Background
Dr. Ian Knack holds a B.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a structural emphasis, an M.S. in Civil Engineering, and a Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering with an emphasis on hydraulics and hydrology. He is a Registered Professional Engineer in Connecticut, Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, and Virginia. His Ph.D. research focused on field, laboratory, and numerical modeling studies of river dynamics processes, specifically hydraulics under the influence of surface ice, sediment transport in both ice-influenced and open water conditions, ice breakup, and ice jam formation and flooding. Dr. Knack also completed post-doctoral training in riparian systems analysis.
Dr. Knack was a professor at Clarkson University for 7 years where he extended his research to the areas of wintertime fish habitat quality modeling, the transport and accumulation of large woody material, and the use of limited data sets to calibrate and validate hydrologic and hydraulic models. He has also conducted several low head dam removal assessments. He has published various peer-reviewed journal articles on these topics.
Additionally, Dr. Knack has completed a number of forensic studies on the cause of severe ice jam flooding events and methods for reducing the risk to neighboring communities and hydropower operations. His work included conference presentations and peer-reviewed work on data analysis techniques and numerical modeling tools he has developed to analyze these events.
Education and Certifications
- Civil and Environmental Engineering, Ph.D.: Clarkson University (2011)
- Civil Engineering, M.S.: Clarkson University (2011)
- Civil Engineering, B.S.: Clarkson University (2005)
- Registered Professional Engineer: Connecticut, Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, and Virginia
- English XL Variable Incidence Tribometer Certification
- OSHA 30-hour Construction Safety and Health
- American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
- Committee for River Ice Processes and the Environment (CRIPE)
Publications
- Knack, I.M., Shaw, J., Groeneveld, J., McHenry, J, Lavender, S.T., Friday, W.L. (2023). “Numerical Modeling of Ice Control on the Albany River, Ontario, Canada.” Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, Special Issue on River Ice and Infrastructure, DOI: 10.1139/cjce-2023-0061.
- Perera, C., Wu, W., Knack, I.M. (2021). “Porosity of Bimodal and Trimodal Sediment Mixtures.” International Journal of Sediment Research, Vol. 37, Issue 2, Pages 258-271, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijsrc.2021.09.008.
- Lees, K., Clark, S.P., Malenchak, J., Shen, H.T., Knack, I.M. (2021). “Numerical Simulation of Freeze-up Jamming in a Skim Ice Regime” Cold Regions Science and Technology, IAHR, Vol. 191, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coldregions.2021.103354.
- Rampinelli, C., Knack, I.M., Smith, T. (2020). “Flood Mapping Uncertainty from a Restoration Perspective: A Practical Case Study.” Vol. 12, Issue 1948, DOI: 10.3390/w12071948.
- Knack, I.M., Shen, H.T., and Huang, F. (2020). “Modeling Condition of Fish Habitat in Ice Affected Streams.” Cold Regions Science and Technology, IAHR. Vol. 176, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coldregions.2020.103086.
- Wazney, L., Clark, S.P., Malenchak, J., Knack, I.M., Shen, H.T. (2019). “Numerical Simulation of River Ice Consolidation at Freeze-up.” Cold Regions Science and Technology, IAHR. Vol. 168, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coldregions.2019.102884.
- Knack, I.M., Shen, H.T. (2018). “A Numerical Model Study on Saint John River Ice Breakup.” Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, Vol. 45, Issue 10, Pages 817-826, DOI: 10.1139/cjce-2018-0012.
- Knack, I.M. and Shen, H.T. (2018). “A Numerical Model for Sediment Transport and Bed Change with River Ice.” Journal of Hydraulic Research, IAHR, Vol. 56, Issue 6, Pages 844-856, DOI: 10.1080/00221686.2017.1414719.
- Knack, I.M. and Shen, H.T. (2017). “Numerical Modeling of Ice Transport in Channels with River Restoration Structures.” Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, Vol. 44, Pages 813-819, DOI: 10.1139/cjce-2017-0081.
- Knack, I.M., Shen, H.T., and Huang, F. (2015). “A Numerical Model Study on Ice Impact on Lake Superior Outflow Limit.” Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, Vol. 42, Issue 9, Pages 645-655, DOI: 10.1139/cjce-2014-0425.
- Knack, I.M. and Shen, H.T. (2015). “Sediment Transport in Ice-Covered Channels.” International Journal of Sediment Research, Vol. 30, Issue 1, Pages 63-67, DOI: 10.1016/S1001-6279(15)60006-3.