Rockfall Fragmentation upon Impact

We invite highly motivated and committed candidates to apply for two fully funded PhD scholarships in the area of rock mechanics, rockfall and slope monitoring. One  International scholarship and one Domestic scholarship are available. This project is in collaboration with Rocscience Inc. Fragmentation is often observed post rockfall events and it is recognised as a critical aspect of adequate rockfall risk management. Yet, rockfall fragmentation is a complex phenomenon still poorly understood and not properly considered in engineering practice.

This project aims at developing a theoretical and stochastic fragmentation framework, based on high-quality and comprehensive experimental data and field observations, in collaboration with leading international industry partners that provide advanced geotechnical design tools to practitioners around the world.

The successful candidate will work alongside a team of established researchers at the School of Engineering’s Centre for Geotechnical Science and Engineering and will also be closely followed by the industry partner. The project will involve both fundamental and applied research using world-class research facilities.

The PhD candidate will have the opportunity to travel to national and international conferences.

Eligibility Criteria

Candidates should hold a Bachelor with Honours Class I or Honours Class II, Division 1 (or equivalent) in Civil Engineering, Engineering Geology or closely related areas and have a proven background in experimental and theoretical rock mechanics and/or knowledge of surveying monitoring techniques, demonstrated basic programming skills, and high level written and oral communication skills. Female candidates with relevant requisites are particularly encouraged to apply.

The applicant will need to meet the minimum eligibility criteria for admission.

Application Procedure

Interested applicants should send an email expressing their interest along with scanned copies of their academic transcripts, CV, a brief statement of their research interests and a proposal that specifically links them to the research project.

Please send the email expressing interest to Davide.Guccione@newcastle.edu.au by 5pm on 06 May 2024.