Predictive modelling of reused concrete

The Sustainable Concrete Structure Laboratory is looking for three new Ph.D. candidates based on the ERC project RESCUE. In this fully-funded position, the Ph.D. candidates will work on using developing new modelling frameworks for predicting the remaining life of reused concrete elements

As the successful candidate, you will contribute to a research project at the intersection of engineering (concrete structures), material science (durability, mechanical behavior), data science (probabilistic modelling, ML, multi-scale, …), and life-cycle analyses.

The aim of these Ph.D. projects is to develop the first predictive modelling for reused concrete-element capacity. The tasks comprise the development of a laboratory campaign of full-scale reused concrete elements, The development of non-destructive testing methods, the development of new data-driven physics-informed models, and the evaluations of life-cycle gains.

This groundbreaking research output will lead to the extension of the service life of concrete infrastructures, leading to a significant reduction of carbon emissions and costs of the construction sector.
 

First PhD topic: mechanical behavior of reused concrete

Second PhD topic: Durability properties of reused concrete

Third PhD topic: data-driven modelling of reused concrete

University of Luxembourg is an international research university with a distinctly multilingual and interdisciplinary character. The University was founded in 2003 and counts more than 6,700 students and more than 2,000 employees from around the world. Times Higher Education ranks the University of Luxembourg #3 worldwide for its “international outlook,” #20 in the Young University Ranking 2021, and among the top 250 universities worldwide. The institution embraces inclusion and diversity as key values. We are fully committed to removing any discriminatory barrier related to gender, and not only, in recruitment and career progression of our staff.

This project calls for an open character with a strong knowledge on concrete structures as well as curiosity across discipline boundaries (civil engineering, material science, and computer science). We do not expect any single person to be an expert across all these fields, but you must be open to learning about and embracing challenges in fields you may not yet have been working with. We thus warmly encourage you to apply even if you feel that you only partially meet the criteria in terms of background and expertise, as you will have the opportunity to acquire the missing knowledge during the first year of the project.

Requirements for the post are:

• Master’s degree (or equivalent) in civil engineering (or related area).
• Good understanding of the structural behavior and material properties of concrete structures and modelling of civil structures. Knowledge of concrete durability and circular economy is a plus.
• Curiosity, a genuine passion for scientific research
• Openness to interdisciplinary research and commitment to teamwork.
• Commitment and capacity to critical thinking and good research ethics.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English.