James Craig

Photo of James Craig

Professor Faculty of Engineering Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Waterloo, Ontario jrcraig@uwaterloo.ca Office: (519) 888-4567 ext. 37554

Bio/Research

James R. Craig is an Associate Professor in the [Civil and Environmental Engineering Department](https://uwaterloo.ca/civil-environmental-engineering/) at the University of Waterloo.
He conducts research on numerical and analytical methods for modelling groundwater flow, subsurface contaminan...


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Bio/Research

James R. Craig is an Associate Professor in the [Civil and Environmental Engineering Department](https://uwaterloo.ca/civil-environmental-engineering/) at the University of Waterloo.
He conducts research on numerical and analytical methods for modelling groundwater flow, subsurface contaminant transport and surface water. Professor Craig has worked on parameter estimation, uncertainty analysis, and the integration of GIS and environmental models. Along with his research group, he is working to improve the science of environmental modelling using analytical and semi-analytical methods.
Professor Craig is currently addressing the issue of simulating large scale systems and local scale systems by integrating the Analytical Element Method (AEM), which is advantageous at large scales, and the Finite Element Method (FEM), which is more appropriate for complex local scale phenomena. He is working with Dr. Robert Gracie on the extension of the Extended Finite Element Method (XFEM) to mixed-scale problems of carbon sequestration and reservoir leakage in multilayer aquifer systems.
He is also working with novel methods based upon the Bers-Vekua theory of pseudo-analytic functions to obtain solutions for heterogeneous porous media flow problems. These methods may eventually be used to benchmark numerical simulation methods and better understand the impact of heterogeneity on pollutant transport.
Surface water models are another research interest of Professor Craig’s. They are expected to successfully simulate the interaction of several complicated processes such as infiltration at large scales in an efficient manner. To complicate issues, these processes are extremely variable (both in time and space). Professor Craig and his students are investigating how to use distribution-based approaches to successfully model a variety of phenomenon at mixed spatial and temporal scales. They are also working on the development of a robust computational framework, Raven, for assessing the impacts of modelling decisions on model output.
As a result of his work, Professor Craig received the Early Research Award in 2011 for high scholastic achievement at the University of Buffalo as well as the 2012 Distinguished Performance Award at the University of Waterloo.


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