Institutional-Repository, University of Moratuwa
Welcome to the University of Moratuwa Digital Repository, which houses postgraduate theses and dissertations, research articles presented at conferences by faculties and departments, university-published journal articles and research publications authored by academic staff. This online repository stores, preserves and distributes the University's scholarly work. This service allows University members to share their research with a larger audience.
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Recent Submissions
item: Conference-Abstract
Citizen Science Awareness Among University Librarians in Sri Lanka: A Pilot Study
(2025) Weerakoon, WRWMAU; Seneviratne, TM
Citizen Science (CS) has emerged as a valuable strategy for involving the general public in scientific research, however, its awareness and adoption in academic library settings are still lacking. This study examined the present level of Citizen Science awareness among Sri Lankan university librarians to identify the knowledge gaps and potential avenues for future involvement. Knowledge of information literacy, community outreach, and research support services have placed academic librarians in a unique position to support Citizen Science initiatives. For this reason, this study is crucial to comprehend the potential for library engagement in Citizen Science initiatives. Using a structured questionnaire, 45 librarians from state universities in Sri Lanka participated in a cross-sectional survey. In addition to demographic details, the survey looked at familiarity with Citizen Science terminology, sources of knowledge acquisition, conceptual understanding, current institutional practices, perceived barriers and facilitators. The study involved librarians of all levels, where 96% are holding postgraduate qualifications and 60% having more than 15 years of experience. A notable 60% have partial familiarity with "Citizen Science" terminology and 15.6% reported full familiarity, whereas 24.4% were unfamiliar. Nonetheless, 66.7% correctly identified the definition of CS, showing stronger conceptual understanding than familiarity with terminology. Academic literature was the main source of awareness. Librarians recognized a higher future value of CS (44.4% "very important," 35.6% "important") but current institutional engagement is still low. The most acknowledged role of librarians in CS was information provision. Meanwhile, other aspects such as collaboration, data management, hosting events and promoting CS were also considered significant. The most interest was shown in environmental monitoring (26.8%) and public health related (25.3%) projects. The main obstacles were lack of resources (22.6%), lack of experience (21.9%), and lack of funds (21.2%). To address these issues, 91% of the respondents suggested training programs, while others stated partnership opportunities (71%) and funding support (64%). Prioritized training areas include project planning (82.2%), knowledge on types of projects (80%), and citizen science fundamentals (62%). University librarians in Sri Lanka demonstrate moderate awareness but strong conceptual understanding of citizen science, with low current engagement yet high future expectations. The discrepancy between conceptual understanding and familiarity of terminology suggests a need for targeted trainings. Given their strategic institutional position, libraries could serve as significant citizen science hubs. Other recommendations include formal training, sustainable funding, creating educational material, and implementing institutional support framework to bridge knowledge gaps and support the implementation of citizen science initiatives.
item: Conference-Abstract
A Bibliographic Data Mining Framework to Recognize Research Excellence
(2025) Seneviratne, TM; Ariyasinghe, N; Jayawardena, CL; Jayasekara, AGBP; Gopura, RARC
Sri Lankan university libraries are actively involved in evaluating the research performance of higher educational institutes, relying on publication data-driven approaches. The National Research Council (NRC) of Sri Lanka also evaluates publications and patents based on Scopus data without inviting individual applications for a scrutiny procedure. This study presents an initiative by the University Library and the Senate Research Committee (SRC) of the University of Moratuwa to introduce a multi-source data mining framework based on publication metrics to identify research excellence. Bibliometric data sources, such as Scopus, Scimago, Web of Science Core Collections, and Google's top 20 subcategory rankings, have been utilized to develop a semi-automated scoring system. A total of 639 publication records extracted from an affiliation search for the calendar year 2023 on the Scopus database, were subject to manual data mining. From the identified departmental - level publications, 383 individual - level publications were retrieved and the information was converted into text files. A Python script was used to map the Scimago Journal Rank, Web of Science Core Collection, and Top 20 Google Scholar metrics to categorize them according to preestablished evaluation criteria provided by the SRC. The datasets were cross-referenced with current quality indicators, including Scimago journal quartile (Q1–Q4), Google Scholar rankings, and Web of Science indexing (AHCI, SCIE, SSCI, ESCI). After adding binary flags and ranking categories, publications were assigned a code system based on quality metrics. Award categories were assigned to individuals based on their publication scores and consistency in quality, where the results were compiled into an MS Excel file for reporting. The analysis identified 17 recipients for the Vice-Chancellor’s Award and 142 for Outstanding Research Awards, of which 62 were Distinctions. It was also found that 68% of the articles are in the Q1 quartile and 17% in the Q2 quartile; 49.78% included in SCIE and 31.72% in ESCI. A replicable, semi-automatic framework developed to assess the quality of research publications from large datasets can be applied at different scales to provide a comprehensive evaluation that surpasses any single-platform approach that is currently in use. This novel approach can be utilized to identify and reward the high-calibre research without requiring an individual application/submission process. It has potential for institutional research and cross-collaboration assessments intra-departments, inter-departments, inter-faculty, local and international), for resource allocation, and strategic planning beyond the research excellence.
item: Conference-Abstract
A Bibliometric analysis of publications on Batticaloa lagoon from 1954 to 2024
(Library Network, Eastern University, Sri Lanka, 2025) Lavanya, J; Seneviratne, TM; Jayawardena, CL
The Batticaloa Lagoon in Eastern Province is Sri Lanka's third-largest brackish water body. More than 90% of the lagoon is in the Batticaloa District, with the southern end belonging to Ampara District. This study aims to conduct a bibliometric analysis of publications on Batticaloa Lagoon to identify research trends, assess knowledge gaps, track the evolution of scientific understanding, map key contributors and evaluate research impact over the given duration. The analysis will provide insights to guide future research and conservation efforts for this unique coastal ecosystem. The attempt to quantify the published literature on Batticaloa Lagoon using a narrative literature review was focused on two scholarly databases, namely Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar search engine. A literature search conducted in January 2025 using the keyword "Batticaloa Lagoon" as the search query yielded 16 records in Scopus, 15 in Web of Science, and 547 in Google Scholar, excluding duplicates. Eventually, 180 documents were identified directly relevant to the search query to further analyze publication type, year, number of authors per publication, number of citations, institutions with the most prolific authors, collaborations, and keywords. Among those 180 publications, approximately 41% were journal Abstracts, 27% were Abstracts from conference proceedings and 11% were theses and dissertations. The highest number of documents were published in 2017 which accounts for 13, followed by 12 Abstracts each during 2012, 2019, and 2021. The relationship between the age of the Abstracts, and the number of Abstracts indicated increased research activity. Recent publications maintaining a positive relative growth of 0.074 included more than 50% of publications from 2015 to 2024. The highest contribution of 36% was from single authors, followed by 28% from two-author publications. Authors with 10 or more publications on Batticaloa Lagoon were affiliated with Eastern University, South-Eastern University, and University of Peradeniya. Tropical Agricultural Research, Journal of Science, EUSL, and AGRIEAST were the three most popular journals to include Abstracts on Batticaloa Lagoon. A book chapter receiving 221 citations has the highest number of citations per year (13.81). Most of the scholarly contributions were on regulating, provisioning and supporting ecosystem services with limited emphasis on cultural ecosystem services. The prominent keywords were Water quality, Mangroves, Salinity, Sediments, Dissolved oxygen, and Heavy metals. Identifying scholars and their contributions to advancing the knowledge domain of this unique coastal ecosystem could facilitate future research and promote collaborations in addition to effective information sharing of published scientific content.
item: Thesis-Abstract
Manual method to find cable forces in extradosed bridges
(2025) Sampath, PPGRN; Baskaran, K
The first extradosed bridge was completed in 1994 and within the following three decades, this new bridge type has gained popularity due to its indistinguishable appearance to a cable stayed bridge. Balanced cantilever construction method was adopted in many of the extradosed bridges. Limited number of reference availability to study the extradosed bridges has limited the understanding of design concepts and practicing the designs among the engineers. Objective of this research is to develop a manual calculation method to determine the stay cable force for a prestressed concrete extradosed bridges constructed using balanced cantilever method. In addition, a detailed explanation about the design concepts, construction methods and comparison of extradosed bridge with other bridge types is also intended in this study. Determination of the stay cable force has been a challenging task for extradosed bridges due to its high statical indeterminacy. At present, modern bridge design software equipped with the required iteration functions are used mainly for this but no literature is available to manually approximate the stay cable force for an extradosed bridge constructed using balanced cantilever method. This research aims at bridging this gap and assisting the readers to understand all the basic concepts with regard to an extradosed bridge built using balanced cantilever method. Detailed literature review was conducted to understand the design concept and the initial sizing of the members. Based on the study, it was identified that the self-weight and the internal prestressing forces are the two main factors which affect the required final stay cable force. This was further verified using a computer analysis model developed using CSiBridge software. In developing a manual calculation method, it was assumed that the bridge behaves as a propped cantilever vertically supported at the stay cable anchorage locations. With the internal prestressing applied as a bending moment, self-weight applied as a uniformly distributed load (UDL) and the form traveller load applied as a point load at the cantilever end, stay cable force required was determined considering that the total displacement at cable anchorage location requires to be zero. Several assumptions were made in this simplified method and the stay cable force determined from the simplified method was found to be reasonably accurate compared with the actual force.
item: Thesis-Abstract
Validity of AASHTO sight distances in geometric design of expressways in Sri Lanka
(2025) Perera, RAD; Mampearachchi, WK
Sight distance is a critical design parameter in the geometric design of highways, directly influencing their operational efficiency and safety, particularly under nighttime conditions. Stopping sight distance is a fundamental requirement for all types of highways, playing a key role in horizontal curves, crest vertical curves, and sag vertical curves, which are essential components of highway geometry. This research evaluates the validity of AASHTO sight distance criteria in the geometric design of expressways in Sri Lanka. The study involved analyzing accident data from the Southern Expressway to identify critical locations and reviewing their design compliance with AASHTO guidelines. Additionally, sight distance variations were compared with geometric design standards of other guidelines, such as Japan, Australia, Austria, Britain, United States, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, South Africa, Sweden, and Switzerland, to highlight key differences. The analysis was conducted using accident data from a 126 km section of the expressway. A preliminary assessment was performed at 10 km intervals using accident frequency data, followed by an advanced analysis at 1 km intervals using the 85th and 90th percentile accident values. The most critical sections were further examined at 100 m intervals, where accident distribution percentiles were considered to pinpoint high-risk locations. To enhance the analysis, questionnaire responses from general public, mainly drivers and road users were collected through online surveys, telephone conversations, and in- person interviews at toll booths and bus stations. These responses provided insights into real-world driving experiences, visibility challenges, and safety concerns related to sight distance. Accident-prone locations were evaluated for compliance with AASHTO sight distance and object height criteria. Crest and sag vertical curves were assessed for specific driver eye and object heights, including nighttime headlight sight distance. Passenger comfort was analyzed based on a 0.3 m/s² centripetal acceleration limit, while drainage control was reviewed for Type III vertical curves. The general appearance of vertical curves was examined using the rule-of-thumb method, and horizontal curves were assessed for lateral clearance at a 120 km/h design speed. The study found that the Southern Expressway's design meets AASHTO sight distance and object height criteria at critical locations. However, differences in stopping sight distance and vertical curve length compared to international standards were observed (0+600, 5+900, 87+300, 93+000), primarily due to variations in friction coefficients, deceleration rates, and object height assumptions. The current standard for expressways in Sri Lanka specifies an object height of 0.6 m (2 feet) for visibility assessments. Considering the height of animals crossing the road, record of animal collisions, questionnaire responses suggest that maintaining an object height of 0.15 m (6 inches) improves safety and helps reduce the risk of animal collisions.