Location
Newcastle University

Supervisors: Caspar Hewett (NU), other TBC

Contact email: Caspar.hewett@ncl.ac.uk

Project rationale

Flooding is a major problem worldwide and it is difficult to solve. Land use change and a growing population increase flood risk year on year. Climate change, resulting in wetter winters and more intense summer storms, will exacerbate these effects. In recent years there has been a move away from traditional large, engineered structures to manage flooding to many small-scale interventions distributed across the landscape, an example of which are in-stream leaky barriers (LBs), which can take many forms from completely natural (e.g., beaver dams, fallen trees in waterways) to highly engineered designed barriers. LBs can play a part in mitigating flood risk and provide other benefits such as reducing diffuse pollution. Yet, while LBs have become popular features in flood management schemes, it is notoriously difficult to quantify how much work they do. This project combines physical and mathematical modelling to improve understanding of how LBs behave individually and in combination. New models of individual features of different design will be developed and a network model will be used to investigate how they compare in order to answer fundamental questions about the aggregate effects of clusters of LBs.

Methodology

Experimental work will include hydraulic lab experiments conducted in controlled conditions to validate models for a variety of leaky barrier designs and materials in the Novak Flume Research Facility at Newcastle University. Mathematical modelling will be undertaking including:

  1. 1D and 2D hydrodynamic models. Experimental results will provide data to inform hydrodynamic models using Godunov type finite volume schemes). The aim is to produce models that can capture the range of behaviour observed in experiments for a range of LB designs and materials
  2. Network models. The effects of series of LBs in a network of channels will be modelled in order to answer fundamental questions about their aggregate effects.

Background reading

Quinn, P.F., Hewett, C.J.M., Wilkinson, M.E., Adams, R. (2022) The Role of Runoff Attenuation Features (RAFs) in Natural Flood Management. Water, 14, 3807. https://doi.org/10.3390/w14233807

Leakey, S., Hewett, C.J.M., Glenis, V., Quinn, P.F. (2020) Modelling the Impact of Leaky Barriers with a 1D Godunov-Type Scheme for the Shallow Water Equations. Water 12(2), 371. https://doi.org/10.3390/w12020371

Addy, S., Wilkinson, M.E. (2019) ‘Representing natural and artificial in‐channel large wood in numerical hydraulic and hydrological models’, Wiley interdisciplinary reviews. Water, 6(6). https://doi.org/10.1002/wat2.1389

FLOOD-CDT

This PhD is being advertised as part of the Centre for Doctoral Training for Resilient Flood Futures (FLOOD-CDT). Further details about FLOOD-CDT can be seen here https://flood-cdt.ac.uk. Please note, that your application will be assessed upon:

  1. Motivation and Career Aspirations;
  2. Potential & Intellectual Excellence;
  3. Suitability for specific project and
  4. Fit to FLOOD-CDT.

So please familiarise yourselves with FLOOD-CDT before applying. During the application process candidates will need to upload:

  • a one-page statement of your research interests in flooding and FLOOD-CDT and your rationale for your choice of project;
  • a curriculum vitae giving details of your academic record and stating your research interests;
  • name two current academic referees together with an institutional email addresses; on submission of your online application your referees will be automatically emailed requesting they send a reference to us directly by email;
  • academic transcripts and degree certificates (translated if not in English) – if you have completed both a BSc and an MSc, we require both; and
  • a IELTS/TOEFL certificate, if applicable.

Please upload all documents in PDF format. You are encouraged to contact potential supervisors by email to discuss project-specific aspects of the proposed prior to submitting your application. If you have any general questions please contact floodcdt@soton.ac.uk.

Apply

Apply for this PhD here: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/postgraduate/fees-funding/search-funding/?code=FL…