Structural Engineering; Seismic Engineering; Structural Dynamics; Vibration Control; Fluide-Structure Interaction; Shaking Table Tests; Pseudo-Dynamic Tests; Wooden Structures

As professor of the PUC postgraduate program, in the last 3 years, I have graduated 2 PhD. students, 2 MSc students, and 4 MSc (professional oriented) students in Structural and Geotechnical Engineering. He currently leads 4 PhD students and 5 MSc students.
On the other hand, I am co-director of the Project “ISOVEP: Industrial Solutions for Operational Vibrations and Earthquake Protection”, directed by Sergio Reyes Arriagada, of whom I was director of his MSc Thesis. The purpose of this project (Valorisation of Postgraduate Research) is to lay the foundations for a possible science-based venture (spin-off).

Dissemination:

Different dissemination activities were carried out in the radio, written and television press, related to seismic protection for the food, wine, mining and related industries. Among them we can highlight:
(1) Newspaper article in Diario Financiero (August 20, 2018): “Low-cost anti-seismic protection for wine tanks”.
(2) CNN-Chilevisión report (February 24, 2020) “Are we prepared for a new mega earthquake?”. Special program for the 10th anniversary of the Maule Earthquake. The report included the filming of a shaking table test of a real tank with a seismic isolation system patented by the PUC.
In these activities, experiences of technology transfer (by means of the licensing of invention patents to the industry) were disseminated. This information, aimed at the general public, is very important to demonstrate that the link between the University and the Industry is not only very necessary, but also possible.

Technology Transfer:

Between 2013 and 2019, we were awarded 6 patenting competitions at the PUC. With the resources awarded and the support of professionals from the Office of Transfer and Development of the PUC, 8 invention patents were requested inside and outside Chile. Half of them have already been granted, and the rest are in different intermediate stages. Two of the granted patents have recently been transferred to a wine storage tank manufacturer (Tersainox SA):
• Three-dimensional vibration isolation system “ISO-3D” for structures and equipment. National invention patent 2012-00552. U.S. PATENT No. 9,562,585 B2 (Vibration-Insulating device and system).
• Combination of anchoring to foundations and energy dissipation for vertical liquid storage tanks, vertical pressure vessel, silo or the like with thin wall and continuous support. National Invention Patent 2016-03365.
To date, the latter device has been installed in approximately 100 wine tanks in Chile. This new technology could become widespread in the next 10 years. This achievement has been possible thanks to the joint work for more than 5 years between our research group and the company Tersainox SA.
In 2019, we were awarded the 2019 "Global UC" Competition, with the project “Industrial Solutions for Operational Vibration and Earthquake Protection (ISOVEP)”. This award allowed us to have a global technology transfer experience in the USA (MIT, Boston).
On the other hand, we have been participating very actively since 2020 in the drafting of a new national regulation for the design of fluid storage tanks. It is expected to have a first draft by the end of this year 2021, which means an important transfer of knowledge and experience from our research group to the professional world.