📢 PhD Opportunity – Characterisation of Dilatant Gas Flows in Argillites using X-ray Microtomography

Location: Paris region (Fontenay-aux-Roses / Saclay, France)
Start Date: 1 October 2025
Deadline to Apply: 10 April 2025
Contract: ASNR doctoral fellowship in collaboration with LPMS, ENS Paris-Saclay

Are you passionate about hydro-mechanical processes, X-ray imaging, and geological facilities safety? Join us to investigate a unique mode of gas migration in clay-rich rocks—critical for the long-term safety of radioactive waste disposal.

Your mission: Design and use a custom-built, X-ray transparent triaxial cell to observe gas injection in argillite samples at the microstructural level. Apply cutting-edge imaging and digital volume correlation techniques to track deformation, fracture development, and model damage evolution in real-time.

🔍 Key themes:

• Hydro-mechanical coupling
• Gas transport in saturated media
• X-ray microtomography
• Digital Volume Correlation (DVC)
• Multiscale modelling

📚 Background required: Master’s or engineering degree in solid mechanics, material science, or civil engineering.

📩 More details in the attachments

Dr. Davide Noè Gorini, Assistant Professor at the University of Trento, and Prof. Marco Broccardo, Associate Professor at the University of Trento, are seeking two highly motivated Postdoctoral Researchers to join their research group on Multi-Physics Analysis, Design and Assessment of Energy Infrastructural Networks. More information can be found in the attached document.

Prof. Oreste Bursi, Full Professor at the University of Trento (Italy), and Dr. Davide Noè Gorini, Assistant Professor at the University of Trento, are seeking a highly motivated PhD student to join their research group on Hazard protection of Civil Engineering Structures.

More information can be found in the attached document.

The research will be conducted collaboratively at INRIA-TRIPOP and INRAE-ECRINS. The PhD position offers an exciting opportunity to tackle complex problems at the intersection of granular physics and artificial intelligence, to enhance the understanding, modelling, and predictive capabilities in the context of natural gravitational hazards. The role provides extensive opportunities to develop expertise and skills for career paths in both academic research and industry. The appointment is for a duration of three years and contingent upon a pending research grant.

For more details, see here.

Please find below the text for three announcements regarding fully funded PhD positions available at Loughborough University, UK. These positions are part of our prestigious Vice Chancellor’s PhD Cluster – RAINDROP (Resilient eArthwork INfrastructure: Diagnosis, RehabilitatiOn & Prognosis), which focuses on enhancing the resilience of earthwork infrastructure to climate change – https://www.lboro.ac.uk/research/clusters/raindrop/.

Post-doctoral Fellowship positions in Machine Learning/Numerical Analysis in Geotechnical Engineering are open at the Geotechnical Engineering Research Group, Shandong University, Jinan, China. Candidates should have graduated with a Ph.D. within the last three years and have experience in machine learning/numerical analysis in geotechnical engineering. Successful candidates will engage in interdisciplinary research in applying machine learning/numerical analysis in transportation geotechnics or offshore geotechnical engineering. Interested applicants are encouraged to contact Prof. Kai Yao https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kai-Yao by emailing yaokai@sdu.edu.cn

For additional information, see the attached file.

Dear Colleagues,

Please find enclosed a PhD thesis position at ISTerre (University Savoie Mont Blanc, Chambéry, France)

Title: Influence of Freeze-Thaw Cycles on Geomaterial Damage

Further information about the context/objectives and how to apply are given in the enclosed documents in French and English.

Dear colleagues,

We would like to advertise the following opportunities at Charles University in Prague.

– Two fully-funded PhD scholarships in geomechanics

– Support for applying for a postdoctoral fellowship (landslides, natural hazards) through the MSCA & CHARLESTON programmes

Please see the attached documents here and here for details.

Dear colleagues,

We are looking for a highly motivated student to work with us on the topic of “Microstructural and erosion behaviour studies of vegetation-treated soils of hydraulic earth structures for power generation systems“. 

The funding for this PhD thesis is two fold: 1/2 from the french ministry (CDE) and 1/2 from ShanDong University. More information can be found in the attached document, including email addresses to contact the supervision team and important deadlines for application.

There is an academic position in geotechnics open at Imperial College London at any level, i.e. from lecturer to professor. 

Because of the way Imperial HR works there are two separate advertisements for this:

Lecturer / senior lecturer:

https://www.imperial.ac.uk/jobs/search-jobs/description/index.php?jobId=23257&jobTitle=Lecturer%2FSenior+Lecturer+in+Geotechnical+Engineering

Reader / professor:

https://www.imperial.ac.uk/jobs/search-jobs/description/index.php?jobId=23254&jobTitle=Reader%2FProfessor+in+Geotechnical+Engineering

Interested candidates can contact Catherine O’Sullivan (cath.osullivan@imperial.ac.uk) with informal inquiries.