PhD student position in Geotechnical Engineering

Information about the research
The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Chalmers University of Technology is a leading institute in its field in Sweden, organized in six divisions. The current vacancy is within the division of GeoEngineering, which consists of three overlapping research groups: Geomechanics & Geotechnical Engineering, Hydrogeology & Rock Engineering, and Risk Management of Land & Water Resources. The group has unique laboratory facilities to study soft geomaterials in climate-controlled conditions and computational facilities incorporating the latest developments for computational work. We are looking for a doctoral student in the Geomechanics & Geotechnical Engineering group lead by Prof. Minna Karstunen. The main research focus is soil modelling and its applications in engineering practice. Examples of the latter are analyses of slope stability, construction of infrastructure, such as embankments and tunnels, and foundation engineering. The research has strong links with major infrastructure projects in Scandinavia. Through the recent staff appointments, the group is well on its way to fulfill its ambition to become an internationally leading group in Soft Soil Engineering, by combining the state-of-the-art in experimental testing and modelling with field application. The ongoing projects focus on research related to long-term response of soft soils upon static and cyclic mechanical and thermal loading.

Major responsibilities
We are looking for a motivated and talented individual for the position of PhD researcher in a Chalmers-NCC joint industry research project on geothermal foundations funded by FORMAS (http://www.formas.se/en/) and SBUF (http://www.sbuf.se/). The aim of the project is to study the long-term effects of cyclic loading caused by geothermal installations, such as geothermal piles, on soft clays. The project considers the thermal contraction and expansion of energy piles, and the resulting stresses, with a focus on pile-soil interaction in Swedish soft soil conditions. The PhD student will focus on the constitutive modelling of thermal load cycles in soft clay using an existing in-house model as a starting point. The applicant is also expected to contribute to the education at undergraduate or MSc level (up to 20% of their time) and various adminstrative activities within the group.

Position summary
Full-time temporary employment. The position is limited to a maximum of five years.

Qualifications
To to qualify as a PhD student, you must have a Master's level degree corresponding to at least 240 ECTS credits in Civil Engineering or othert relevant field. Applicants must have a strong background in geotechnics with experience in constitutive modelling. Additional experience with geothermal modelling is considered beneficial.The applicants are expected to be proficient in English (both verbal and written communication) in order to work efficiently in an English speaking research environment.  Fluency is Swedish would be a additional merit.

Application procedure
The application should be marked with Ref 20140049 and written in English. The application should be sent electronically via Chalmers webpage.

Application deadline: March 6, 2014

For questions, please contact:
Minna Karstunen, minna.karstunen@chalmers.se
Jelke Dijkstra, jelke.dijkstra@chalmers.se
 



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