PhD Research Studentship

Applications are invited for a fully funded PhD studentship under the supervision of Prof. I.G. Richardson and Dr L. Black in the School of Civil Engineering.

The studentship is funded by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (http://www.nda.gov.uk/), which is responsible for the decommissioning and clean up of the UK’s civil public-sector nuclear sites.  The NDA is developing concepts for the long-term management of radioactive waste.  These are based on a deep geological disposal facility (GDF) and include a number of stages in the management and eventual disposal of radioactive waste.  Cement-based materials are currently used to encapsulate intermediate-level wastes (ILW) may also be used as an engineered backfill around such wastes in a GDF.  Knowledge of how waste materials interact with the hardened cement is important for the development of predictive models for long-term performance.  This studentship will involve the characterization of hardened cement samples that incorporate simulant wastes using a number of sophisticated experimental techniques, including analytical transmission electron microscopy and solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Note that there will be no radioactive material involved in the work.

The successful applicant will hold a minimum 2(i) first degree in a relevant discipline (Materials Science, Chemistry, Physics, Earth Sciences, etc.).

Please note that the studentship will cover the tuition fees at the UK/EU rate only and is fully funded for 42 months (including tax-free maintenance payments of £13,290 p/a for the first year, increasing in consecutive years). The earliest start date will be the 1^st March 2010.

To apply, please send a CV, including the name of at least one academic referee, to Prof. Ian Richardson, School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK or to i.g.richardson@leeds.ac.uk. Informal enquiries may be made by telephone on +44 (0) 113 343 2331 or by e‑mail.