Fully-funded PhD studentship on rock damage mechanics and slope failure

As part of an ongoing industry-funded research project (see http://community.dur.ac.uk/cobra/), we are seeking to appoint a PhD student in rock damage mechanics and slope failure to join our research group at Durham University (UK).

The studentship includes full home (UK and EU) tuition fees, a full UKRI-equivalent doctoral stipend (see: https://www.ukri.org/skills/funding-for-research-training/), and access to generous research support for laboratory- and field-working.

The studentship is open to UK/EU candidates who hold a relevant Masters degree and/or first-class or 2:1 undergraduate degree (or equivalent). Evidence of English language proficiency may also be required if applicants are not native speakers of English.

For further information on the project, eligibility and the application procedure, please contact Dr. Matt Brain ([Email Address Removed]) and Prof. Nick Rosser ([Email Address Removed]).

To apply, please send the following documents to [Email Address Removed] with the reference “COBRA PhD Rock Damage”:

1) a current CV;
2) a cover letter (2 pages A4 max.) that describes your motivation for applying and your previous research experience;
3) letters of support from two referees (these can be sent directly to [Email Address Removed] by referees); and
4) transcripts of previous qualifications.

The deadline for applications is 1700, 17 July 2020. Applications will be reviewed and shortlisted, and interviews will take place from w/c 27 July 2020.

Project description

Rock damage mechanics and rock-slope failure

Rock-slope strength can be reduced through time, and to the point slope failure, in response to a range of processes that cause ‘damage’ to rock over a range of spatial and temporal scales. Isolating the relative importance of each process is difficult in limited-duration field studies, but is fundamental to our ability to understand the drivers of rock-slope failure. This is complicated by path dependency resulting from, for example, the sequencing of rock-damaging events and threshold behaviour. Laboratory testing and numerical modelling allow us to separate and explore each damage-inducing process, contributing to our understanding of how slopes become prepared for failure and erosion. For example, we have previously considered how microseismic deformation can be an effective geomorphic agent in damaging near-surface rock (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2013.11.002). We have also considered the role of progressive strength degradation due to weathering and its control on failure style/mode (https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.4619), and the importance of the sequence of seismic events in controlling the susceptibility of hillslopes to failure during earthquake shaking (https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL071879).

To take this work forward, we seek a doctoral researcher to focus on the role of the rate, style and sequence of erosion on damage accumulation in near-surface rock slopes, and how this is modulated by weathering. This project will use geotechnical laboratory tests (triaxial tests with acoustic emission monitoring), field experiments and numerical modelling to explore how the past and current erosion and weathering combine to drive differences in damage accumulation and the nature and rate of future erosion. The project will consider a range of stress environments, from coastal rock slopes to deep mining settings.

The candidate will receive training and support from the COBRA research group in geotechnical laboratory testing, data handling/analysis and numerical modelling, in addition to extensive field/conference support.

This project would be ideally suited to a candidate with MSc-level experience in research areas including physical geography, geology, geophysics, rock mechanics and/or engineering geology.