Previous vacancies

Applications are invited for a Postdoctoral Research Assistant/Associate position based in the Advanced Composites Centre for Innovation and Science (ACCIS). These positions will initiate activities on the recently awarded EPSRC funded Programme Grant "High Performance Ductile Composite Technology – HiPerDuCT".

The vision for HiPerDuCT is to realise a new generation of high performance fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) composites that overcome the key limitation of conventional composites: their inherent lack of ductility. The aim is to design, manufacture and evaluate a range of composite systems with the ability to fail gradually, undergoing large deformations whilst still carrying load. The programme will scope, prioritise, develop, and combine various approaches, to achieve High Performance Ductile Composite Technology (HiPerDuCT).

Contact: Prof. Michael Wisnom

Based in the Department of Aerospace Engineering you will support work in the Advanced Composites Centre for Innovation and Science (ACCIS) under the guidance of the Experimental Composites Research Assistant. You will be tasked with providing advice, support and training to researchers as well as developing, applying and supporting complex and hi-fidelity characterisation and visualisation methods, across current and future research programmes.

You will have an MEng in Engineering/Materials Science (or closely related discipline), a wide knowledge of composites characterisation, and experience of preparing high quality publications/presenting scientific results orally.

The Advanced Composites Centre for Innovation and Science (ACCIS) at the University of Bristol is part of a significant initiative in the area of developing novel composite manufacturing technologies.

If successful, you may be appointed either on a fixed term or a permanent contract depending on the extent of your previous relevant research experience. Further information on fixed term contracts can be found online: University of Bristol fixed term contracts

Grade: Level a in Pathway 2 | Salary: £29,972 - £37,990

Contacts: Prof. Kevin Potter and Dr Julie Etches

This post has been created to strengthen the internationally excellent research and teaching in ACCIS, especially in the mechanical and civil engineering domains. The post will be based in the Queen's School of Engineering which comprises the departments of Civil, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Particular research areas we would be keen to see prioritised include: fundamental structural or solid mechanics; lightweight composite structures; smart structures; multiphysics modeling; and novel development and use in the built environment, automotive or sports and leisure industries.

You will be expected to contribute to both undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and to supervise students on the EPSRC Composites ACCIS Doctoral Training Centre. The ability to undertake collaborative research with industrial partners is essential.

Contacts: Prof. Paul Weaver and Prof. Michael Wisnom

Flight Refuelling Ltd trading as Cobham Mission Equipment is the world market leader for air-to-air refuelling, providing fifth generation ‘nose to tail’ solutions from the cockpit of the tanker aircraft to the tail of the receiver platform. More than 1,000 systems have been delivered for buddy-buddy refuelling, tactical and strategic tanking for fixed wing aircraft and helicopters, with UAV development well advanced. Through this Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) Cobham wishes to investigate the potential for manufacturing an existing product element using composite materials.

You will design, prototype and test different ways of potentially manufacturing existing products/components using composite materials. You will then evaluate the feasibility of using these materials from a business point of view. This will involve working not only with Cobham staff, but also with potential new supply chain companies.

You will be responsible for developing a formal specification for the selected product element as a composite structure, generating a manufacture and test plan, and manufacturing and evaluating prototype test articles. You will then evaluate the business case for producing these test articles and produce a full feasibility study. In addition, you will contribute towards developing a composites strategy at Cobham. Whilst you will spend most of your time in Wimborne, you will also be working in close partnership with the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Bristol.

Salary: £24,000

Contacts: Prof. Kevin Potter and Mr C Mouskis

Applications are invited for a Postdoctoral Research Assistant position to work on a joint project between the Inorganic and Materials Section of the School of Chemistry and the Advanced Composites Centre for Innovation and Science (ACCIS) in the Department of Aerospace Engineering, both at the University of Bristol.

The project concerns the development of innovative microencapsulated chemistries for application in a damage detection coating for a structural material. The work is directly funded by a major industrial partner from the UK Aerospace industry. Throughout the study, close co-operation will be maintained with the industrial partner to ensure processing and fabrication constraints, and underlying performance capability are considered.

You will have a PhD in chemistry or materials science, and expertise in synthetic polymer chemistry. Hands-on experience of modern spectroscopic and other characterisation methods is essential. Experience in microencapsulation is an advantage, as is experience or interest in physical and mechanical testing of polymeric materials. The post will require close interaction with and input to/from the industrial partner. Frequent researcher visits and reciprocal use of facilities are envisaged.

You will need to demonstrate good spoken and written English, have experience preparing high quality publications and presenting scientific results orally, have a proven team working capability, and be enthusiastic and flexible in your work.

This project offers an exciting opportunity to be involved in the development of potentially ground-breaking technology. The position is available from September 2011 (upon appointment), and will initially be funded for 15 months (with a potential renewal for a further three months subject to project outcomes). Salary level will be in accordance with qualifications and experience.

Grade: Level a in Pathway 2 | Salary: £29,972 - £37,990

Contacts: Dr Duncan Wass and Prof. Ian Bond

As part of the Composites University Technology Centre (UTC) supported by Rolls-Royce, there is an exciting opportunity to join a strong team developing state of the art methods for design of composite aircraft engine components. These require complex geometries and fibre architectures both for aerodynamics and structural integration. In service they are likely to see a variety of challenging loading and environmental conditions which risk causing material and structural failure. It is required to experimentally investigate the phenomena leading to composite failure, under both static and fatigue loading. In many cases the standard tests are not truly representative of the in service loading and so development of new methods will be required to investigate behaviour and generate applicable data. This project will run in close collaboration with researchers conducting numerical analysis, and high quality experimental work will be a crucial part of the process of understanding failure required for model development and validation.

Based in the Department of Aerospace Engineering, you will work on the development of experimental techniques, application to materials and geometries relevant to aero engine and reporting on results internally and to the industrial partner. You will have a PhD in Engineering / Materials Science (or closely related discipline) and experience of laboratory testing techniques and composites manufacturing.

If successful, you may be appointed either on a fixed term or a permanent contract depending on the extent of your previous relevant research experience. Further information on fixed term contracts can be found online: University of Bristol fixed term contracts

Grade: Level a - Level b in Pathway 2 | Salary: £29,972 - £37,990

Contacts: Dr Stephen Hallett and Prof. Michael Wisnom

An opportunity has arisen for a funded studentship in the Queen's School of Engineering (comprising the Aerospace, Civil and Mechanical Engineering departments) from October 2011. The successful applicant will study for a PhD and undertake teaching duties within the undergraduate engineering programmes. The 4 year award (worth £21,000 per year) will cover research degree fees at the home/EU rate, a pro-rata PhD stipend, an allowance for PhD-related costs and a part-time teaching support assistant salary.

Applicants should hold (or expect to hold) a first class/good upper second class MEng or an MSc with distinction/merit (or equivalent qualifications) in a relevant discipline.

This post will be based in ACCIS within the new EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacture in Composites. The Centre is a collaboration between the Universities of Bristol, Cranfield, Manchester and Nottingham and is led and managed by the University of Nottingham. The programme as a whole is linked across the four institutions and considerable interchange between them is expected to be a major feature of the programme.

The post is initially funded for two years and the principal activity will be to work on design and manufacturing quality integration. The post will support activity across the four institutions aimed at integrating the outputs of the individual research programmes in the areas of design for manufacture, processing and quality.

Grade: Level a - Level b in Pathway 2 | Salary: £29,972 - £37,990

Contacts: Prof. Kevin Potter

This post will develop new numerical tools for the prediction of failure of composite materials based on a physical understanding of the underlying damage mechanisms. The work will run in close collaboration with researchers conducting experimental testing, which will provide essential information for model generation and validation. High quality numerical analysis will be a crucial part of the process of understanding the failure process in composite materials and structures.

Based in the Advanced Composites Centre for Innovation and Science within the Department of Aerospace Engineering, you will work on development of custom written codes to build complex models, application of commercial finite element software and development of user subroutines, reporting on results internally and to the industrial partner.

You will have a PhD in Engineering / Materials Science (or closely related discipline) and good experience of finite element analysis techniques, programming and composites failure mechanisms.

Contact: Dr Stephen Hallett