KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden, is searching for a doctoral student to be employed at the Division of Soil and Rock Mechanics. The work tasks are related to doctoral studies leading to a Licentiate degree, if the study plan is followed. (Opportunity to continue working to a PhD degree is very likely to be offered, but cannot be completely guaranteed at this point. Licentiate is an intermediate degree.) The studies are connected to the research project “Piling in soil with high boulder content: study of pile refusal in different soil types”. Driven piles in till or esker material often encounter boulders. This can cause structural failure to the pile, causing delays and additional costs. However, assessing the probability of pile refusal is challenging and existing tools are simplistic. The purpose of the research project is to develop a methodology for assessment of the risk for pile refusal in different soil types and for different pile driving equipment. This should facilitate cost-effective pile driving, minimizing delays and material use.

The work tasks include case studies of piling work, analytical, numerical and probabilistic calculation modelling, field work, writing scientific articles, taking postgraduate courses, and teaching. The employment comes with a competitive salary in line with what is offered to newly graduated engineers working in the Swedish construction industry. The vacancy ad and further details about the project and the employment can be found here: KTH Vacancies