PhD opportunities dec 2008
PhD-project in coupled vibrations in hydro power rotors
With new operating conditions and aging machines in the hydro power industry, rotor dynamic research in this area is becoming more important. The need for reliable operations of the hydro power machines is of worldwide importance, and to this end the development of better simulation techniques and methods are necessary. When failures do occur, it is important that dynamical questions regarding the cause of the failures can be identified and answered.
As such, there is no other international group today that continuously works with rotor dynamics in hydro power units. Therefore it is expected that our research will have an important impact even at the international level. At LTU and Vattenfall VRD, we have been doing research in rotor dynamics since 2001, leading to several research projects and new findings that have been published in international journals. There are many crucial rotor dynamic issues in hydro power applications. Some examples are rotor interaction with bearings, fluid-rotor structure interaction and electromagnetic fields. We are working in all areas through collaborations within the Swedish hydropower centre (SVC). SVC was initiated 2006 and has as aim to develop competence within the hydro power technology sector. An outcome of the several workshops is the decision by the SVC to initiate a new research project in coupled vibrations in hydro power rotors. Coupled vibrations have been studied extensively in rotor dynamics and it has been found that coupling can result in unexpected vibrations, and in some cases failure due to self excited motions or parametric excitations. The target in the project is to determine when such problems can occur and also find out the causes of the problems. Thus, we are now searching for a new PhD student in Solid Mechanics to work on these issues
Method
We work with both analytical and numerical methods to study the rotor dynamics. For numerical simulations, we usually use Matlab or own programs, but we do also have access to several other commercial programs should they be required . The new models should be evaluated either in test rigs ( LTU or Vattenfall research & development) or in real hydro power stations. Since several problems are of nonlinear nature, it becomes essential to use nonlinear methods in the work.
Suitable background
The requirement for the appointment is a Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering or Applied Physics directed towards mechanics. A strong analytical interest is more than desirable for the project to run smoothly. It is traditionally difficult to attract females to the field of mechanics. Therefore we are actively working for an environment which attracts both females and males
Your work is to perform supervised research, read appropriate courses and participate in departmental activities such as teaching.
For more information about SVC see www.svc.nu and about the project www.ltu.se/tfm/avd/solidmechanics
Contact person: Prof. Jan-Olov Aidanpää, tel: 070-2592531, email: joa@ltu.se
Application
Application marked with Ref no with merits should be sent to Registrator, Luleå tekniska universitet, 971 87 Luleå or registrator@ltu.se
Ref no: 2951-08
Last date for application is: 2008-12-12
PhD position in Urban Surface Energy
PhD position (3 year stipend £19k/year fees to be paid from stipend) who will work with others at King’s College London (KCL) on two European Union FP7 funded research projects to evaluate urban surface energy, water and carbon exchanges through in situ observations, remote sensing analyses and modelling. The KCL component of these projects involves the determination of fluxes for London using the techniques outlined below. Results from this science will be used (1) to develop a decision support system for sustainable urban planning, accounting for urban metabolism; and (2) to assess impacts of megacities on local, regional, and global air quality and climate. The research objectives will be to determine the magnitude and spatial variability of the fluxes and their controls in relation to these applications.
A variety of methods will be deployed during the research, including micrometeorological techniques (e.g. eddy covariance, large aperture scintillometry) to determine local scale fluxes, and analysis of ground?based, airborne and satellite hyper?spectral optical and thermal IR data to determine the surface energy balance. Numerical modelling will involve urban land surface schemes and their application in WRF.
The post holder will work with Professors Sue Grimmond (sue.grimmond@kcl.ac.uk) and Martin Wooster (Martin.Wooster@kcl.ac.uk) and their existing research teams to deliver cutting?edge research into urban surface energy, water and carbon exchanges.
Urban Meteorology: The EMM Group’s research on urban meteorology has centred around its
investigation of energy, water and carbon exchanges using micrometeorological techniques, numerical modelling and remote sensing methods in a variety of urban areas (North America, Africa, Europe).
This research has been led by Professor Sue Grimmond and Prof Martin Wooster, and the current post will work within their existing research teams. Recent publications can be found here:
http://www.kcl.ac.uk/ip/suegrimmond/news.htm
http://www.kcl.ac.uk/schools/sspp/geography/people/acad/wooster/pubs.html
Background: Ideally MSc qualified in an area related to aims of this project. This includes (but is not limited to) meteorology, atmospheric science, earth science, physical geography, computer science, physics, applied mathematics, engineering or other physical science discipline.
Ideally: Strong writing and oral communications ability
Ability to programme (ideally Fortran/ IDL/MatLab)
Experience in collecting and analysing micrometeorological data and/or
Knowledge of remote sensing physics and data processing methods (inlcuduing ideally airborne and TIR data)
Application process: Please provide CV, Covering letter, Names of Two referees, copies of academic transcripts. Please email these to Professor Sue Grimmond (sue.grimmond@kcl.ac.uk)
Application Deadline: December 5, 2008 or until position filled
Start date: Ideally early 2009 (January/February etc)
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Other funding opportunities are available within the Department
Including research Council quota and open awards, King’s Annual Award, Graduate School, School awards, Overseas Research Scholarships. If you are interested in these
Urban Climate and Meteorology including for example
1) Numerical modeling of urban surface?atmosphere exchanges
2) Boundary layer processes
3) Urban energy balance fluxes
4) Urban water exchanges and the link to the energy balance
5) Urban CO2 Exchanges
6) Quantifying evaporation pathways in the suburban environment (CASE award)
*Satellite, ground?based or airborne remote sensing *(and links to models)
7) See list at
<http://www.kcl.ac.uk/schools/sspp/geography/people/acad/wooster/researchtopics.html>
Application details can be found on
<http://www.kcl.ac.uk/schools/sspp/geography/phd>
*The deadline for applications *is 31 January.
PhD student position in Applications of space techniques for earth observations -2009, Sweden
Application deadline 2008-12-18
Our research is driven by the curiosity to learn more about the universe and our earth. Through studies of the history of the universe and by studying what is happening on the earth today we search for a greater understanding of the origin of the universe, the earth, and the life. In order to reach our goals we develop very sensitive instrumentation and methods for retrieval of information from measurements.
Job description
We search for a doctoral student to study applications of space techniques to global and regional earth observations. The focus will be in particular on geodetic space techniques such as Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI), Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) (e.g. GPS, GLONASS, and the future European system Galileo), and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR).
The measurements performed with these techniques result in parameters such as crustal motions, earth rotation parameters, and the atmospheric water vapour content. These parameters describe the global change on our dynamic planet on various temporal and spatial scales and are of major importance in geophysical and climate research. The techniques have different technique-specific advantages and strengths for global earth observations and are complementing each other in terms of the sensed parameter space, accuracy and resolution. To make use of these techniques in a best possible way with a holistic approach, the individual accuracy and stability needs to be investigated (and possibly improved), and strategies for a combination and integration have to be developed.
One focus of the project is the combination and integration of GNSS and InSAR data and analysis to study crustal deformation phenomena. Other subject areas are GNSS applications to monitor sea level changes and seismic events.
Qualifications
A suitable background is a Master of Science (Swedish: civilingenjör) in physics, electrical engineering, or an equivalent degree, including an experience and/or a strong interest in measurements and data analysis applied to the atmospheric sciences.
You will be employed as a doctoral student by Chalmers and will receive a salary according to current salary agreements. A maximum of 20% of your working time will be devoted to duties at the department, mainly teaching of undergraduate courses. The remaining time will be devoted to your own research education, where the aim is to complete your PhD examination within 5 years (nominal time without department duties is 4 years).
Application procedure
The application shall be written in English and include the following items:
1. An application of a maximum of one A4 page containing your specific qualifications for the position
2. Attested copies of education certificates, including grade reports and other documents
3. Curriculum Vitae
4. Letters of recommendation and name of reference persons (optional)
The application shall be sent electronically as pdf or zipped documents. Please use the button at the foot of the page to reach the application form.
If any material is not available electronically or cannot be transferred to pdf format, the material can be sent as a hard copy to Registrar. The applicants name and the reference number (2008/259) must be written on the first page of the application.
Address:
Registrar
Chalmers University of Technology
SE-412 96 Göteborg
Sweden
Further information
For additional information please contact Rüdiger Haas
Tel: 46 – 31 772 5530
E-mail: rudiger.haas@chalmers.se at the Department of Radio and Space Science.
Union representatives
* SACO: Jan Lindér
* ST: Marie Wenander
* SEKO: Ralf Berndtsson
All reachable via Chalmers exchange: +46 31 772 10 00