Brian Prowell earned his BS in civil engineering (CE) in 1990 from Pennsylvania State University and his MS in CE in 1992 from Virginia Tech. A Ph.D. in CE is expected in Spring 2006 from Auburn University.
While completing his master’s degree at Virginia Tech Mr. Prowell was a research assistant/associate in the Via Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) at Virginia Tech. He developed and executed a research program to evaluate corrosion inhibitors for rehabilitation of reinforced concrete structures; non-destructively assessed the effectiveness of the inhibitors in corrosion abatement and assessed their effect on strength and durability; provided technical assistance for field installations; prepared service life predictions based on laboratory data; and supervised a research crew of four responsible for the corrosion assessment of 31 bridge decks in six states.
Following the completion of his master ’s degree Mr. Prowell worked for a year as an instructor in the CEE department at Virginia Tech. He taught civil engineering materials, advanced civil engineering materials and rehabilitation of transportation structures. Mr. Prowell was responsible for the operation of the materials research laboratory and conducted analyses of data from field installations of experimental treatments for the Strategic Highway Research Program.
In 1993 Mr. Prowell was hired as a research scientist by the Virginia Transportation Research Council in Charlottesville, Va. He was promoted to senior research scientist in 1996 and remained in that position until 2001. In this capacity, he conducted research in asphalt binders, hot-mix asphalt, and cold-mix. In addition, Mr. Prowell supervised quality control and technological advancement of the asphalt research laboratory. His research on asphalt content determination led him to develop the first state agency test method for the ignition furnace, now widely adopted throughout the U.S. He led Virginia’s Superpave implementation efforts, for which he and his team received the 2001 AASHTO President’s Award for Research. He was also recognized with the 2001 Tilton E. Shelburne Award for National Leadership from the Virginia Transportation Research Council.
In addition to his research efforts, he co-developed and instructed certification courses in Superpave mix design and aggregate testing. These courses were designed to help both the contractor and VDOT personnel working with Superpave mixes in the field. He oversaw Virginia’s performance-graded binder quality assurance testing program. Mr. Prowell also provided technical assistance, including consulting and forensic analysis to VDOT’s operating divisions and technical information to municipalities, other states, and academic organizations.
Mr. Prowell is currently employed as an assistant director at the National Center for Asphalt Technology in Auburn, Ala., a position he has held since 2002. He joined NCAT as a research engineer in 2001. In this position, he conducts and manages research on a variety of topics related to hot-mix asphalt and flexible pavement design and construction. Some of his current projects of special interest include: the fatigue endurance limit for HMA, warm mix asphalt, and the use of Superpave and SMA on airfields. Sponsors include: state DOTs, FHWA, National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) and FAA. Mr. Prowell also mentors engineers and graduate students to foster development of good engineering, research and writing skills. He has instructed many courses in hot mix asphalt technology to audiences that range from state DOT field technicians to university professors. He also oversees the NCAT Research Laboratories.
Mr. Prowell is a licensed professional engineer in the Commonwealth of Virginia; a member of the Association of Asphalt Paving Technologists and the American Society for Testing and Materials; a member of the Industry Council for AASHTO Material Reference Laboratory’s Administrative Task Group; and a member of the Board of Directors for the Southeastern Asphalt User/Producer Group. He is chairman of the TRB Committee AFK30, Characteristics of Nonbituminous Components of Bituminous Paving Mixtures; past chairman of the NCHRP Committee 20-50(14) Variation of AC Air Voids as a Function of Specifications and its Significance to Performance; and was 2000 chairman of the Southeastern Asphalt User/Producer Group.
Mr. Prowell has published over 70 journal articles, research reports and other publications throughout his career; given over 125 invited presentations; taught over 80 training seminars; and holds a patent based on his master ’s work at Virginia Tech with Dr. Richard Weyers.
He is married to Virginia Tech CEE alumna and Via Scholar, Marcia Votour Prowell. Brian and Marcia have two children, Ben (4) and Kate (1)