SA7 SoilSquash: Development of a fibre optic soil compaction sensor

Start Date: October 2017
Duration of award: 3.5 years

Supervisors:
Dr Jack Hannam (Cranfield)
Dr Matthew Partridge (Cranfield)
Prof Wilfred Otten (Cranfield)
Dr Richard Whalley (Rothamsted)

Sponsored by Rothamsted Research and Cranfield University, this studentship will provide a bursary of £17,500 p.a. (tax free) plus fees* plus research consumables for 3.5 years. Please note the eligibility criteria for this studentship has been amended. Residents from UK and EU are now eligible for the FULL funding award.

This project will develop a novel method for detecting compaction based on fibre optic technology. This will use detectable variations in the refractive index of fibre optic sensors to identify the changes in soil density as a result of soil compaction.

We need to feed a growing global population through sustainable intensification of our current land resources. However the continued productivity of agricultural soils is threatened by various pressures, one of which is soil compaction from agricultural machinery. Compaction causes changes in the soil structure and pore space, with negative effects on crop growth and yield. Currently there are few reliable, practicable methods for measuring changes in soil compaction. This project will seek to provide a cheap, practical alternative to laborious and costly laboratory-based assessments. The student will join the engineering photonics group at Cranfield and the soil physics groups at Cranfield and Rothamsted Research.

Soil AgRIA Doctoral Training Centre The studentship is one of seven in Soil Technology Innovation being funded by Rothamsted Research and Cranfield University as part of a new Agricultural Research and Innovation Accelerator (AgRIA) based at Rothamsted. The Soil AgRIA has been established to accelerate applications of science and engineering advances to soil technology development, to tackle widely-acknowledged constraints to soil and land management, both nationally and globally. The aim is to accelerate innovation by bringing together engineers, information technologists, natural scientists and soil scientists with business. Students will be co-supervised by Rothamsted and Cranfield scientists and will also be embedded in a multidisciplinary innovation accelerator, advised by a think tank of industrial stakeholders. The degree programme will include training in innovative thinking and entrepreneurial skills, as well as the more-standard Cranfield and Rothamsted doctoral programmes. Students will be registered at Cranfield and will have social and networking opportunities within the Cranfield and Rothamsted wider research communities.

Entry requirements
Applicants should hold a minimum of a UK Honours Degree at 2:1 level or equivalent in subjects such as a Natural Science, Environmental Science or Engineering. A full driving licence and fluency in English is also required.

How to apply
For further information please contact: Jack Hannam, [Email Address Removed]

If you are eligible to apply for this research studentship, please follow the Apply Online button below to download the application form and send this form together with a CV to Guy Kirk, [Email Address Removed]