Embodied Carbon Analysis of Infrastructure

Construction industry contributes to about 40% of total global Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emissions. Despite the recent progress in reducing operation-related emissions of buildings and infrastructure, the Embodied Carbon emissions remain significant. For example, Embodied Carbon-related emissions will likely to be accounting for almost all total infrastructure-related GHG emissions in 2050. Lack of a proven method for the analysis of Embodied Carbon emissions is a key reason for little or no recent progress towards minimising infrastructure-related Embodied Carbon. The concept of Embodied Carbon calculation by multiplying the carbon emission factor by the relevant total quantity is easy to define, but the application for real-life infrastructure is difficult. The methods such as carbon inventories can be used to extract carbon emission factors of construction materials, but the methods have a number of inherent limitations. The aim of this PhD project is to develop an accurate methodology for Embodied Carbon analysis of infrastructure.

Applicants must have obtained or be about to obtain a First class UK honours degree, or a combination of a 2.1 bachelor's honours degree and a master's degree awarded with Merit (or the equivalent qualifications gained outside the UK), in Civil Engineering or a relevant discipline. Please contact Dr Mithila Achintha at [Email Address Removed] with any informal queries about the research project. The admissions team at [Email Address Removed] will be able to help with any queries around the application process.

Equality, diversity and inclusion is fundamental to the success of The University of Manchester, and is at the heart of all of our activities. We know that diversity strengthens our research community, leading to enhanced research creativity, productivity and quality, and societal and economic impact. We actively encourage applicants from diverse career paths and backgrounds and from all sections of the community, regardless of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation and transgender status.

We also support applications from those returning from a career break or other roles. We consider offering flexible study arrangements (including part-time: 50%, 60% or 80%, depending on the project/funder).