Numerical Characterisation of Landslide-Tsunamis in Idealised and Real-World Water Bodies

Faculty of Engineering - Geohazards and Earth Processes Research Group

Fully funded PhD Research Studentship (3 years)

Supervisors: Dr Valentin Heller (1st) and Dr Riccardo Briganti (2nd), Faculty of Engineering

Applications are invited for a fully funded PhD research studentship in the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Nottingham, ranked 77th in the recent QS World University Ranking 2014/15. The excellence in research of the Faculty of Engineering was confirmed within the last Research Excellence Framework (REF 2014), with 85% of its research output classified as world-leading or of internationally excellent quality. The Faculty provides state-of-the-art experimental and computational facilities and attracts leading scholars from around the world, many of whom are leaders in their fields. The successful candidate will be based in the Geohazards and Earth Processes Research Group and conduct research into landslide-tsunamis.

Project description
Landslide-tsunamis (impulse waves) are generated by mass movements such as landslides, rock falls, snow avalanches or glacier calving impacting into a water body. Such waves have reached run-up heights of up to 524 m in the recent past and overtopped dams with catastrophic consequences. Landslide-generated impulse waves need often to be assessed in the planning and operation phases of hydropower projects around the globe including regions and countries such as the Alps, the Rocky Mountains and China. The consideration of the water body geometry and bathymetry is a crucial component for reliable hazard assessment; e.g. the former easily alters the wave magnitude by an order of magnitude.
The successful candidate will numerically investigate landslide-tsunamis in a number of idealised and real-world water bodies. She/he will use and further develop an available open source code based on the Lagrangian method Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics SPH. Recently obtained high quality physical model data are available for calibration and validation purposes. The findings are hoped to enhance our physical understanding of landslide-tsunamis and to improve the reliability of landslide-tsunami hazard assessment in reservoirs, lakes, fjords and the sea.

Requirements for the studentship
• Enthusiastic and exact working student with at least 2:1/Merit class degree (MEng, MSc) or equivalent in engineering, mathematics, physics or related disciplines.
• Experience in numerical modelling and good programming skills are essential.
• Good knowledge of fluid and wave mechanics is an asset.

Informal enquiries and formal applications including a cover letter clearly stating how your interests and experience fulfil the requirements of the studentship, your academic transcripts and a CV with the names and addresses of two academic referees should be send to Dr Valentin Heller ([Email Address Removed]). Please quote ref no ENG872. Closing date is the 15th October 2015
.