Postdoctoral Candidate - Peridynamics-based Approaches for Severe Failure of Composite Structures

KAUST (King Abdullah University of Science and Technology)

POSTDOCTORAL CANDIDATE - PERIDYNAMICS-BASED APPROACHES FOR SEVERE FAILURE OF COMPOSITE STRUCTURES

Introduction
The Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) invites applications for a Postdoctoral fellow in Mechanical Engineering at the Composite and Heterogeneous Material Analysis and Simulation Laboratory (COHMAS).

We seek a highly motivated candidate who will be involved in the development of a specialised peridynamics based approach for failure of composite structures. The work will involve model and theoretical development as well as code and application development and validation. As part of an extended collaboration between COHMAS and its industrial partners, the candidate will collaborate closely with the SANDIA National Laboratories, in Albuquerque, USA. It is anticipated that the candidate will be based at Albuquerque for 75% of his tenure. English proficiency is required.

Please contact us for a further description of the project.

Qualifications
The successful candidate must hold a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, Applied Mathematics, Physics or other relevant discipline and must have several years’ experience and a strong background in computational solid mechanics. Previous experience is expected in at least one of these area: computational solid mechanics, non-linear simulations, computational tools for fracture mechanics, multiscale computing, XFEM.

A high level of self-motivation, professional competence and a good command of oral and written English, PC skills, the ability to work in a team, as well as alone and good organizational skills are essential.

Other duties
The Postdoctoral fellow will be actively engaged in student mentoring (directed research, Masters thesis students). He / She will also be in charge of developing peridynamics related Tools for the laboratory. The candidate will also be required to deliver regular reports related to the associated Industrial grant.

Appointment
1 year, renewable up to three years by mutual agreement.

The candidate is expected to join the team as soon as a successful interview has been completed. The deadline for the submission of applications is the 21st of September 2012.

Benefits
In addition to a competitive salary, the successful candidate will enjoy a generous benefit package including medical/dental insurance, on-campus free housing, K-12 schools, paid airfare (at start and end of contract) and outstanding recreational facilities.

Application Requirements
Application requirements are as below:
1. Detailed CV including list of publications, awards, with potential start date
2. Short statement of previous work, and a description of their research project
(no more than one A4 page).
3. Three professional reference letters.
4. Slides from a recent presentation in a conference or seminar.

Interested applicants should send their complete application packets to:

COHMAS administrator
Ros Harvey
cohmas@kaust.edu.sa

Please copy (cc:) all applications to:

Dr. Gilles Lubineau (gilles.lubineau@kaust.edu.sa)

Please use as subject for your email: Post Doc Application COHMAS / SANDIA

Application requirements are as below:
5. Detailed CV including with list of publications, awards, with potential start date
6. Short statement of previous work, and a description of their research project
(no more than one A4 page).
7. Three professional reference letters.
8. Slides from a recent presentation in a conference or seminar.

About KAUST and the COHMAS laboratory
The Composite and Heterogeneous Material Analysis and Simulation Laboratory (COHMAS) is located at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology and forms part of the Physical Science and Engineering Division.
COHMAS develops and validates techniques to achieve the better design of composite materials based structures. Our general research activities cover:

• Multiscale damage modeling in composites: micromechanics, mesoscale damage mechanics for structural application, molecular mechanics, homogenisation
• Computational strategies for multimodel problems: gluing techniques between models at different scales
• Inverse problems for the identification of material parameters based on full-fields measurements and computed tomography
• Mechanics of multiscale reinforced composites: nanoreinforced materials, carbon nanotubes, carbon nanofibers
• Aging and degradation of composite structures submitted to severe environmental conditions

Every project we undertake seeks to develop an integrated approach to material analysis including advanced experimental characterization, advanced modeling and simulation.