Hassan Baaj
Biography
Dr. Hassan Baaj is Professor and Associate Vice-President, Research Partnerships, Entrepreneurship and Commercialization at the University of Waterloo. In this role, he works with researchers, students, entrepreneurs, industry, government, and community partners to strengthen research partnerships, accelerate innovation, and translate ideas into societal and economic impact.
Dr. Baaj is also Director of the Centre for Pavement and Transportation Technology (CPATT), one of Canada's leading university-based transportation research centres. He holds the Norman W. McLeod Chair in Sustainable Pavement Engineering and is the inaugural President and founding member of the Academic Alliance for Road Research of Canada (A2R2C), a national network that brings together Canadian universities to advance collaborative road and transportation research.
He earned his Master's degree from the École Nationale des Travaux Publics de l'État (ENTPE), France, and his Ph.D. from the Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA Lyon). In 2020, he completed a Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology (MBET) at the University of Waterloo, strengthening his expertise at the intersection of research, innovation, entrepreneurship, and industry engagement.
Following a postdoctoral fellowship at the National Research Council Canada, Dr. Baaj began his industry career with Colas Canada in 2003, leading innovative infrastructure projects in collaboration with government and academic partners. He later joined Lafarge in France, where he managed research and development activities in infrastructure engineering before returning to Canada to pursue an academic career.
Dr. Baaj is internationally recognized for his contributions to sustainable and resilient transportation infrastructure. His research focuses on smart and resilient pavement systems, sustainable materials and circular-economy approaches, self-healing and self-repair technologies, infrastructure monitoring, and the application of artificial intelligence to transportation systems. His work has led to several patents and extensive collaborations with industry and public-sector partners.
He has held numerous leadership roles in national and international organizations, including the Transportation Association of Canada (TAC), RILEM, the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE), and the Canadian Technical Asphalt Association (CTAA). He was elected a RILEM Expert in 2020 and was named a Fellow of the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering in 2025.
Throughout his career, Dr. Baaj has been committed to building bridges between academia, industry, government, and communities to accelerate innovation, strengthen research impact, and help address society's most pressing infrastructure challenges.
Education
2002, Doctorate, Civil Engineering, Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon, France
1998, Diplôme d'Études Approfondies (D.E.A), Civil Engineering, École Nationale des Travaux Publics de l’État, France
1994, Bachelor's Degree, Civil Engineering, Damascus University, Syria
2020, Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology, Conrad School of Entrepreneurship and Business, University of Waterloo, Canada
Awards
2025: Fellow, Canadian Society for Civil Engineering.
2022: Outstanding Performance Award (OPA), University of Waterloo.
2020: Award of Excellence in Graduate Supervision, University of Waterloo, Faculty of Engineering.
2020: Outstanding Performance Award (OPA), University of Waterloo.
2015 & 2019: University Research Award, Imperial Oil ($25,000/year for three years).
2019: Waterloo Engineering Society, Teaching Excellence Award, Fall 2019.
2017: Faculty of Engineering Distinguished Performance Award.
2017: Best Paper Elaine Thompson Award – 62nd Canadian Technical Asphalt Association Conference, Halifax, NS.
2017: Norman W. McLeod Best Oral Presentation Award (with Mike Aurilio, Peter Mikhailenko).
Service
Oct. 2025 - Sep. 2030: Associate Vice-President, Research Partnerships, Entrepreneurship and Commercialization
Jan. 2025 - Sep. 2026: Associate Dean, Research and External Partnerships, Faculty of Engineering
Sep. 2025 - Sep. 2026: Special Advisor on International Research Partnerships, Office of the Vice-President, Research and International (OVPRI)
Professional associations
Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO) – (2015 - Present)
Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec (OIQ) – (2004 - 2016)
President, Academic Alliance for Road Research of Canada (2026 - Present)
Expert (2020-2025) and Senior Member, Crack Healing of Asphalt, RILEM - International Union of Laboratories and Experts in Construction Materials, Systems and Structures
Past Executive Chair (2018-2020), Soil and Materials Standing Committee, Transportation Association of Canada
Member of the OGRA Asset Management Academy Certification Advisory Board
Member, Canadian Airfield Pavement Technical Group, Canadian Airfield Pavement Technical Group
Member of the Quality of Asphalt Pavement Task Force, Ontario Hot Mix Producer Association, MTO, OGRA and industrial members (2015-2016)
Member, Canadian Society of Civil Engineering (CSCE)
Member, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
Affiliate Member, Transportation Research Board (TRB)
Member, Association of Asphalt Paving Technologists (AAPT)
Member, International Society for Asphalt Technology (ISAP)
Member, Canadian Technical Asphalt Association (CTAA)
Affiliations and volunteer work
Associate Editor, ASCE Journal of Transportation Engineering, Part B: Pavements, June. 2023 – June 2025
Associate Editor, Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, Dec. 2019 – Present
Member of the Editorial Board, International Journal for Road Materials and Pavement Design Materials, 2015 – Present
Guest Editor, Special Issue “Towards the Road of Future - Sustainability and Innovation in Pavement Engineering”, Applied Science Journal, MDPI, June. 2023 – July 2024
Editor, Proceedings of the RILEM International Symposium on Bituminous Materials: ISBM 2020, Springer, June 2019 – January 2021
Guest Editor, Special Issue “Novel Bituminous Materials for Sustainable Pavements”, Advances in Materials Science and Engineering, Hindawi, Sep. 2019 – March 202
Teaching*
- CIVE 542 - Pavement Structural Design
- Taught in 2023, 2024, 2025
- CIVE 644 - Innovative and Sustainable Infrastructure Materials
- Taught in 2021, 2024
- CIVE 742 - Pavement Design and Management II
- Taught in 2022, 2023, 2026
* Only courses taught in the past 5 years are displayed.
Selected/recent publications
Sharma A., Aurilio R.M., Tavassoti P., and Baaj H., Understanding Thermo-Oxidative and UV Aging Mechanisms in Asphalt Binders Through a Novel UV-Moisture Aging Chamber, Rilem Bookseries, Volume 73, 617-624, Canada, 2026.
Qabur A., and Baaj H., Elevating the High-Temperature Performance of Flexible Pavement by Incorporating Plastic Waste, Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, Volume 127, 350-356, Saudi Arabia, 2025.
Miri Z.S., Baaj H., and Polak M.A., Exploring Interfaces in 3D-Printed Concrete Through Cohesive Zone Modelling, Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, Volume 127, 199-212, Canada, 2025.
Baglieri O., Miglietta F., Leegwater G., Tabakovic A., Tsantilis L., Aurilio R.M., and Baaj H., Experimental Characterization of Self-Healing of Asphalt Materials, Rilem State of the Art Reports, Volume 45, 73-93, Italy, 2025.
Mangiafico S., Mahmoudi Y., Miglietta F., Aurilio R.M., Williams F., Sauzeat C., Baglieri O., and Baaj H., Modeling the Crack-Healing Behavior of Asphalt Pavement Materials, Rilem State of the Art Reports, Volume 45, 95-127, France, 2025.
Baaj H., and Baglieri O., Introduction, Rilem State of the Art Reports, Volume 45, 1-4, Canada, 2025.
Leegwater G., Hammoum F., Tabakovic A., Baglieri O., and Baaj H., Intrinsic Self-Healing of Asphalt Pavements, Rilem State of the Art Reports, Volume 45, 5-31, Netherlands, 2025.
Tabakovic A., Leegwater G., Liu Q., Norambuena-Contreras J., Baaj H., and Baglieri O., Extrinsic Self-Healing Technology for Asphalt Pavements, Rilem State of the Art Reports, Volume 45, 33-72, Ireland, 2025.
Qabur A., Baaj H., and El-Hakim M., Exploring the low-temperature performance of MPP-modified asphalt binders and mixtures using wet method, Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, Volume 51, 489-507, Canada, 2024.
Kang J., Tavassoti P., Chaudhry M.N.A.R., Baaj H., and Ghafurian M., Artificial intelligence techniques for pavement performance prediction: a systematic review, Road Materials and Pavement Design, Volume 26, 497-522, Canada, 2025.
Patents
Asphalt mixture without virgin bitumen based on recycled materials, Co-inventors: M. Ech, N. Richard, P. Tintillier. Publication no. 20140033951. Date of publication: Publication no. US20140033951 A1. Date of publication: Feb. 6th, 2014. US file number US 13/952,056. Application filed: July. 26, 2013.
Production of Warm and Half-Warm Mix Asphalt using Superabsorbent Polymers, Co-inventors: M. Ech, N. Richard, E. Villard. Publication number WO/2010/112784. Date of publication: April 14th, 2011. International file number PCT/FR2010/052086. Application filed: Oct. 04, 2010.
Chemical treatment of aggregates with cationic polymers to enhance bitumen aggregates adhesion in asphalt mixes, Co-inventors: M. Ech, N. Richard, E. Villard, P. Toubeau, S. Brocas. Publication no. WO/2011/042647, Date of publication: Oct. 7th, 2010. International file number PCT/FR2010/050630. Application Apr. 01, 2010, International Classification: C08L 95/00 (20060101)