Department of Civil Engineering



DR. CHAMINDU DEEPAGODA T.K.K.

Senior Lecturer


Office Address:

Department of Civil Engineering,

University of Peradeniya,

Peradeniya,20400,

Sri Lanka.

Email: chaminduk@pdn.ac.lk , chamindu78@yahoo.com , kdeepago@mines.edu

Telephone : +94-76-8039827 /+94-81-2393520

  • Dr. Chamindu Deepagoda is currently a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Civil Engineering, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. He earned his BSc (Eng) in Civil Engineering from University of Moratuwa (Sri Lanka) and MSc degree from Saitama University (Japan) in Civil and Environmental Engineering. He obtained his PhD (specialized in Geo-environmental Engineering) from Aalborg University (Denmark). He subsequently held four postdoctoral positions at Aarhus University (Denmark), University of Copenhagen (Denmark), Colorado School of Mines (USA), and Lincoln University (New Zealand)

    Dr. Chamindu’s research interests include gas, water, solutes and colloid transport in soils, soil-gas transport modeling, characterization of plant growth media for Earth and Space-based applications, multiphase transport of multicomponent gases in heterogeneous porous media
  • PhD (specialized in Geo-environmental Engineering) - Aalborg University , Denmark, 2012.
  • MSc - Civil and Environmental Engineering , Saitama University ,Japan, 2008
  • BScEng - Civil Engineering , University of Moratuwa ,Sri Lanka, 2004.
  • Experimental and numerical investigation of single and multiphase flow and transport of water, solutes, colloid and gases in vadose zone.
  • Indoor/outdoor air pollution.
  • Soil physical characterization for designing plant growth media for Earth and Space-based applications.
  • Modeling soil gas transport.
  • 2016 Jan. – to date: Senior lecturer, Dept. of Civil Engineering, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka.
  • 2016 Jan. – to date : Research Associate (non-remunerated), Colorado School of Mines(Dept. of Civil and Environ, Eng.),USA.
  • 2014 Nov. – 2015 Dec.: Postdoctoral Fellow, Colorado School of Mines (Dept. of Civil and Environ, Eng.), USA.
  • 2014 March – 2014 Nov. : Postdoctoral fellow, University of Copenhagen (Center for Permafrost/CENPERM), Copenhagen, Denmark.
  • 2012 May – 2013 June : Visiting postdoctoral fellow, Aarhus University (Dept. of Agroecology), Foulum, Denmark. Research Assistant, Saitama University (Dept. of Civil Eng.), Japan.
  • 2005 March – 2006 April : Civil Engineer (Water Supply), Ceywater Consultants (Pvt) Limited, Sri Lanka.
  • 2012 May – 2013 June : Visiting postdoctoral fellow, Aarhus University (Dept. of Agroecology), Foulum, Denmark
  • 2009 May – 2010 March : Visiting Scholar (from Denmark), Saitama University (Dept. of Civil Eng.), Japan
  • American Society of Agronomy (ASA)
  • Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)
  • Crop Science Society of America (CSA)
  • International Society for Porous Media (INTERPORE)
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., T.J. Clough, S. Thomas, and N. Balaine. 2019. Effects of soil moisture and temperature on simulated methane flow in a differently-compacted soil. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J (under review)
  • Jayarathne, J.R.R.N., T.K.K. Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., T.J. Clough, M.C.M. Nasvi, S. Thomas, B. Elberling, and K. Smits. 2019. Gas Diffusivity based Characterization of Aggregated Agricultural Soils. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J (in press)
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K. T.J. Clough, J.R.R.N. Jayarathne, S. Thomas, and B. Elberling. 2019. Soil-Gas Diffusivity and Soil-Moisture effects on N2O emissions from Repacked Pasture. Soils.Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J . DOI: 10.2136/sssaj2018
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K. T.J. Clough, S. Thomas, and N. Balaine. 2019. soil-gas diffusivity and soil-moisture effects on N2O emissions from intact pasture soils.. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. DOI: 10.2136/sssaj2018.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K. T.J. Clough, S. Thomas, and B. Elberling. 2018. Density effects on soil-water characteristics, soil-gas diffusivity and Urea-derived N2O/N2fluxes in grazed pastures. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J DOI: 10.2136/sssaj2018.01.0048
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Smits, B.M. Wallen. 2018. Characterization of physical, thermal, and gas diffusion properties in variably saturated binary sand mixtures. VZJ (DOI: 10.2136/vzj2018.01.0026
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K. and K. Smits, and M. Mitton. 2017. Effect of varying atmospheric conditions on methane boundary layer development in a coupled free flow and porous media domain. Greenhouse Gases: Science and Technology. DOI: 10.1002/ghg.1743
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Smits, and C.M. Oldenburg. 2016. Effect of subsurface soil moisture variability and atmospheric conditions on methane gas migration in shallow subsurface. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control DOI: 10.1016/j.ijggc.2016.10.016.
  • Nielsen, C.S., A. Michelsen, P. Ambus, T.K.K. Chamindu Deepagoda and B. Elberling. 2016. Linking rhizospheric CH4 oxidation and net CH4 emissions in an arctic wetland based on 13CH4 labeling of mesocosms. Plant and Soil. DOI: 10.1007/s11104-016-3061-4.
  • Benjamin M. Wallen, Kathleen Smits, Stacy E. Howington, and Chamindu Deepagoda T.K.K. 2015. Thermal conductivity of binary sand mixtures evaluated through the full range of saturation. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 80: 592-603.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., and Bo Elberling. 2015. Diffusivity-based characterization of oxygen transport in arctic organic soils. European Journal of Soil Science. doi: 10.1111/ejss.12293.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Smits, and TissaIllangasekere. 2015. Characterization of thermal, hydraulic, and gas diffusion properties in variably saturated sand grades. Vadose Zone J.doi: 10.2136/vzj2015.07.0097.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, L.W. de Jonge, K. Kawamoto, and T. Komatsu. 2015. Water-induced linear reduction gas diffusivity model extended to three regions. Vadose Zone J. doi:10.2136/vzj2015.04.0051.
  • Federico Masís-Meléndez, L. W. de Jonge, T.K.K.Chamindu Deepagoda, and P. Moldrup. 2015. Effect of soil bulk density on gas transport parameters and pore-network properties across a sandy field site. Vadose Zone Doi: 10.2136/v14.09.0128.
  • Federico Masís-Meléndez, P. Moldrup, T.K.K.Chamindu Deepagoda, M. Tuller, and L. W. de Jonge. 2014. Gas diffusion-derived tortuosity governs saturated hydraulic conductivity of sandy soils. J. of Hydrol. 512: 388-396.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., S. B. Jones, M. Tuller, L.W. de Jonge, K. Kawamoto, T. Komatsu, and P. Moldrup. 2014. Modeling water and gas transport characteristics in plant growth substrates for earth and space. Adv. Space Res. doi: 10.1016/j.asr.2014.04.018.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., J. C. Chen-Lopez, P. Moldrup, L.W. de Jonge, and M. Tuller. 2013. Integral parameters for characterizing water, energy, and aeration properties of soilless plant growth media. J.ofHydrol. 502:120-127.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, M. Tuller, M. Pedersen, J. C. Chen-Lopez, L.W. de Jonge, K. Kawamoto, and T. Komatsu. 2013. Gas Diffusivity-based design and characterization of greenhouse growth substrates. Vadose Zone J. doi:10.2136/vzj2013.03.0061.
  • Per Moldrup, T.K.K. ChaminduDeepagoda, S. Hamamoto, T. Komatsu, K. Kawamoto, D.E. Rolston, and L.W. de Jonge. 2013. Structure-dependent water-induced linear reduction model for predicting gas diffusivity and tortuosity in repacked and intact Soil. Vadose Zone J.doi: 10.2136/vzj2013.01.0026.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., E. Arthur, P. Moldrup, S. Hamamoto, K. Kawamoto, T. Komatsu, and L.W. de Jonge. 2013. Modeling air permeability in variably saturated soil from two natural clay gradients. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 77: 362-371.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, M. P. Jensen, S. B. Jones, L. W. de Jonge, P. Schjønning, K. Scow, J. W. Hopmans, D. E. Rolston, K. Kawamoto, and T. Komatsu. 2012. Diffusion aspects of designing porous growth media for Earth and Space. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 76: 1564-1578.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, P. Schjønning, K. Kawamoto, T. Komatsu, and L. W. de Jonge. 2012. Variable pore connectivity model linking gas diffusivity and air-phase tortuosity to soil matric potential. Vadose Zone J. doi:10.2136/vzj2011.0096.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, P. Schjønning, K. Kawamoto, T. Komatsu, and L. W. de Jonge. 2011. Generalized density-corrected model for gas diffusivity in variably saturated soils. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 74:1302-1317.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, P. Schjønning, L. W. de Jonge, K. Kawamoto, and T. Komatsu. 2010. Density-corrected models for gas diffusivity and air permeability in unsaturated soil. Vadose Zone J. 10:226-238.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., Ken Kawamoto, Hirotaka Saito, LisWollesen de Jonge, Per Moldrup, and Toshiko Komatsu. 2009. Mobilization and leaching of natural and water dispersible colloids in aggregated volcanic ash soil columns. Soils and Foundations 51: 123-132.

    • International proceedings (refereed)
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, S. Yoshikawa, K. Kawamoto, T. Komatsu, and D.E. Rolston. The gas diffusivity-based tortuosity factor from pF 1 to 6.9 as gas diffusivity fingerprint. Proceedings of the 19th World Congress of Soil Science 2009, Soil solution for the changing world, Brisbrane, Australia.
  • Sharma, A, T. Hirata, K. Kawamoto, T.K.K. Chamindu Deepagoda, P. Moldrup, and T. Komatsu. Mobilization and transport of natural and water dispersible colloids in repacked Okinawa red-yellow soil columns. Proceedings of the 19th World Congress of Soil Science 2009, Soil solution for the changing world, Brisbrane, Australia.
  • P. Moldrup, T.K.K. Chamindu Deepagoda, M. Naveed, S. Katuwal, S. Hamamoto, T. Komatsu, K. Kawamoto, E. Arthur, L. W.de Jonge, and D. E. Rolston. 2013. Soil structure from a soil-air physics point of view: Gas transport parameters as architectural and functional fingerprints. Abstract from ASA-CSSA-SSA Annual Meetings 2013, Water, food, energy and innovation for a sustainable world, Tampa, Florida, United States. (Invited presentation).
  • E. Arthur, P. Schjønning, T.K.K. Chamindu Deepagoda, P. Moldrup, and L. W. de Jonge. 2013. Structure regeneration in 2mm sieved soils of varying clay mineralogy. Abstract from ASA-CSSA-SSA Annual Meetings 2013, Water, food, energy and innovation for a sustainable world, Tampa, Florida, United States.
  • Masis, F., P. Moldrup, L.W. de Jonge, T.K.K. Chamindu Deepagoda. 2013. Field scale variations of saturated hydraulic conductivity in a coarse sandy soil (Jyndevad, Denmark) linked to basic pore and particle network characteristics. Abstract from ASA-CSSA-SSA Annual Meetings 2013, Water, food, energy and innovation for a sustainable world, Tampa, Florida, United States.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, S.B. Jones, L.W. de Jonge, P. Schjønning, J. Hopmans, D.E. Rolston, K. Scow, K. Kawamoto, and T. Komatsu. 2012. Diffusivity-based characterization of plant growth media for Earth and Space. Abstracts from ASA, CSSA, and SSSA Annual Meetings 2012, Cincinnati, OH. Awarded the third place in poster presentation competition in S-1 (Soil Physics) Division.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, M. Tuller, M. Pedesen, L.W. de Jonge, K. Kawamoto, and T. Komatsu.2011. Gas diffusivity-based analysis of tomato growth media. Abstract from ASA-CSSA-SSA Annual Meetings 2011, Fundamental for Life: Soil, Crop, & Environmental Sciences, San Antonio, Texas, United States.
  • Moldrup, P., T.K.K. Chamindu Deepagoda, L.W. de Jonge, S. Hamamoto, K. Kawamoto T. Komatsu, and D.E. Rolston. 2011. Platform for regulating gas emissions: Predicting soil-gas diffusivity across soil texture, organic matter, aggregation, compaction, and moisture. Abstract from ASA-CSSA-SSA International Annual Meetings 2011, Fundamental for Life: Soil, Crop, & Environmental Sciences, San Antonio, Texas, United States. (Keynote presentation).
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, P. Schjønning, K. Kawamoto, T. Komatsu, and L. W. de Jonge. 2010. Gas-diffusivity-based connectivity analysis of aggregated soil inner and outer pore space. In: Proceedings from 1st International Conference and Exploratory Workshop on Soil Architecture “CESAR”. Nov. 30 – Dec. 2, 2010, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Aarhus University, Denmark, pp. 63-68.
  • Claes, N., T.K.K. Chamindu Deepagoda, J.B. Jensen, and P. Moldrup. 2010. Soil-gas diffusivity fingerprints of the dual porosity system in fractured limestone. In: Proceedings from 1st International Conference and Exploratory Workshop on Soil Architecture “CESAR”. Nov. 30 – Dec. 2, 2010, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Aarhus University, Denmark, pp. 55-58.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., P. Moldrup, P. Schjønning, L.W. de Jonge, K.Kawamoto, and T. Komatsu. 2009. Compaction and soil type effects on gas diffusivity and air permability in vadose zone profiles. Abstract from ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meetings 2009, Footprints in the landscape: Sustainability through plant and soil sciences, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United states.
  • Sharma, A., T.K.K. Chamindu Deepagoda, K. Kawamoto, P. Moldrup, and T. Komatsu. 2009. Mobilization and deposition of variably charged colloids in saturated porous media. Abstract from ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meetings 2009, Footprints in the landscape: Sustainability through plant and soil sciences, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United states.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Kawamoto, P. Moldrup, and T. Komatsu. Kinetics of colloidal-sized material transport in saturated porous media. Proceedings of the 9th SEGJ International Symposium –Imaging and Interpretation, Sapporo, Japan 12-14 October 2009.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Kawamoto, S. Saito, T. Komatsu, and P. Moldrup. Transport and retention of colloid-sized materials in saturated porous media: Experimental and Numerical Analysis. Proceedings of HYDRUS workshop 2008, Tokyo, Japan, pp70-78.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Kawamoto, S. Saito, S. Bradford, P. Moldrup, and T. Komatsu. Transport and straining of colloid-sized materials in saturated porous media. Proceedings of the 5th conference of Interface Against Pollution 2008 (IAP08), Kyoto, Japan, pp 183.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Kawamoto, S. Saito, P. Moldrup, and T. Komatsu. Experimental and numerical analysis of colloid transport and straining in saturated sand. Extended abstract, Proceedings of Japanese Geosciences Union Meeting (JpGU), 2008, Chiba, Japan, pp J 251-004.
  • Nyamdavaa, G., T.K.K. Chamindu Deepagoda, K. Kawamoto, T. Komatsu, and P. Moldrup. Transport and retention of colloid-sized materials in saturated porous media. Japanese Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE) conference, Tokyo, Japan, 2008.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Kawamoto, S. Saito, P. Moldrup, S. Bradford, and T. Komatsu. Transport and straining of colloid-sized materials in saturated porous media: Experimental and numerical analysis. ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meetings, 2008, Celebrating the International Year of Planet Earth, Houston, Texas, United States.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., and K. Kawamoto. 2008. Transport and retention of colloid-sized materials in saturated porous media. Proceedings of International Exchange Seminar, Saitama University (Japan) and University of Moratuwa (Sri Lanka) 2008.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Kawamoto, S. Saito, T. Komatsu, and P. Moldrup. Transport and straining of colloid-sized materials in saturated sand. 2007. Proceedings of American Geophysical Union (AGU) meeting 2007 (December), San Francisco, United States. pp154.
  • Hirata, T., K. Kawamoto, Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., and T. Komatsu. Adsorption of ionic pesticides onto soil and extracted soil colloids. Proceedings of 49th Japan Society of Soil Physics Conference, Fukuoka, Japan, 2007,pp 90-91.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Kawamoto, S. Saito, and T. Komatsu. Soil colloids; Characteristics and transport in saturated sand. Proceedings of 49th Japan Society of Soil Physics Conference, Fukuoka, Japan, 2007, pp 88-89.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., K. Kawamoto, S. Saito, T. Komatsu, and P. Moldrup. Transport and retention of colloid-sized materials in saturated porous media. Proceedings of Japanese Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE) conference, Yokohama, Japan, 2007, pp199-122 (best presentation award).
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., Katheleen Smits, TissaIllangasekere, Curtis M. Oldenburg, and Abdullah Cihan. 2015. Multiphase flow and transport of methane in soil under varying subsurface and atmospheric conditions: Bench-scale experimental and numerical study. TOUGH symposium 2015, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), California, USA.
  • Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K., Katheleen Smits, and TissaIllangasekere. 2015. Methane emissions under different subsurface and atmospheric conditions: A bench-scale experimental and numerical study (Extended abstract). The proceedings of the conference ’MODFLOW and More 2015: Modeling a Complex World’, Colorado School of Mines, Colorado, USA.
  • Illangasekare, T., K. Smits, and Chamindu Deepagoda, T.K.K. 2015. Methane migration in the vadose zone affected by subsurface heterogeneities and land-atmospheric Interactions. Abstract for ASA-CSSA-SSA Annual Meetings 2015, Synergy in Science, partnering the Solutions, Minneapolis, MN, United States.
  • 2019 – National Research Council Merit Award
  • 2018 – Presidential Award for Scientific Publications
  • 2016 – New Zealand Government fellowship under the New Zealand’s Livestock Emissions & Abatement Research Network (LEARN)
  • 2012 - Best poster/oral (hybrid) presentation (third place) at the Soil Science Society of America Annual Meetings, Cincinnati, OH.
  • 2006-2008 - Asian Development Bank (ADB) Scholarship for a full time research in Master of Engineering, Japan.
  • 2007 - Best research and presentation in the 9th International Summer Symposium, Japanese Society of Civil Engineers, Yokohama, Japan.
  • 2004 - Best undergraduate research project- Structural Engineering, University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka.

    • Research Grants
  • University Research Grant (2016-2018) (5,500 USD)
  • Indo-Lanka Joint Research Grant (2017 – 2019) (18,800 USD)
  • Indo-Lanka Foundation Grant (2016 – 2019) (2,500 USD)
  • National Research Council (2017-2020) (26, 430 USD)

    • Reviewer in International Journal papers:
  • Vadose Zone Journal (6)
  • Soil Science Society of America Journal (2)
  • Journal of Hazardous Materials (1)
  • Archives of Agronomy and Soil Science (1)
  • Water Resources Research (1)
  • Water Research (1)
  • Soils and Foundations (2)
  • Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta (1)
  • Journal of Geophysical research letters (1)
  • Pedosphere (1)



Department of Civil Engineering