Post-Doctoral Researcher School of Engineering/ERI

at  University College Cork

POSITION SUMMARY

Project Description:
The latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that the warming of the climate system is unequivocal and predicts that future changes in climate may lead to increased risk to critical infrastructure. In this context, the Next Generation Energy System (NexSys) project aims to support the transition to a Next Generation Energy System by efficiently and effectively delivering decarbonised energy for the benefit of society across four strands, namely 1) water, 2) transport, 3) offshore wind and 4) cities and communities. NexSys is a €16 million all-island, multidisciplinary energy research programme hosted by the UCD Energy Institute in partnership with eight other leading research institutions: UCC, ESRI, DCU, Queen’s University Belfast, NUI Galway, Maynooth University, Trinity College Dublin, and Ulster University. 46 leading academics work in partnership with industry to tackle the challenges of energy and infrastructure decarbonisation, developing evidence-based pathways for a net zero energy system, and increasing climate change resilience of our infrastructure.
The UCC research activities relating to this post and led by Dr Ryan will primarily be centred around the use of risk and uncertainty modelling to address challenges under the water strand. Risk tools will be used on this project to establish the extent of climate change impacts, the need for climate adaptation based on projected changes in future risks, and the effectiveness of adaptation strategies in reducing climate impacts to acceptable levels. Uncertainty and probabilistic modelling will also be used to help decarbonise water infrastructure construction and operation through optimising management practices and sustainable construction materials. To date two UCC PhD students have commenced their research at UCC under Dr Ryan’s supervision as part of the NexSys project looking at the development of sustainable concretes for water and transport infrastructure and the vulnerability of critical infrastructure to climate change effects and cascading failures. The proposed position will also help contribute to these research areas.
Role of Researcher:
The postdoctoral researcher will join a highly dynamic, international research team performing leading research in climate adaptation engineering, probabilistic assessment and sustainable materials modelling. The researcher will primarily be based in University College Cork (UCC), but will also work with academics from University of Galway and University of Technology Sydney.

The following are the primary desirable candidate criteria:

• A PhD in Engineering or similar discipline
• Strong engineering and analytical skills
• Some computer modelling skills would be advantageous (i.e. MATLAB)
• An understanding of statistics/statistical modelling
• Backgrounds in probabilistic modelling, quantitative risk assessment, climate adaptation engineering or pesticide risk modelling would also be an advantage.
• The successful candidate will be fluent in both written and spoken English.

The primary duties for the post will include numerical modelling, risk analysis and project co-ordination. Publishing of papers in high-ranking academic journals will be a high priority.

PLEASE NOTE THAT AN APPOINTMENT TO POSTS ADVERTISED WILL BE DEPENDENT ON UNIVERSITY APPROVAL, TOGETHER WITH THE TERMS OF THE EMPLOYMENT CONTROL FRAMEWORK FOR THE HIGHER EDUCATION SECTOR.

UCC is committed to creating and fully embracing an inclusive environment where diversity is celebrated. As a University we strive to create a workplace that reflects the diversity of our student population where people from a wide variety of backgrounds learn from one another, share ideas, and work collaboratively. UCC is committed to being an employer that recognises the value of diversity amongst its staff. We encourage applicants to consult our policies at https://www.ucc.ie/en/edi/policies/ and initiatives at https://www.ucc.ie/en/edi/implementation/ and we welcome applications from everyone, including those who are underrepresented in the protected characteristics set out in our Equal Opportunities & Diversity Policy.

Please refer the Job description for details