Research Associate in Resilient Sustainable Infrastructure

Applications are encouraged for a Research Associate position in the Resilient Sustainable Infrastructure Group (https://www.imperial.ac.uk/resilient-sustainable-infrastructure) within the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Imperial College London, to work as part of the UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship project ‘PermeableCity’. The project, led by Dr Alalea Kia, strives to investigate the large-scale structural performance...

Job listing information

• Reference ENG02459
• Date posted 16 January 2023
• Closing date 13 February 2023

Key information about the role

• Location South Kensington Campus - Hybrid
• Position type Full time, fixed term
• Salary £43,093 – £50,834 plus benefits
• Department Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Category Researcher / Non Clinical Researcher

Job description

Job summary

Applications are encouraged for a Research Associate position in the Resilient Sustainable Infrastructure Group (https://www.imperial.ac.uk/resilient-sustainable-infrastructure) within the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Imperial College London, to work as part of the UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship project ‘PermeableCity’. The project, led by Dr Alalea Kia, strives to investigate the large-scale structural performance and heat transfer through novel permeable pavements used in critical infrastructure, such as highways, railways and airports.

Extreme weather events, such as flooding and ice/snow build-up, affect the safety of the infrastructure users. Conventional permeable concrete pavements can capture stormwater runoff, however, they are prone to clogging and have poor strength and durability. To solve these long-standing challenges, a next-generation climate change resilient permeable pavement with a new engineered pore structure has been developed. There is a need to quantify the pavement’s large-scale structural and thermal performance using numerical modelling and laboratory/field experiments. You will conduct large-scale testing at both Imperial College London and the National Green Infrastructure Facility at Newcastle University. The initial term will be one year, with the potential to extend the appointment for an additional 1-2 years. The starting date is flexible, with a preference for between March-June 2023.

Duties and responsibilities

You will be responsible for quantifying the performance of the novel permeable pavement using large-scale structural and thermal testing (equipped with a range of sensors and data loggers), as well as undertaking structural and thermal numerical modelling (e.g. using COMSOL, ABAQUS).

Essential requirements

• Hold a PhD in Engineering or a closely related field, or equivalent research, industrial or commercial experience,

• Knowledge of large-scale testing and numerical modelling (particularly structural and thermal),

• Experience in numerical modelling, particularly thermo-hydro-mechanical modelling (ideally macro scale),

• Willingness to travel to Newcastle University for experiment set-up and periodic data collection,

• Practical experience within a research environment and/or publication in relevant journals,

• Ability to conduct a detailed review of recent literature,

• Excellent written communication skills and the ability to write clearly and succinctly for publication,

• Willingness to work as part of a team and to be open-minded and cooperative.

Further information

Applicants are recommended to contact Dr Alalea Kia (alalea.kia@imperial.ac.uk) for informal discussions about the project.

Candidates who have not yet been officially awarded their PhD will be appointed as a Research Assistant within the salary range £38,194 - £41,388 per annum.

Further information about the post is available in the job description. Please include a CV and a one-page cover letter with your application.   

Any queries regarding the application process should be directed to Briony Webb at b.webb@imperial.ac.uk.

The College is currently trialling a Work Location Framework until early 2023.  Hybrid working may be considered for this role and the role holder may be expected to work 60% or more of their time onsite, with 40% the minimum time spent onsite.  The opportunity for hybrid working will be discussed at interview.

The College is a proud signatory to the San-Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), which means that in hiring and promotion decisions, we evaluate applicants on the quality of their work, not the journal impact factor where it is published. For more information, see https://www.imperial.ac.uk/research-and-innovation/about-imperial-research/research-evaluation/

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