PhD position

Field investigation of an in-situ soil treatment solution for clay shrink-swell inhibition

A new PhD position is available at “Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées”, France (ENPC).

This PhD subject is part of a research project (IRGAK) funded by ADEME (French Agency for Ecological Transition), coordinated by ESTP (https://www.estp.fr/en) and ENPC (https://ecoledesponts.fr/en). The project IRGAK aims to develop an in-situ soil treatment solution to inhibit the volume change of clayey soils during seasonal wetting-drying cycles. The PhD candidate will perform field-scale experiments to investigate the influence of the soil treatment solution on the hydro-chemo-mechanical behaviour of natural expansive clays. The developed solution must meet scientific, environmental, economic, and practical requirements. In particular, the solution must significantly and durably inhibit heave and subsidence associated with soil moisture variations, be harmless for the environment, remain considerably less expensive than underpinning works, and be easy to implement.

The candidate should have graduated in geotechnics, geomechanics, or environmental engineering, demonstrate laboratory capabilities, and be interested in scientific development and engineering applications.

For further information, please see the attached PDF.