Chengkai Fan, Ph.D., E.I.T.

Area of Study / Keywords

Mining Engineering Machine Learning CO2 Geological Storage Fiber Optic Sensing Rock Mechanics

About

Education

• Ph.D. in Mining Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, 2019 - 2023
• M.Sc. in Geotechnical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China, 2016 - 2019
• B.E. in Geological Engineering, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan, Anhui, China, 2012 - 2016

Professional Experience

• Assistant Instructor Professor (Sessional Instructor), Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, 2024.01 - Present
• Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, 2023.12 - Present
• Teaching Assistant, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, 2020.09 - 2023.04
• Research Assistant, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, 2019.09 - 2023.08
• Visiting Graduate Student, Department of Civil Engineering, Monash University, 2017.08 - 2017.11
• Research Assistant, Wuhan Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 2016.09 - 2019.08

Professional Affiliations

• Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (E.I.T.), 2024 - Present
• Society of Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration, 2022 - Present
• Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum, 2022 - Present

Awards

• Jacob H Masliyah Graduate Award in Oil Sands Engineering, 2023
• Alberta Innovates Graduate Student Scholarship, 2023
• Graduate Students’ Association Academic Travel Grant, 2023
• Mary Louise Imrie Graduate Student Award, 2023
• Alberta Graduate Excellence Scholarship, 2022
• University of Alberta Doctoral Recruitment Scholarship, 2019
• China National Scholarship, 2018
• First-Class Scholarships for Undergraduates, 2015
• China National Encouragement Scholarship, 2013, 2014

Research

Research Interests

I have cross-disciplinary study and research experience, as I majored in Mining Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering, and Geological Engineering in the last decade. My research focuses on 

• Artificial intelligence (e.g., data science/machine learning) in mine transport and geothermal areas.
• Optimization and design of mine transport (e.g., truck haulage)
• Fiber optic sensing (e.g., FBG & DAS) and its geotechnical application
• CO2 geological storage (e.g., CO2-core flooding & monitoring)

a) Peer-Reviewed Published Journal Papers (* - corresponding author):

1. Fan, C., Ugurlu, O.F. (Shared first author), Jiang, B.*, Liu, W.V.*, 2024. Deep neural network models for improving truck productivity prediction in open-pit mines. Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42461-024-00924-4
   
2. Fan, C., Zhang, N., Jiang, B.*, Liu, W.V.*, 2023. Using deep neural networks coupled with principal component analysis for forecasting ore production at open-pit mines. Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrmge.2023.06.005
3. Fan, C., Zhang, N., Jiang, B.*, Liu, W.V.*, 2023. Weighted ensembles of artificial neural networks based on Gaussian mixture modeling for truck productivity prediction at open-pit mines. Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration 40, 583-598. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42461-023-00747-9
4. Fan, C., Zhang, N., Jiang, B.*, Liu, W.V.*, 2023. Prediction of truck productivity at mine sites using tree-based ensemble models combined with Gaussian mixture modeling. International Journal of Mining, Reclamation and Environment 37, 66-86. https://doi.org/10.1080/17480930.2022.2142425
5. Arachchilage, C.B., Huang, G., Fan, C., Liu, W.V.*, 2023. Forecasting unconfined compressive strength of calcium sulfoaluminate cement mixtures using ensemble machine learning techniques integrated with shapely-additive explanations. Construction and Building Materials. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2023.134083
6. Ma, S., Fan, C., Liu, W.V.*, 2023. Effects of site operating conditions on real site TKPH (tonne-kilometer-per-hour) of ultra-large off-the-road tires. Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part D: Journal of Automobile Engineering. https://doi.org/10.1177/09544070231166166
7. Arachchilage, C.B., Fan, C., Zhao, J., Huang, G., Liu, W.V.*, 2023. A machine learning model to predict unconfined compressive strength of alkali-activated slag-based cemented paste backfill. Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrmge.2022.12.009
8. Fan, C., Zhang, N., Jiang, B.*, Liu, W.V.*, 2022. Preprocessing large datasets using Gaussian mixture modeling to improve prediction of truck productivity at mine sites. Archives of Mining Sciences 67, 661-680. https://doi.org/10.24425/ams.2022.143680
9. Xu, L., Li, Q.*, Mathias, S., Tan, Y., Yang, D., Fan, C., 2021. Strain characteristics and permeability evolution of faults under stress disturbance monitoring by fibre Bragg grating sensing and pressure pulses. Geomechanics and Geophysics for Geo-Energy and Geo-Resources 7, 93. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40948-021-00289-8
10. Sun, Y., Liu, J., Xue, Z., Li, Q.*, Fan, C., Zhang, X., 2020. A critical review of distributed fiber optic sensing for real-time monitoring geologic CO2 sequestration. Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 103751. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jngse.2020.103751
11. Fan, C., Li, Q.*, Ma, J., Yang, D., 2019. Fiber Bragg grating-based experimental and numerical investigations of CO2 migration front in saturated sandstone under subcritical and supercritical conditions. Greenhouse Gases: Science and Technology 9, 106-124. https://doi.org/10.1002/ghg.1838
12. Fan, C., Li, Q.*, Li, X., Niu, Z., Xu, L., 2019. Dynamic optical fiber monitoring of water-saturated sandstone during supercritical CO2 injection at different sequestration pressures. In: Zhan, L., Chen, Y., Bouazza, A. (eds) Environmental Science and Engineering. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2227-3_2
13. Zhang, D., Fan, C.*, Kuang, D., 2019. Impact assessment of interlayers on geological storage of carbon dioxide in Songliao Basin. Oil & Gas Science and Technology - Rev. IFP Energies Nouvelles 74, 1-9. https://doi.org/10.2516/ogst/2019059
14. Fan, C., Sun Y., Li Q.*, Lu, H., Niu Z., Li X., 2017. Testing technology of fiber Bragg grating in the shale damage experiment under uniaxial compression conditions. Rock and Soil Mechanics 38, 2456-2464. https://doi.org/10.16285/j.rsm.2017.08.036
15. Sun, Y., Li, Q.*, Fan, C., 2017. Laboratory core flooding experiments in reservoir sandstone under different sequestration pressures using multichannel fiber Bragg grating sensor arrays. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 60, 186-198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijggc.2017.03.015
16. Sun, Y., Li, Q.*, Fan, C., Yang, D., Li, X., Sun, A., 2017. Fiber-optic monitoring of evaporation-induced axial strain of sandstone under ambient laboratory conditions. Environmental Earth Sciences 76, 379. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-017-6706-6
17. Sun, Y., Li, Q.*, Yang, D., Fan, C., Sun, A., 2016. Investigation of the dynamic strain responses of sandstone using multichannel fiber-optic sensor arrays. Engineering Geology 213, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enggeo.2016.08.008

b) Referred Conference Presentation/Poster:

1. Fan, C. Applying machine learning techniques to improving truck productivity prediction accuracy at mine sites. Wuhan Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China. (Invited oral presentation on Oct 11, 2023)
2. Fan, C., Li, Q., Guo, Y., Liu, W.V., 2023. Fiber Bragg grating-based supercritical carbon dioxide core flooding experiment and numerical simulation. Faulty of Engineering Graduate Research Symposium 2023, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. (Oral presentation on Aug 22, 2023)
3. Fan, C., Singh, R., Liu, W.V., 2022. Predictive modeling of uniaxial compressive strength of cemented paste backfill using machine learning based on a divide-and-conquer strategy. SME 2023 Annual Conference, Denver, USA. (Oral presentation on Feb 28, 2023)
4. Fan, C., Li, Q., Li, X., Niu, Z., Xu, L., 2019. Dynamic optical fiber monitoring of water-saturated sandstone during supercritical CO2 injection at different sequestration pressures. Proceedings of the 8th International Congress on Environmental Geotechnics, Hangzhou, China. (Oral presentation on Oct 28, 2018)
5. Li, Q., Ma, J., Lu, X., Niu, Z., Fan, C., Li, X., 2018. Fluid sampling monitoring at Yanchang CO2-EOR demonstration site, Ordos Basin, China. The 14th Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies Conference, Melbourne, Australia. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3365959
6. Li, Q., Fan, C., Li, X., Xu, L., 2018. Can we monitor the breath of sandstone during CO2 flooding by optical fibers in laboratory experiments? American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2018, Washington, D.C., USA. (Poster)

MIN E 330 - Mine Transport and Plant Engineering

Underground and surface mine transport systems, including truck haulage, free steered vehicles, rail haulage, wire rope hoisting, belt conveying, silo storage, hydraulic pipelining and pneumatic conveying. Auxiliary mining services such as electric power distribution, pumping and compressed air power. Labs include software-based design problems dealing with the materials taught in the classroom. Prerequisites: MIN E 295 and ECE 209.

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