Assoc. Prof. EROL YILMAZ

Biography

Erol Yilmaz is an Associate Professor at the Civil Engineering Department (Geotechnical Division) in the School of Engineering and Architecture at Recep Tayyip Erdogan University (RTEU: Rize, Turkey). He received his B.Sc. degree (with honors first class) in Mining Engineering from Istanbul University in 2000, and his M.Sc. degree in Mining Engineering from Karadeniz Technical University (KTU: Trabzon, Türkiye) in 2003. He obtained his Ph.D. degree in Environmental Sciences from Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT: Rouyn-Noranda, Québec, Canada) in 2010, and completed his Post-Doctoral Research at the same university in 2011. He has over 20 years of rich experience in industry, academia, and research by focusing on analytical, innovative and operational issues on geotechnics, mine fills and cementitious tailings materials covering several countries in North America, Asia and Europe. He is a globally recognized researcher in the field of recovery, recycling and revalorization of mining waste, and mine backfilling, and provides advice and support to several operating mines for improving the design and operation of paste fill plants as well as waste disposal sites. Before joining the university, he worked as an Engineer for Çayeli Bakır İşletmeleri A.Ş. of First Quantum Minerals, a global copper company. He has authored or co-authored over 150 scientific publications, including books, reports, and journal/conference articles. He served as an executive and researcher for 25 national and international projects. His research is well recognized by the academic society, drawing more than 3550 citations with H-index of 41 (ISI Web of Science). He has been included in the "World's Most Influential Scientists" list created as a result of a study conducted by a team of US and Dutch scientists under the coordination of Stanford University. He has achieved remarkable success by entering the World’s Top 2% Scientists and Highly Cited Researchers in 2019, 2020, 2021. He is serving as Lead Guest Editor of Advances in Materials Science and Engineering (AMSE) and Archives in Civil Engineering (ACE), an Associate Editor of Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers – Geotechnical Engineering (ICE – GEEN), Frontiers in Built Environment (Construction Materials Section), and Frontiers in Materials, and an Editorial Board Member of Geotechnical and Geological Engineering (GEGE), Journal of Mining and Environment (JME), International Journal of Minerals Metallurgy and Materials (IJMMM) and MDPI’s Symmetry Journal. He has a very close relationship with the industry. Dr. Yilmaz has significant site experience and specializes in mining waste management and backfilling applications. He keenly works with Chinese, Canadian and many international professional bodies on green waste management and development tools as well as resource efficiency issues. He is also very active in the transfer of knowledge and in training highly qualified personnel. At present, he has been repeatedly invited as a Keynote Speaker and acts as a Consultant and a Reviewer for several scientific committees, peer-reviewed journals, funding agencies, and several international projects.