PhD Studentship: Rock Fracture and Fragmentation
Imperial College London - Department of Earth Science and Engineering
Background: The Rio Tinto Centre for Advanced Mineral Recovery was founded in 2008 in the Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College London. The Centre is a partnership between Imperial College London and Rio Tinto, one of the world’s largest mining companies, and is aimed at developing more efficient and environmentally friendly methods of mining - the “mine of the future”. One of the projects within the centre is Rock Fracture and Fragmentation, which is aimed at developing computational tools to study the fracture, fragmentation and flow of rock within underground mines that are being mined using the block caving method.
Technical Scope: The objective of this project is to undertake and disseminate research in the computational modelling of rock fracturing and fragmentation processes. Specifically, the student will investigate, using mathematical modelling and computer simulation, fundamental issues related to rock fracture and fragmentation, such as the effect of fracture propagation criteria on the resultant geometry of the rock fragments, as well as practical questions, such as the optimum design of drawpoints in a block cave mine.
Requirements: Applicants should have an undergraduate degree (or equivalent) in engineering, physics, geophysics, applied mathematics, or computer science. Applicants should also possess the following knowledge and skills:
Scientific programming: ability to program in a scientific programming language such as C/C++, Fortran, Matlab
Numerical methods: knowledge of finite element methods and/or discrete element methods
Solid mechanics: knowledge of continuum mechanics and fracture mechanics is desirable
Visualisation: familiarity with the Visualisation Toolkit (VTK)
Communication: excellent writing and presentation skills
Other details: This is a 3-year PhD studentship, paying a non-taxable bursary of £15,000 per year. The student will work under the supervision of Professor Robert Zimmerman and Dr Adriana Paluszny, with frequent interaction with Rio Tinto engineers, and other members of the research staff at the Centre.
Application Procedure: To apply, please send a copy of your CV, including academic transcripts, to Professer Robert Zimmerman, Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College London, Email: r.w.zimmerman [at] imperial.ac.uk (r[dot]w[dot]zimmerman[at]imperial[dot]ac[dot]uk)
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Closing date: 7 November 2009
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