Peter Rolfe Vaughan
Encyclopedia
Peter Rolfe Vaughan, BSc, PhD, DSc, ACGI, DIC, FREng
, FICE, FCGI, MASCE, FGS, (born 10 March 1935; died 16 May 2008) was Emeritus Professor
of Ground Engineering in the Geotechnics department of Imperial College London
.
near Luton
, Bedfordshire
in the UK on 10 March 1935, the son of Ernest Alfred Vaughan, a civil servant, and Clarise Marjory Ward, a school teacher, and was educated at Luton Grammar School before going on to do a Bsc at Imperial College. He played rugby for his school, the college and for the Luton Grammar School old boys team.
He graduated in 1956 and went to work for two years for Sandeman Kennard & Partners as an assistant engineer on the design of various dams in the north of England before returning to Imperial to do a diploma course in Soil Mechanics
. He received his PhD in 1963 at Imperial College for his research on the instrumentation of earthworks before going to work in Africa in 1964, where he was supervising engineer on the construction of the embankments of the Kainji Dam
in Nigeria
.
He continued to mix working in the academic environment of Imperial College with working on engineering projects in the real world for his entire career. He was project engineer for Cow Green Embankment Dam
and the Balderhead Dam
in the late sixties and lecturer, senior lecturer then reader in the Soil Mechanics Section of Imperial College in the seventies and eighties, becoming Professor of Ground Engineering in 1987 and emeritus professor on his retirement in 1996. During this time he carried out extensive research in subjects such as the properties of weak rocks, stiff clays, residual and other structured soils. He was an internationally recognised expert in the design and deterioration of earthworks and fills, embankment dams and natural or man-made slopes. His expertise also included seepage, residual strength
and pore pressure
measurement and its interpretation. His academic post at Imperial included supervising more than twenty PhD programmes and publishing some 80 papers on technical subjects. He was also an acclaimed and amusing lecturer, having given numerous lectures to international conferences and the Rankine Lecture
to the British Geotechnical Society in 1994. An example of his style is given in an article published in the Guardian
on Wednesday 1 February 2006:
"Much seems to depend on words; many people seem to think "reservoir" a rather unpleasant one, and Hattersley admits that he was one. My advice to any reservoir promoter is never say "reservoir", say "lake". Even better, say "wetland habitat". Better still, promote it as a leisure amenity. ("There will be bird watching, cycling, fishing, picnicking, sailing and walking and you can get it all for free if we sometimes sell some of the water to the local water undertaking.") If all else fails, ask for some extra land beside it, cut the grass short, plant 18 little flags and call it a "lateral water hazard"."
Peter Vaughan was an active consultant throughout his career. One of the founding members of Geotechnical Consulting Group he gave specialist advice to consulting firms, contractors, utilities and public authorities on a wide range of problems, such as the reconstruction of Carsington Dam
after its failure during construction, and Roadford Dam
, where he was a member of the Advisory Panel. He was involved with a review of dam performance for Ardleigh Dam
, Essex, a safety review for Mica Dam
, Canada, and the rehabilitation of the three dams of the Cascade of Dauga in Latvia
for which he was a member of the Advisory Panel. He was involved extensively with the rehabilitation of old clay embankments for London Underground
Limited.
He travelled widely on both consultancy work and giving lectures to international engineering bodies. His spare time was taken up with fly fishing
and enjoying fine wines, good food and better company. A very generous associate, colleague or friend, he never married and he died of a heart attack at his home in Sufolk on 16 May 2008.
Royal Academy of Engineering
-Overview: is the UK’s national academy of engineering. The Academy brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across the engineering sectors for a shared purpose: to advance and promote excellence in engineering....
, FICE, FCGI, MASCE, FGS, (born 10 March 1935; died 16 May 2008) was Emeritus Professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of Ground Engineering in the Geotechnics department of Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
.
Biography
Vaughan was born in LimburyLimbury
Limbury, or using the full name Limbury-cum-Biscot, was a civil parish in Bedfordshire before becoming part of Luton and has a long history dating back before the Norman conquest of England....
near Luton
Luton
Luton is a large town and unitary authority of Bedfordshire, England, 30 miles north of London. Luton and its near neighbours, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of about 250,000....
, Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
in the UK on 10 March 1935, the son of Ernest Alfred Vaughan, a civil servant, and Clarise Marjory Ward, a school teacher, and was educated at Luton Grammar School before going on to do a Bsc at Imperial College. He played rugby for his school, the college and for the Luton Grammar School old boys team.
He graduated in 1956 and went to work for two years for Sandeman Kennard & Partners as an assistant engineer on the design of various dams in the north of England before returning to Imperial to do a diploma course in Soil Mechanics
Soil mechanics
Soil mechanics is a branch of engineering mechanics that describes the behavior of soils. It differs from fluid mechanics and solid mechanics in the sense that soils consist of a heterogeneous mixture of fluids and particles but soil may also contain organic solids, liquids, and gasses and other...
. He received his PhD in 1963 at Imperial College for his research on the instrumentation of earthworks before going to work in Africa in 1964, where he was supervising engineer on the construction of the embankments of the Kainji Dam
Kainji Dam
Kainji Dam is a dam across the Niger River in western Nigeria. Construction of the dam began in 1964 and was completed in 1968. The total cost was estimated at $209 million, with one-quarter of this amount used to resettle people displaced by the construction of the dam and its reservoir,...
in Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
.
He continued to mix working in the academic environment of Imperial College with working on engineering projects in the real world for his entire career. He was project engineer for Cow Green Embankment Dam
Cow Green Reservoir
Cow Green Reservoir, is a water reservoir long built between 1967 and 1971 to supply the industries of Teesside in England..The reservoir acts as a river regulation reservoir releasing water into the River Tees during dry conditions so that it can be abstracted further downstream...
and the Balderhead Dam
Balderhead Reservoir
Balderhead Reservoir is a reservoir in Baldersdale, County Durham, England. It is one of a chain of three reservoirs on the River Balder, a tributary of the River Tees, which it joins at Cotherstone, about 5 miles to the east....
in the late sixties and lecturer, senior lecturer then reader in the Soil Mechanics Section of Imperial College in the seventies and eighties, becoming Professor of Ground Engineering in 1987 and emeritus professor on his retirement in 1996. During this time he carried out extensive research in subjects such as the properties of weak rocks, stiff clays, residual and other structured soils. He was an internationally recognised expert in the design and deterioration of earthworks and fills, embankment dams and natural or man-made slopes. His expertise also included seepage, residual strength
Residual strength
Residual strength is the load or force that a damaged object or material can still carry without failing....
and pore pressure
Pore water pressure
Pore water pressure refers to the pressure of groundwater held within a soil or rock, in gaps between particles . Pore water pressures in below the phreatic level are measured in piezometers...
measurement and its interpretation. His academic post at Imperial included supervising more than twenty PhD programmes and publishing some 80 papers on technical subjects. He was also an acclaimed and amusing lecturer, having given numerous lectures to international conferences and the Rankine Lecture
Rankine Lecture
The Rankine Lecture is hosted in March each year by the British Geotechnical Association. It is widely viewed as the most prestigious of the invited lectures in Geotechnics.The lecture commemorates W. J. M...
to the British Geotechnical Society in 1994. An example of his style is given in an article published in the Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
on Wednesday 1 February 2006:
"Much seems to depend on words; many people seem to think "reservoir" a rather unpleasant one, and Hattersley admits that he was one. My advice to any reservoir promoter is never say "reservoir", say "lake". Even better, say "wetland habitat". Better still, promote it as a leisure amenity. ("There will be bird watching, cycling, fishing, picnicking, sailing and walking and you can get it all for free if we sometimes sell some of the water to the local water undertaking.") If all else fails, ask for some extra land beside it, cut the grass short, plant 18 little flags and call it a "lateral water hazard"."
Peter Vaughan was an active consultant throughout his career. One of the founding members of Geotechnical Consulting Group he gave specialist advice to consulting firms, contractors, utilities and public authorities on a wide range of problems, such as the reconstruction of Carsington Dam
Carsington Reservoir
Carsington Water is a reservoir operated by Severn Trent Water in Derbyshire, England. The reservoir takes water from the River Derwent at Ambergate during winter months, pumping up to the reservoir by long tunnels and aqueduct. Water is released back into the river during summer months for water...
after its failure during construction, and Roadford Dam
Roadford Lake
Roadford Lake, also known as Roadford Reservoir is a man-made reservoir fed by the River Wolf. It is located to the north-east of Broadwoodwidger in West Devon, eight miles east of Launceston. It is the largest area of fresh water in the southwest of England. Operated by South West Water, it...
, where he was a member of the Advisory Panel. He was involved with a review of dam performance for Ardleigh Dam
Ardleigh Reservoir
Ardleigh Reservoir is a lake near Colchester in Essex constructed in the valley of the Salary Brook. It supplies water both to Anglian Water and to Tendring Hundred Water. The lake is also used for recreational activities including Sailing and angling...
, Essex, a safety review for Mica Dam
Mica Dam
The Mica Dam is a hydroelectric dam spanning the Columbia River 135 kilometres north of Revelstoke, British Columbia, Canada. Completed in 1973 under the terms of the 1964 Columbia River Treaty, the Mica powerhouse has a generating capacity of . The dam is operated by BC Hydro...
, Canada, and the rehabilitation of the three dams of the Cascade of Dauga in Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
for which he was a member of the Advisory Panel. He was involved extensively with the rehabilitation of old clay embankments for London Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
Limited.
He travelled widely on both consultancy work and giving lectures to international engineering bodies. His spare time was taken up with fly fishing
Fly fishing
Fly fishing is an angling method in which an artificial 'fly' is used to catch fish. The fly is cast using a fly rod, reel, and specialized weighted line. Casting a nearly weightless fly or 'lure' requires casting techniques significantly different from other forms of casting...
and enjoying fine wines, good food and better company. A very generous associate, colleague or friend, he never married and he died of a heart attack at his home in Sufolk on 16 May 2008.
Academic qualifications
- 1956: BSc (Eng) ACGI, Imperial College, London
- 1965: PhD, DIC University of LondonUniversity of London-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
- 1991: DSc, University of London
Professional qualifications
- 1991: Fellow, Royal Academy of EngineeringRoyal Academy of Engineering-Overview: is the UK’s national academy of engineering. The Academy brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across the engineering sectors for a shared purpose: to advance and promote excellence in engineering....
- 1978: Fellow, Institution of Civil EngineersInstitution of Civil EngineersFounded on 2 January 1818, the Institution of Civil Engineers is an independent professional association, based in central London, representing civil engineering. Like its early membership, the majority of its current members are British engineers, but it also has members in more than 150...
- 1970 - 1973, 1977–1980, 1981 - 1984: British National Committee on Large Dams
- 1971 - 1974, 1975 - 1977: British Geotechnical Society Committee
- 1975 - 1977: Geotechnique Advisory Panel
- 1972 - 1973: Organising Committee, British Geotechnical Society Symposium on Field Instrumentation
- 1975 - 1977: Chairman, Organising Committee, Institution of Civil Engineers Symposium on Clay Fills
- 1977 - 1980: Chairman, Organising Sub-Committee, Technical Sessions & Papers, 7th European Conf. Soil Mech. & Foundation
Engineering
- 1981 - 1984: ICOLD Sub-Committee Materials - Drafting Guide on Geotextiles in Dams
- 1986 - 1988: Working Party on Tropical Residual Soils, Geological Society of LondonGeological Society of LondonThe Geological Society of London is a learned society based in the United Kingdom with the aim of "investigating the mineral structure of the Earth"...
- 1989 - 1997: Technical Committee on Tropical Soils, ISSMFE
- 1994 - 2008: Technical Committee on Tailings Dams ISSMFE
Prizes
- 1956 - Unwin Medal, Imperial College
- 1959 - Unwin Postgraduate Prize, Imperial College
- 1962 - Trevithick Premium, Institution of Civil Engineers
- 1986, 1991, 1998 - Telford Gold Medal, Institution of Civil Engineers
- 1992, 1997: Telford Premium, Institution of Civil Engineers
- 1994 - Cooper Hill Memorial Prize, Institution of Civil Engineers
- 2001 - Geotechnical Research Medal, Institution of Civil Engineers
- 1964, 1973, 1997 - British Geotechnical Society Prize
- 1994 - Fellow of the City and Guilds of London InstituteCity and Guilds of London InstituteThe City and Guilds of London Institute is a leading United Kingdom vocational education organisation. City & Guilds offers more than 500 qualifications over the whole range of industry sectors through 8500 colleges and training providers in 81 countries worldwide...