aero PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships

The project will seek an understanding of the microstructural changes during machining of specialist aerospace materials for high temperature applications used in the latest generations of civil and military aero-engines. Read more

Year round applications PhD Research Project Competition Funded PhD Project (Students Worldwide)

University of Sheffield School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering

Adjoint optimisation of aero engine fuel passages

Aero engines can suffer from deposition growth over time, resulting in suboptimal engine heat management, spray patternation and hot spots. Read more

Supervisors: Prof M Pourkashanian, Dr S Siouris

Year round applications PhD Research Project Self-Funded PhD Students Only

Rolls-Royce sponsored PhD Scholarship, Design and Simulation of Stiffness-Adjustable Robotic Systems for Performing on-Wing Repair of Aero-Engines - (ENG 192)

Applicants are invited to undertake a 3 year PhD programme in partnership with industry to address key challenges in on-platform manufacturing engineering. Read more

Year round applications PhD Research Project Competition Funded PhD Project (Students Worldwide)

Computer vision and robot control for performing on-wing repair of aero-engines - (ENG - 193)

Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre (UTC) in manufacturing and On-Wing Technology, The University of Nottingham. Applicants are invited to undertake a 3 year PhD programme in partnership with industry to address key challenges in on-platform manufacturing engineering. Read more

Year round applications PhD Research Project Competition Funded PhD Project (Students Worldwide)

Imperial College London Department of Mechanical Engineering

PhD Studentship in Optimal Frictional Damping in Bladed Discs Under Rotating Conditions

Applications are invited for a research studentship in the field of clean, safe and competitive future aero engine development, leading to the award of a PhD degree. The post is supported by a bursary and fees (at the UK student rate) provided by the EPSRC, with a generous bursary top-up from industrial funds. Read more

Supervisor: Dr C Schwingshackl

Year round applications PhD Research Project Funded PhD Project (UK Students Only)

Sheffield Hallam University Materials and Engineering Research Institute

Aerospace Flow Control Actuator Technology Performance Enhancement Using High Strain-Temperature Lead Free Piezoceramic Materials

The Industry and Innovation Research Institute (I2Ri) draws on talents, expertise and facilities across Sheffield Hallam University. Read more

Supervisors: Dr JP Potts, Dr JS Spendlove, Dr A Feteira

Year round applications PhD Research Project Self-Funded PhD Students Only

The University of Manchester Department of Materials

(DTP EPSRC) Microstructure crack-growth relationships in Ti6Al4V

Titanium alloys are used extensively in the manufacture of aero-engine components, owing to their exceptional strength and relatively low density. Read more

Supervisors: Dr J Fonseca, Dr T Burnett

Year round applications PhD Research Project Funded PhD Project (UK Students Only)

The University of Manchester Department of Materials

Development of ceramic thermal and environmental barrier coatings for high temperature applications

Research Group: Coatings and Ceramics

Ceramic coatings are vital in high-temperature applications, especially in aero-engines and the power generation industry. These coatings increase the engine’s operating temperature to improve efficiency and reduce the engine’s environmental impact. Read more

Supervisor: Prof P Xiao

Year round applications PhD Research Project Funded PhD Project (Students Worldwide)

Rolls Royce sponsored PhD scholarship - Machining of new aerospace materials - (ENG - 1591)

Applications are invited to undertake a 3 year PhD programme in partnership with industry to address key challenges in manufacturing engineering. Read more

Year round applications PhD Research Project Competition Funded PhD Project (Students Worldwide)

Imperial College London Department of Materials

Novel interphases for ceramic composites: a high-throughput approach

The Department of Materials at Imperial College London, as part of the new CDT in Materials 4.0, is looking for a candidate to undertake a PhD project in the field of Ceramic Matrix Composites for the next generation of aero-engines and fusion reactors. Read more

Supervisor: Dr O Gavalda Diaz

Year round applications PhD Research Project Funded PhD Project (UK Students Only)

Kingston University Faculty of Engineering, Computing and the Environment

Composite Materials with integrated ‘‘massless’’ energy storage for use in civil and mobile applications such as electric vehicles, drones, and composite planes

Nowadays in electric cars, batteries, contribute a large part of the vehicle's weight, which means additional footprinting and load bearing function. Read more

Supervisor: Dr S Koutsonas

Year round applications PhD Research Project Self-Funded PhD Students Only

Kingston University Faculty of Engineering, Computing and the Environment

Aerothermal investigation on the effect of in-service burnout on the leakage flows over high-pressure turbine blade tip

The aero-industry is required to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. Therefore, it is important to continuously advance its propulsion technology to reduce its fuel burn and achieve this target by 2050. Read more

Supervisor: Dr Z Saleh

Year round applications PhD Research Project Self-Funded PhD Students Only

University of Sheffield School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering

Development of a Lattice-Boltzmann based model for the deposition process in chemically reacting flows

The modelling of deposition using classical CFD methods relies heavily on mesh adaption and refinement. Read more

Supervisors: Prof M Pourkashanian, Dr S Siouris

Year round applications PhD Research Project Self-Funded PhD Students Only

University of Sheffield School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering

Effects of nozzle design and surface temperature on the wall shear stresses of impinging jets

Impinging jets are flow features seen in heat exchangers and aero engines. Such applications may suffer from the development of deposits which would therefore restrict the heat transfer between the incoming fluid and the solid wall and even affect fluid flow. Read more

Supervisors: Prof M Pourkashanian, Dr S Siouris

Year round applications PhD Research Project Self-Funded PhD Students Only