PhD Position F/M: Development of phase-resolved operational wave forecasting

Job description

QUI SOMMES-NOUS

SUEZ Eau France propose des solutions de gestion du grand cycle de l’eau : protection de la ressource et des milieux naturels, production d’eau potable, dépollution des eaux usées, gestion performante du patrimoine réseau ainsi que des solutions smart pour optimiser les usages et préserver durablement la ressource en eau. Les équipes de cette activité contribuent aux métiers et services de proximité, de l’exploitation d’usines et de réseaux, d’ingénierie sociale et environnementale jusqu’à la gestion de la relation clientèle.

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Context of the PhD position

The PhD position is part of the European project RESCUER “Resilient solutions for Coastal, Urban, Estuarine and Riverine environments” (https://www.rescuer-msca.net/). RESCUER is a Doctoral Network funded by the European Commissions’ MSCA program of excellence (HORIZON-MSCA-2022-DN 101119437). The Doctoral Network RESCUER gathers 18 partners organizations that will train 10 young researchers to tackle medium-, and long-term water challenges that face coastal communities, focusing on forecasting and modeling of coastal, riverine, and urban flooding and associated water quality issues. RESCUER’s goal is to leverage advances in the numerical treatment of multi-scale and multi-physics problems made in the past decade, into models to address the pressing needs in the practical modeling of hydrodynamic phenomena in the coastal and estuarine zone with the goal of improving overall safety of coastal area.

This specific PhD project will be conducted in the framework of the joint laboratory KOSTARISK, in collaboration with the center Rivages Pro Tech of SUEZ, the University of Pau and the Foundation AZTI.

The position involves travels to the three partners’ premises and travels to participate to RESCUER meetings, training and workshops as declared in the project Grant Agreement.

Topic of the PhD project : 

Development of phase-resolved operational wave forecasting

for sites with highly irregular bathymetry

Coastal submarine canyons are narrow, deep-water areas contrasting with the depth-limited continental shelf.  Canyon boundaries are characterized by steep bathymetric gradients. Those gradients, together with the much larger depth inside the canyon, may largely affect the coastal wave field. The canyon of Capbreton in SW France is an example of such a configuration, which induces a remarkable wave climate difference between north and south of the canyon [1,2]. This spatial variability of the wave field is exacerbated in extreme storm conditions, which raises important questions about its impact on the nearshore area and on coastal hazard situations for neighboring towns. The particular features in the bathymetry are known to be the source of extreme waves due to strong wave focusing and phase coherences [3]. It is also not fully understood to what level these local wave phenomena impact the longshore variation of flood risk.

In this context, this PhD project focuses on the characterization of the impact along the shoreline of the wave field’s spatial variability induced by remarkable bathymetric heterogeneities such as a coastal submarine canyon. For that purpose, a phase-resolving numerical modeling study will be conducted in the Capbreton area using the recent Boussinesq-type code developed at the University of Pau [4,5]. Benefiting from the implementation of the code on GPU hardware, a large range of scenarios will be computed to characterize critical configurations in terms of wave run-up and the induced marine flooding along the shoreline, with a focus on the role of wave focusing and phase coherence mechanisms in the configurations.

The PhD candidate is expected to work on both model development and data analysis of the computed results. Development work will mainly focus on improving the dispersion properties of the governing equations and the numerical solution to better account for the strong variability in water depth around the canyon of Capbreton.

Main activities

·  Improvement of the Boussinesq-type code developed at UPPA for a better management of dispersion and steep bathymetric gradients, as well as GPU optimization,
·  Deployment of the new code on Capbreton study case and validation against observational data,
·  Use of the model as part of site-specific scenarios, identification of critical configurations and processes for run-up, wave overtopping and coastal flood risk in Capbreton town,
·  Characterization of the role of wave focusing and phase-coherent processes in the determination of wave overtopping and related flood risk,
·  Feasibility assessment of the integration of the model into for real time prediction into an Early Warning System supporting wave overtopping and coastal flood risk management.

Additional activities:


·  Participate in training and workshop activities of RESCUER project,
·  Contribute to the deliverables of RESCUER project.

About the hosting laboratory

The proposed PhD project will be carried out within the framework of the KOSTARISK laboratory . KOSTARISK is a joint cross-border research laboratory dedicated to observation and modelling to support coastal risk management. It brings together 3 partner organizations: the SIAME laboratory of the University of Pau et Pays de l'Adour (UPPA), the Spanish technology center AZTI, and the monitoring and forecasting center Rivages Pro Tech (RPT) of the SUEZ group. The laboratory brings together researchers from the three organizations in order to implement scientific and technological cooperation in the fields of numerical modelling, physical measurement systems and advanced data analysis, for the development of tools to support the management and mitigation of coastal risks. The KOSTARISK team is composed of 5 teacher-researchers and 11 partner researchers (6 for RPT and 5 for AZTI).

About the employer institution

The doctoral student will be hired by the SUEZ Eau France company and join the team of Rivages Pro Tech (RPT) . RPT is SUEZ's monitoring and forecasting center for the management of water environments. Located in Bidart and Pessac (France), RPT develops and operates operational oceanography solutions to support local authorities in coastal management. The services offered by RPT are divided into two main activities: (i) Water quality & health and (ii) Waves & coastal hazards. The PhD fellow will be conducted within the Waves & coastal hazard department. RPT's multidisciplinary team is composed of experts in ocean dynamics, hydrology, numerical modelling, data analysis, microbiology and aquatic pollution management. RPT has always had a strong commitment to Research & Development activities to develop services based on innovative technologies. This commitment is reflected in multiple scientific and institutional collaborations, in particular he joint laboratory KOSTARISK.

About the PhD partner institutions

The PhD enrollment will be at University of Pau (UPPA) and attached to the laboratory SIAME . UPPA is the third largest university in southwestern France with around 12 000 students. The laboratory SIAME develops research in several fields including a team dedicated to wave and wave-structure interaction studies. Inside this team, Dr. Volker Roeber research activity focuses on the theoretical and numerical development of nearshore wave models with attention to high performance computing. The goal is to improve accuracy and speed of numerical wave models to obtain a representative and complete description of coastal wave processes.

During the PhD, a secondment will be hosted at AZTI , Pasaia office (Spain). AZTI is a private non-for-profit technological and research organization (www.azti.es). Since 1981 its activities have been focused on transforming science into sustainable and healthy development for society today and for the future. With a staff of 280 people, the fields of expertise include operational oceanography, marine management, implementation of EU directives, marine spatial planning, fish stock assessment, physical and biological oceanography, marine dynamics and modelling, marine environmental systems and marine technologies. AZTI is member of the Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA).

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Expected level and skills required

The candidate must have a master’s degree in Hydraulic Engineering, Applied or Computational mathematics, Scientific Computing, or a related field. Knowledge in programming (C, C++, Fortran or Python) as well as understanding of computer hardware, and large data handling will be highly appreciated.


Languages:  English at good working level.


Relational skills:  The candidate must be able to work in an international environment involving multiple collaborators and be willing to travel.

Application procedure and requirements

Application forms and related requirements can be found on RESCUER project recruitment webpage at the following URL: https://www.rescuer-msca.net/recruitment.

The list of forms to be fulfilled and the related indications are reproduced below:

·  A cover/motivation letter containing a brief account of the applicant's research interests and motivation for applying for the position (max 1000 words) (use template on RESCUER webpage)
·  Mobility declaration , where you confirm that you satisfy the mobility requirements (including documentation of country of residence last 3 years, e.g., work contract, rental contract, tax slips (use template on RESCUER webpage) . Mobility rule: researchers must not have carried out their main activity (e.g. work, studies) in the host country for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately before their recruitment date.
·  The names and contact information for two referees (Full name, address, and email). One of these should be the main advisor for the master's thesis or equivalent thesis (use template on RESCUER webpage)
·  CV (use template on RESCUER webpage)
·  Transcripts and diplomas showing completion of the bachelor's and master's degrees. If you have not yet completed your master's degree, please submit a statement from your institution confirming the expected date of award of your master's degree. Your master's degree must be documented with transcripts and/or diploma, alternatively a confirmation from your institution on completed degree and your grade, by 15th August 2024. Applicants must be doctoral candidates, i.e. not already in possession of a doctoral degree at the date of recruitment.
·  Relevant certificates/references · Approved documentation of proficiency in English (if required, cf. English language requirements for PhD admission)

·  A list of any works of a scientific nature/publication list (do not include entire thesis/book chapters etc.)

Remuneration

Remuneration calculated according to the "MSCA Doctoral Networks 2022" scale.

Other benefits

·  Leave: 5 weeks of annual leave + 11 extra days off due to RTT (statutory reduction in working hours) + possibility of exceptional leave (sick children, moving home, etc.)
·  Possibility of partial teleworking (max. 2 days/week)
·  Professional equipment available (videoconferencing, loan of computer equipment, etc.)
·  Social security coverage  

Suez préserve l’équilibre entre vie professionnelle et privée, ce poste est ouvert au télétravail.

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BU: Division Eau - Eau France