Kumar Biswajit Debnath

(MENAFN- The Conversation)

• Chancellor's Research Fellow, School of Architecture, University of Technology Sydney

Profile Articles Activity

As an architect and building physicist, I pioneer Bio-Intelligent Building Systems-an interdisciplinary approach that harnesses living materials, AI-driven design, biotechnology, vernacular design practices, and building physics to engineer passive, self-regulating structures for extreme climates, from arid deserts and polar outposts to space habitats. I integrate biomimetics, bioclimatic strategies, and time-tested vernacular techniques-drawing on nature's playbook, from the Saguaro cactus's water-storage ribs to the Namib Desert beetle's moisture-harvesting shell-to create adaptive architectures that both cushion against and help mitigate climate change. With deep expertise in mycelium-based composite material bio-fabrication and characterisation, AI-driven design and fabrication, and building systems instrumentation, prototyping, testing, and simulation, I advance active and passive cooling/heating, natural ventilation, and daylight optimisation, pushing the frontiers of sustainable, circular, net-zero building technologies.

Experience

• 2024–present Chancellor's Research Fellow, University of Technology Sydney (UTS)
• 2021–2024 Research Associate in Passive Building Design, Newcastle University
• 2018–2021 Research Associate in Sustainable Building Design, Heriot-Watt University

Education

• 2019 Cardiff University, PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering
• 2014 Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Master of Architecture (M.)
• 2012 Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Bachelor of Architecture (B.)

Publications

• 2025 The role of surface interventions in bio-welding mycelium-based composites, 1016/j.2025.e01326
• 2024 Remote work might unlock Solar PV's potential for cracking the 'Duck Curve', 1016/j.2024.123378
• 2024 Although feasible, falling renewables costs might not benefit Bangladesh's energy sector's decarbonisation: Is this another 'debt-fossil fuel production trap'?, 1016/j.2024.101416
• 2024 A mixed-methods approach for evaluating the influence of residential practices for thermal comfort on electricity consumption in Auroville, India., 10.3390/electricity5010007
• 2023 Climate change, extreme heat, and South Asian megacities: Impact of heat stress on inhabitants and their productivity, 10.1115/1.4064021
• 2022 Why is Bangladesh's electricity generation heading towards a GHG emissions-intensive future?, 10.1080/17583004.2022.2068454
• 2021 Rural cooling needs assessment towards designing community cooling hubs: Case studies from Maharashtra, India, 10.3390/su13105595
• 2020 Understanding residential occupant cooling behaviour through electricity consumption in warm-humid climate, 10.3390/buildings10040078
• 2020 Modelling community electricity demand for UK and India, 1016/j.2020.102054
• 2018 Corruption significantly increases the cost of power plants in developing contexts, 10.3389/fenrg.2018.00008
• 2018 Forecasting methods of energy planning models, 1016/j.2018.02.002
• 2018 Challenges and gaps for energy planning models in the developing-world context, 10.1038/s41560-018-0095-2

Grants and Contracts

• 2023 Data-driven bio-fabricated carbon-negative building skin for passive cooling (BioCOOL) Role: Chief Investigator (CI) Funding Source: University of Technology Sydney

Professional Memberships

• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)
• Associate Member, Institute of Architects, Bangladesh (IAB), Bangladesh

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