Selected Proceedings of the 2nd International Engineering Research Symposium; Iers 2024; 14 Aug; Colombo, Sri Lanka: Engineering Innovations for Economic Transformation

This book presents selected peer reviewed articles from the 2nd International Engineering Research Symposium- IERS 2024, held at Colombo in Sri Lanka, under the theme of 'Engineering Innovations for Economic Transformation”. It highlights the latest advancements in engineering research, innovations, and technological principles aimed at driving economic changes and improvements within society and the industry. IERS2024 covers the areas of Agricultural Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Science & Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Electronics & Telecommunication Engineering, Mechanical & Mechatronics Engineering, Materials Science & Engineering, Manufacturing & Process Engineering, and other Engineering discipline relevant to the theme of IERS 2024.

Dr. T. N. Fernando obtained her Bachelor of Technology Engineering (honors) degree in Agricultural Engineering specialization and PhD from the Department of Agricultural and Plantation Engineering, Faculty of Engineering Technology, at the Open University of Sri Lanka. Currently, she serves as a Senior Research Engineer in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the National Engineering Research and Development Centre of Sri Lanka, located in the Industrial Estate, Ekala, Ja Ela, Sri Lanka. Her research interests are in the areas of Bio polymer processing, Applications of nuclear energy, Agricultural engineering and sustainable materials processing.

Dr. Manjula Siriwardhana is attached to the National Engineering Research and Development Centre of Sri Lanka as a Principal Research Engineer. As a researcher, Dr. Siriwardhana has received postgraduate research scholarships from several countries and conducted original research and published in highly cited journals. She earned her PhD from the Australian National University (ANU), Canberra, ACT, Australia, MESc. from Western University (UWO), London ON, Canada, MEng. In Energy Technology from Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), Thailand and BSc. Eng. (Hons) from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. She has collaborated on multi-country research projects financed by international organizations including the International Research Institute (IRI) for Climate and Society, START, UNEP, UNDP, GEF, GNESD and EEP Mekong Region. She is experienced in project execution, evaluation, coordinating and networking with project partners and stakeholders, organizing workshops, preparing and editing of project reports and policy briefs. Dr. Siriwardhana’s research interests include renewable energy, climate change, energy management, energy project evaluation, GHG quantification, climate resilient green growth and Carbon neutrality.

Prof. Ranjith Dissanayake is a Senior Professor in Civil Engineering at the University of Peradeniya Kandy, Sri Lanka. He is a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka (IESL) and holds membership from several other prestigious institutions. He was a Fulbright Scholar in the USA, Endeavour Fellow in Australia, and JASSO Research Fellow in Japan. He is the Chairman of the Green Building Council of Sri Lanka (GBCSL), the President of the Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka (IESL) and a Vice President of the Chamber of Construction Industry (CCI). He is the founder of several companies, including Lego International (Pvt.) Ltd, ICB (Pvt.) Ltd, Lanka AAC (Pvt) Ltd, GAP (Pvt) Ltd and WSP Pvt. Ltd. His research interests are in the areas of Structural Engineering, Sustainability Structural, Health Monitoring, Disaster Mitigation, Fatigue.

Prof. Meththika Vithanage is a Professor and founding director of the Ecosphere Resilience Research Centre at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka. Prof. Vithanage's influence extends far beyond her home institution, as evidenced by her roles as an Adjunct Professor at the Institute of Agriculture, University of Western Australia, Sustainability Cluster, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, India and the National Institute of Fundamental Studies, Sri Lanka. With a multifaceted academic background spanning water chemistry, environmental remediation, microplastics, and waste biomass conversion, Prof. Vithanage has earned international acclaim for her groundbreaking contributions. Recognized as a Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate, she epitomizes excellence, ranking within the top 0.1% of highly cited scientists globally. With a prolific publication record comprising over 275 SCI-indexed journal articles, 60 book chapters, and 10 co-edited books published. Prof. Vithanage's citation record, exceeding 28,000 with an H-index of 83, reflects the profound impact of her research on global discourse and practice

Dr. Jayathu G. Samarawickram is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Electronic & Telecommunication Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka. He obtained his B.Sc. Engineering with first-class honors and M.Sc. degrees in the field of electronic and telecommunication engineering from the University of Moratuwa. He obtained his Ph.D. degree in the field of humanoid robotics from the University of Genova and the Italian Institute of Technology in Italy. He worked as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Genova, Italy, for one year on a European Union-funded project. Currently, he is a Director General at the at National Engineering Research and Development Centre of Sri Lanka, located in the Industrial Estate, Ekala, Ja Ela, Sri Lanka. His research interests are in the areas of Humanoids/Robotics, Electronic Systems, FPGA/DSP/GPU based systems, Embedded Systems, Computational Vision, Stereo Vision, Vision Heads.

Dr. Pradeep Gajanayake obtained his Bachelors and M.Phil. degrees in Agricultural Engineering from University of Peradeniya and PhD in Environmental Engineering from Saitama University, Japan. Dr. Gajanayake has authored/co-authored more than 15 peer-reviewed papers and 30 conference papers. Currently, he is a Senior Lecturer in Department of Biosystems Technology, Faculty of Technology, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Pitipana, Homagama, Sri Lanka. His research interests are in the areas of Waste management and wastewater treatment.