Overview
The world faces unprecedented challenges in climate change, population growth and urbanisation that will have an impact on our ability to maintain the performance of existing and future wastewater infrastructure. Climate change is expected to lead to wetter winters with short-term increases in precipitation and drier summers, both of which will change the loads and concentrations of wastewater received by treatment systems. Currently, there is poor understanding of the resilience of treatment systems to such changes.
This project seeks to develop and test different metrics that can be used to quantify the resilience of wastewater treatment systems to extreme conditions while minimising and preventing service failures. The project will make use of simulated “Digital Twin” wastewater treatment works to test such metrics and establish a road-map for quantifying the resilience of real-life systems. Such a tool could help to develop strategies to improve the resilience and serviceability of wastewater treatment by mitigating potential failures from extreme conditions.
This PhD position is part of the research and training programme offered by the Centre for Doctoral Training on Water Infrastructure and Resilience (WIRe) (https://cdtwire.com/) and is aimed for talented graduates wishing to study for a PhD. The position provides a unique opportunity to perform interdisciplinary research of the highest calibre and potential impact.
A suitable candidate should have a very strong background in Civil Engineering with a good knowledge of the application domain who wishes to learn the computational techniques relevant to the challenges posed by the project, in particular developing models and analysing available data.
Alternatively, the candidate should have a strong computational background who is open to learn the knowledge of the application domain. The selected candidate will be supported by the leading experts in Civil Engineering and Computer Science during the course of the PhD with dedicated resources from Newcastle University.
Sponsor
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) https://epsrc.ukri.org/, Scottish Water https://www.scottishwater.co.uk/ and Northumbrian Water https://www.nwl.co.uk/
Name of supervisor(s)
David Thomas (Scottish Water)
Dr Russell Davenport (Newcastle University) https://bit.ly/3c1lsz5
Andrew Moore (Northumbrian Water)
Eligibility Criteria
The award is available to UK/EU applicants only. Depending on how you meet the EPSRC’s eligibility criteria, you may be entitled to a full or a partial award
How to apply
You must apply through the University’s online postgraduate application system https://bit.ly/39Qh5oq. You will need to:
•insert the programme code 8209F in the programme of study section
•select ‘PhD Water Infrastructure & Resilience (WIRe)’ as the programme of study
•insert the studentship code eng062 in the studentship/partnership reference field
•attach a covering letter and CV. The covering letter must state the title of the studentship, quote reference code eng062 and state how your interests and experience relate to the project
•attach degree transcripts and certificates and, if English is not your first language, a copy of your English language qualifications.
You should also send your covering letter and CV to [email protected]
Contact
[email protected], [email protected] or [email protected]
