Mathematical Modelling for Sustainable Crops: using SimRoot to optimise root growth and nutrient uptake

Supervisors: Professor Markus Owen (School of Mathematical Sciences), Professor Malcolm Bennett & Professor Jonathan Lynch (School of Biosciences)

Do you have a passion for sustainability?
Would you like to apply mathematical research to help improve resource security?

Modelling and Analytics for a Sustainable Society (MASS) is a Leverhulme Doctoral Scholarships programme at the University of Nottingham that aims to tackle the ongoing global problems of food shortages, water scarcity and insufficient clean energy by using mathematics to help understand and optimise resource use through predictive modelling and statistical analysis. This project focuses on the use of mathematical models to optimise the growth of food crops.

The dynamic architecture of plant roots can be a crucial determinant of crop growth and yields, and is hence of widespread interest in the context of food security. Furthermore, links with water and fertiliser use place root growth firmly in the energy-food-water nexus. This project will use and develop innovative mathematical and computational models (using SimRoot) of the growth of wheat root systems and uptake of nutrients by those systems. Simulating the impact of root architecture and soil properties on the uptake of water and nutrients, such as nitrate and phosphate, will help to optimise wheat performance. The project will draw on state-of-the-art data from the non-invasive imaging of wheat roots in soil, using X-ray Computed Tomography (μCT), and will blend partial differential equation modelling of nutrient and water transport with stochastic modelling of branching root structures.

For more information, including details of other available research projects, please visit: www.nottingham.ac.uk/mathematics/prospective/research/leverhulme-doctoral-scholarships.aspx

The Leverhulme Doctoral Scholars, who will be based in the new £7m Mathematical Sciences Building, will be exposed to an outstanding and vibrant research environment in mathematics, resource science, engineering and social sciences, with excellent opportunities for international engagement. At the end of their PhD, the Scholars will be eligible to apply for an additional one-year post-doctoral prize, funded by The University of Nottingham, to help establish their independent research careers.
Eligibility: Appropriately motivated students should have, or expect to obtain, a first-class or good 2:1 honours degree and/or a distinction or high merit at MSc level in Mathematics or a subject with a strong mathematical component (e.g. physics, engineering, computer science).

Apply: Please visit the MASS web page and identify up to three projects of interest. Then apply via the University of Nottingham application page, using the personal statement section to indicate that you are applying to the “Mathematics for A Sustainable Society” programme, making sure to list your preferred projects, and uploading a CV of no more than two pages.