals: Journal of Structural Engineering (ASCE), ACI Structural Journal, International Journal of Steel Structures, Journal of Engineering Materials and Technology, Journal of Bridge Engineering and Experimental Mechanics
• Member of American Society of Civil Engineers
• Member of American Institute of Steel Construction
• Licensed Professional Engineer (Missouri)