OZUDOGRU.IO · Site Investigation Record
CV ↓

Site investigation record · Sheet 1 of 1  ·  41.1044° N, 29.0233° E

Tolga Y. Özüdoğru

Ph.D., M.ASCE · Assistant Professor of Geotechnical Engineering, Istanbul Technical University

I study how the ground carries load and heat, and I build the software that engineers use to design for it. Researcher on energy piles and geothermal foundations; co-founder of hetGE; consultant on tunnels, deep excavations, and other things that must not move.

  • 990+Citations · Scholar
  • 10h-index
  • 24Peer-reviewed papers
  • 83Technical reports
Portrait of Tolga Y. Özüdoğru
Fig. 1 · In situ · Istanbul
▾ Begin log · G.L. ±0.00 mDatum: mean sea level
Layer 01 · Made ground · well documented
EL. −4.50 m

About

I am a geotechnical engineer in Istanbul. At ITU I teach foundation engineering and numerical modeling, run the kind of finite element analyses that keep metro tunnels and the buildings above them on speaking terms, and supervise research on soil–structure interaction. My Ph.D. work on geothermal energy piles won ITU's Best Thesis Award in 2016.

Between 2011 and 2014 I was a visiting research scholar at Virginia Tech, working on NSF-funded studies of the thermo-mechanical behavior of energy piles. That work produced six journal articles and a lasting conviction that the ground is an underrated thermal battery. In 2018 I joined the Second Turkish Antarctic Science Expedition (TAE-II), conducting the site feasibility study for the Turkish scientific research base.

The other half of my week belongs to software. Since 2010 I have co-run hetGE, where we build cloud tools for practicing foundation engineers. I write TypeScript and Python with the same enthusiasm I reserve for a good consolidation curve.

Education · Istanbul Technical University

  • 2015Ph.D., Civil Engineering (Geotechnical)Energy foundations, multiphysics modeling, sustainable design · Best Ph.D. Thesis Award, 2016
  • 2007M.Sc., Civil Engineering (Geotechnical)Pile integrity testing
  • 2004B.Sc., Civil EngineeringHonor List, 2000–2004

Affiliations & licenses

  • ASCE · Member since 2005
  • ASCE Türkiye · Secretary, 2016–2025
  • ISSMGE · Member
  • ZMGM · Member
  • UAE Society of Engineers · Licensed Foundation Engineer
  • Dubai Municipality · Piling & Foundation Accreditation, First Grade
Layer 02 · Stiff clay · high plasticity
EL. −12.00 m

Research

Energy geostructures, pile integrity, and numerical modeling. The recurring question: what does the ground do when you push heat and load through it for thirty years?

Research areas

Energy piles & thermo-active foundations
thermo-mechanical behavior, long-term performance
Geothermal heat exchangers
3D numerical modeling, FEM & FDM
Pile integrity testing
low-strain testing, signal matching
Soil–structure interaction
metro tunnels, deep excavations, NATM
Numerical modeling
PLAXIS 2D/3D, constitutive models
Foundation engineering
shallow & deep foundations, ground improvement

Citation indices · Aug 2026

SourceCiteshi10
Google Scholar9961010
ResearchGate8251010
Scopus70699
Web of Science62788

Four databases, four opinions. Geotechnics prepares you for this.

Funded research · NSF 2009–2016 · $1.06M combined

Selected journal articles

  1. 2016Selection of the design temperature change for energy pilesAbdelaziz, S.L. & Ozudogru, T.Y.Applied Thermal Engineering, 107, 1036–1045DOI ↗
  2. 2016Non-uniform thermal strains and stresses in energy pilesAbdelaziz, S.L. & Ozudogru, T.Y.Environmental GeotechnicsDOI ↗
  3. 2015Numerical modeling of vertical geothermal heat exchangers using finite difference and finite element techniquesOzudogru, T.Y., Ghasemi-Fare, O., Olgun, C.G. & Basu, P.Geotechnical and Geological Engineering, 33(2), 291–306DOI ↗
  4. 2015Analysis of friction induced thermo-mechanical stresses on a heat exchanger pile in isothermal soilOzudogru, T.Y., Olgun, C.G. & Arson, C.F.Geotechnical and Geological Engineering, 33(2), 357–371DOI ↗
  5. 2015Long-term performance of heat exchanger pilesOlgun, C.G., Ozudogru, T.Y., Abdelaziz, S.L. & Senol, A.Acta Geotechnica, 10(5), 553–569DOI ↗
  6. 2014Thermo-mechanical radial expansion of heat exchanger piles and possible effects on contact pressures at pile–soil interfaceOlgun, C.G., Ozudogru, T.Y. & Arson, C.F.Géotechnique Letters, 4(3), 170–178DOI ↗
  7. 2014Multilayer finite line source model for vertical heat exchangersAbdelaziz, S.L., Ozudogru, T.Y., Olgun, C.G. & Martin II, J.R.Geothermics, 51, 406–416DOI ↗
  8. 20143D numerical modeling of vertical geothermal heat exchangersOzudogru, T.Y., Olgun, C.G. & Senol, A.Geothermics, 51, 312–324DOI ↗
  9. 2009Kazıklarda sinyal eşleme yöntemi ve çakılabilirlik analiziÖzüdoğru, T.Y., Şenol, A. & Taylan, Z.N.İMO Teknik Dergi, 20(3), 4793–4810 (Pile integrity testing and drivability analysis; in Turkish with an extended English summary)İZLİK ↗

Selected conference papers

  1. 2024Numerical modeling of NATM tunnels pre-supported with umbrella arch method: comparison with field measurementsErgincan, H.E., Ozudogru, T.Y. & Yildirim, I.Z.Geo-Congress 2024, Vancouver · ASCE GSP 352DOI ↗
  2. 2023A comparative study of 2D and 3D finite element analysis for the estimation of piled raft foundation performanceColak, B., Dayioglu, A.Y., Ozudogru, T.Y. & Hatipoglu, M.Geo-Congress 2023, Los Angeles · ASCE GSP 339DOI ↗
  3. 2020Micro-scale characterization of carbonate sands with nanoindentationOlgun, C.G., Geyin, M. & Ozudogru, T.Y.Geo-Congress 2020, Minneapolis · ASCE GSP 317DOI ↗
  4. 2017Long-term performance of heat exchanger boreholes at different climatic conditionsOlgun, C.G., Geyin, M. & Ozudogru, T.Y.Geo-Frontiers 2017, Orlando · ASCE GSP 280DOI ↗
  5. 2012Thermal conductivity testing of energy piles: field testing and numerical modelingOzudogru, T.Y., Brettmann, T., Olgun, C.G., Martin, J.R. & Senol, A.Geo-Congress 2012, Oakland · ASCE GSP 225DOI ↗

Also on record: 15 conference papers in total, 6 conference presentations, and a book, Pile Integrity Testing: Determination of Pile Quality Using Low Strain Integrity Testing and Automatic Signal Matching (Lambert Academic Publishing, 2011). Peer reviewer for 16 international journals, among them Canadian Geotechnical Journal, Computers and Geotechnics, Acta Geotechnica, and Soils and Foundations. Also a reviewer for the ISOPE 2017–2024 and Geo-Chicago 2016 conferences.

Layer 03 · Dense sand · ships regularly
EL. −21.00 m

Software

Co-founder of hetGE since 2010: cloud-based analysis tools for practicing geotechnical engineers, used internationally.

hetGE is the company I co-founded to close the gap between how geotechnical calculations are published and how they are actually done at 6 p.m. before a submission deadline. We design and build the whole stack: analysis engines, interfaces, and an OAuth 2.0 / OIDC-compliant licensing and authorization system.

  • Next.js
  • FastAPI
  • PostgreSQL
  • Python
  • TypeScript
hetge.com ↗
Layer 04 · Gravel · load-bearing
EL. −30.00 m

Consulting

Independent and ITU-based practice: 83 technical reports since 2010, from vessel-induced scour in the North Sea to metro tunnels under Istanbul.

Scope of practice

Geotechnical evaluation
site investigation programs, parameter selection
Deep excavations & shoring
retaining systems, anchored walls, monitoring
Shallow & deep foundations
design, verification, forensic assessment
Tunnel–structure interaction
metro lines, NATM, TBM crossings
Slope stability
natural slopes, cuts, remediation
Soil improvement
method selection, settlement control

Technical reports per year · n = 83

The 2012–2013 gap is real: in residence at Virginia Tech.

Selected international engagements

  • 2020
    Petrofac Norge BVHydro-geotechnical investigation of vessel-induced scour around the Hollandse Kust Zuid (HKZ)-Alpha offshore platform
    North Sea, Netherlands
  • 2020
    Alke ConstructionWastewater treatment plants: Jenin Industrial Free Zone & Hebron regional plant
    Jenin & Hebron, Palestine
  • 2019
    CTrue & PartnersReview of shoring system design, EH private island development
    Abu Dhabi, UAE

Metro tunnel–structure interaction · deep excavations · foundations · seismic performance · forensic investigations

Layer 05 · Silt · widely distributed
EL. −38.00 m

Teaching

Foundation engineering to finite elements, plus the programming courses where civil engineers meet their first for-loop.

Graduate · ITU

  • Engineering Properties of Soils
  • Environmental Geotechnics
  • Numerical Modeling in Geotechnical Engineering

Undergraduate · ITU & U. of Djibouti

  • Soil Mechanics I & Laboratory
  • Foundation Engineering I
  • Foundation Engineering II
  • Introduction to Environmental Geotechnics
  • Introduction to Programming Languages (Python)</>
  • Introduction to Scientific & Engineering Computing (MATLAB)</>

M.Sc. thesis co-supervision on numerical modeling of NATM tunnels (Boğaziçi University, 2024); undergraduate capstone projects at ITU and the University of Djibouti.

Layer 06 · Bedrock · sound, reachable
EL. −45.00 m

Contact

Research collaboration, graduate supervision, consulting inquiries, even bug reports. All strata welcome.

Istanbul · 41.1044°N, 29.0233°E

Istanbul Technical University
Geotechnical Laboratory #140411
ITU Ayazağa Campus
34469 Maslak, Istanbul, Türkiye

+90 (212) 285-6628

Blacksburg · 37.2296°N, 80.4139°W

hetGE LLC
209 Giles Road Apt. #1
Blacksburg, VA 24060
United States

 

Registered identifiers

↓ DOWNLOAD CVPDF · Rev. 2026-08