Ph.D. positions in Environment and Water Resources Engineering  are currently available with a full scholarship for students enrolled in a Joint Ph.D. program at the BITS Pilani, and RMIT University, Australia.

Application Deadline: April 24, 2024, for January 2024 intake

How to Apply: Send in your complete application using the following link:

Closing date: 24th April 2024 for the July 2024 intake.

For more information visit: https://tinyurl.com/586rdn5d

To register and apply visit: https://bitsrmit.edu.in/publicResources/ResearchProjects

Minimum and desirable qualifications needed

Ensure you meet the requirements specified below before applying. Applications that do not provide evidence of meeting the minimum requirements will not progress further. Master’s degree (MTech/ME in Water Resources/Civil Engineering/Environmental Engineering or similar fields with aggregate percentage of 65% or equivalent). Candidates having experience of Data analytics and machine learning, numerical an simulation modeling using MATLAB, programming skills (Python, MATLAB) would be preferred.*

GATE Score OR a high score in UGC-NET, CSIR, ICAR, ICMR, DST-INSPIRE**

* Where degree certificate or final year transcripts are not yet available, applicants may upload the previous semester / year transcripts
**Candidates without a valid GATE/ UGC-NET, CSIR, ICAR, ICMR, DST-INSPIRE score can be considered if they have undertaken GATE in the last five years AND/OR have a minimum of two years professional work experience, AND if they meet all other eligibility requirements. Where applicants wish to use the option of providing 2 years professional work experience as evidence – please include evidence within your uploaded documents

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SCHOLARSHIP

For candidates enrolled in a Joint Ph.D. between RMIT University and BITS Pilani:

• BITS Pilani Ph.D. fellowship: INR 45,800 per month.
• Receive a full RMIT tuition fee scholarship for the duration of your enrolment
• Benefit from the world – class research facilities in India and Melbourne
• Travel to Australia for up to one year of candidature and be supported by an Australian stipend for the duration of your time in Melbourne

Candidates admitted to the program are jointly supervised by faculty from BITS and RMIT.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project ID: BITSRMIT24101188

Project title: CLIMATE BASED SMART PREDICTION OF FAILURE AND OVERFLOW CONDITIONS OF BURIEDSEWER PIPES

Project Team: Rallapalli Srinivas & Anupam Singhal, BITS Pilani |Robert Dillan, RMIT University, Australia

Description: Sewage networks (SNs) play a crucial role in maintaining public health and sanitation. However, the increasing occurrences of blockages and overflows pose significant threats to our communities. To address these issues, the objectives of the project are: (1) Comprehensive literature assessment of prior research on buried concrete sewer pipe corrosion related to sewage flow/characteristics and identification of factors and sub-factors contributing to corrosion and blockage in SNs; (2) Detailed examination of the physicochemical characteristics of FOG and sewage transferred to sewer pipes based on experiments, sensors networks and IoT devices, with an illustration of their significant levels; (3) To aid in strategic planning, using lab simulations and AI based tools for predicting the corrosion of concrete sewer pipes caused by the effects of FOG and sewage depending on weather and soil conditions; (4) Investigating the intricate interactions that exist between flow conditions and sewer degradation in SNs using advanced numerical and statistical modeling; (5) To evaluate the remaining service life of sewer pipes through the utilization of calibrated ANN modeling techniques; and (6) To propose cost-effective recommendations pertaining to the design of new pipes as well as the maintenance of existing pipelines, with a specific focus on ensuring optimal flow and appropriate buried conditions. The results of this study will help solve the issue of insufficient failure observations and lower the sewer corrosion forecast uncertainty.

For more information write to: r.srinivas@pilani.bits-pilani.ac.in / anupam_singhal@pilani.bits-pilani.ac.in