Application Deadline: 30 April 2025
Details
Sheffield Water Centre at The University of Sheffield, in collaboration with Yorkshire Water and Tetra Tech RPS and the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Water Infrastructure and Resilience.
PhD Studentship: Influence of weather-induced ground movement on behaviour of buried water pipes
Stipend: This post will fully cover university tuition and provide a tax-free stipend for Home students of £24,000 per year
Closing Date for Applications: 30th April 2025
Start Date: 29th September 2025 (contract duration 4 years full time)
This funded PhD project provides a unique opportunity to undertake experimental research across geotechnical, structural and water engineering to assess the vulnerability of buried water infrastructure in the UK to ground movements induced by current weather patterns and projected climate change. Despite significant investment by UK water companies over the last 25 years, the UK still loses approximately 20% of potable water to leakage. The UK has ambitiously committed to halving this by 2050; to achieve this goal it is vital that we improve understanding and develop appropriate models of soil-pipe interaction.
Research questions:
· Given the different soils, asset types and regional weather across the UK, how does ground movement due to local weather and seasonal variation influence pipe loads, and the risk of leakage and bursts?
· How will climate change affect this?
Working within a dynamic and supportive cross-disciplinary research team, you will model the behaviour of buried infrastructure pipes within the University of Sheffield’s geotechnical centrifuge facility, which enables time-dependent processes involving soil-water-structure behaviour to be vastly accelerated. A dedicated climate-controlled chamber will enable simulated environmental conditions (groundwater, rainfall, temperature) and surface loadings (traffic, construction activities) to be applied to pipes of different materials and arrangements within the soil, alongside advanced instrumentation and data acquisition. The application of climate forcing will encompass both current and future scenarios under different extremes of climate change (e.g. prolonged drought and flooding) to assess how soil deformation can lead to pipe movement and failure.
This PhD will contribute to world-leading research on the influence of climate on buried assets. The research will inform failure modelling to enable operational targeting of areas of highest risk and strategic planning for future investment needs due to climate change. As a result, this will help water companies to provide the highest quality and most cost-effective services for their customers.
The research programme to be completed in this project will be undertaken as part of the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Water Infrastructure and Resilience (CDT WIRe). WIRe is a collaboration between the three leading UK Universities in water resilient infrastructure. Students will benefit from a bespoke training scheme delivered by world leading experts from academia and industry, access to world leading experimental and computational facilities as well as close and regular contact with industry and end user partners. WIRe is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community, and offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies. For further information on the WIRe scheme visit the web site at: https://cdtwire.com/
The project will be supervised by Dr Elisabeth Bowman and Professor Joby Boxall at the University of Sheffield in collaboration with partners from Yorkshire Water and Tetra Tech RPS. There will be generous opportunities to travel to visit our academic and industry partners in both the UK and overseas.
Eligibility Criteria
This studentship is open to all students with Home residency.
The selection criteria for the position are:
• A good honours degree (or equivalent experience) in Engineering, Physical Science, or Geoscience
• Enthusiasm for research
• Good level of written and oral communication skills
• Willingness to collaborate with other researchers, industry and end-users
• Aptitude for research in a relevant area (e.g. geotechnics, experimental design, data analysis) as evidenced by previous experience
How to apply
Interested candidates should email a covering letter and their Curriculum Vitae to Miss Lindsay Hopcroft (cdtwireapps@sheffield.ac.uk). For information and informal enquiries please contact: Dr Elisabeth Bowman, e.bowman@sheffield.ac.uk.
Funding Notes
Stipend: This post will fully cover university tuition and provide a tax-free stipend for Home students of £24,000 per year
