Bayesian approach for the design of offshore wind turbine structures with fluid viscous damping systems

We are recruiting new Doctoral Researchers to our EPSRC funded Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP) PhD studentships starting 1 October 2024. Applications are invited for the project title Bayesian approach for the design of offshore wind turbine structures with fluid viscous damping systems.

Successful applicants will receive an annual stipend (bursary) of £21,237, including inner London weighting, plus payment of their full-time home tuition fees for a period of 42 months (3.5 years).

You should be eligible for home (UK) tuition fees there are a very limited number (no more than three) of studentships available to overseas applicants, including EU nationals, who meet the academic entry criteria including English Language proficiency.

You will join the internationally recognised researchers in the Department of Civil Engineering research and PhD programmes | Brunel University London

The Project

Supplemental damping systems, which have been widely used in onshore conventional structures, have the potential to enhance the performance of offshore wind turbine structures and achieve climate resilience. Such design must consider significant uncertainties in the structural resistance and actions from various environmental sources, including sea waves, wind gusts and earthquakes. Thus, this PhD project will develop a design procedure for offshore wind turbine structures equipped with fluid viscous damping systems considering those uncertainties. A novel Bayesian approach is used to fill the gap in knowledge in determining these uncertainties. The developed design procedures are used to demonstrate the design of offshore wind turbine structures with fluid viscous damping systems. The significance of this research is that it provides a tool for engineers to use in designing the damping systems for offshore wind turbine structures to achieve their enhanced performance, crucial in the era of climate change.

Please contact Dr Shoma Kitayama at shoma.kitayama@brunel.ac.uk for an informal discussion about the studentships.

Eligibility

Applicants will have or be expected to receive a first or upper-second class honours degree in an Engineering, Computer Science, Design, Mathematics, Physics or a similar discipline. A Postgraduate Masters degree is not required but may be an advantage.

Skills and Experience

Applicants will be required to demonstrate the following skills;

• Programming (MATLAB or Python)
• Computer simulation of structures (OpenSees or SAP2000 or ABAQUS or COMSOL)
• Basic knowledge of probability theory
• Knowledge of (or strong motivation for quickly learning) Bayesian statistics

You should be highly motivated, able to work independently as well as in a team, collaborate with others and have good communication skills (i.e., nice, kind, respectful, and open-minded).

How to apply

There are two stages of the application:

1.Applicants must submit the pre-application form via the following link

https://brunel.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/epsrc-dtp-24-25-pre-application-form-brunel-university-lon

by 16.00 on Friday 5th April 2024.

2.If you are shortlisted for the interview, you will be asked to email the following documentation in a single PDF file to cedps-studentships@brunel.ac.uk within 72hrs.

• Your up-to-date CV;
• Your Undergraduate degree certificate(s) and transcript(s) essential;
• Your Postgraduate Masters degree certificate(s) and transcript(s) if applicable;
• Your valid English Language qualification of IELTS 6.5 overall (minimum 6.0 in each section) or equivalent, if applicable;
• Contact details for TWO referees, one of which can be an academic member of staff in the College.

Applicants should therefore ensure that they have all of this information in case they are shortlisted.

Interviews will take place in April/May 2024.