The Energy Management Group is keen to take on PhD candidates and postdoctoral researchers and has a number of funded PhD studentships in Renewable Energy and related subjects.

• PhD Studentship in Scalable Pico-Hydro Power
• PhD Studentship in Renewably-Powered Wireless Health Sensors
• Two PhD Studentships in Advanced Electrical Drive Systems
• EngD in Urban Micro-Renewable Power Generation Systems
• Postdoctoral Research Assistant in Electrical Energy Management

How and when to apply

There are continuously changing research positions available for projects in Energy, covering a variety of applications. See below for specific projects. Opportunities to undertake postdocs or research leading to a PhD that come up at fairly short notice; we can keep your CV on file and contact you if an opportunity arises. Or you can contact us as soon as you see a project that interests you.

Applicants should have a 2.1 degree or higher in Engineering Science, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Physics, Materials or similar. Please either call Dr Bernard Stark for an informal discussion, or email a cover letter stating your interests and a full CV (including grades) to the address on the right. You may also call us to discuss alternative research projects.

PhD funding

Unless otherwise noted, the fully funded PhD studentships are available to UK Home students only (or EU students who have spent the past 3 years in the UK); they cover maintenance (at least £13,000pa tax free) and fees. In addition, most of our PhD students receive sponsorship of up to £5000pa tax free from one of our sponsor companies. If the PhD funding is available to non-UK/EU candidates, then this is noted in the summaries below. When you apply, please indicate whether you are eligible for the UK Home funding, or if you have other sources of funds.
Summer placements in engineering (Research & development or design experience)

Summer work placements are available to 3rd and 4th year UK/EU undergraduate students only. The stipend is £2000 (tax free) for 10 weeks’ work; the timing is flexible. Possible projects include the development of new sensors, the design of renewable energy conversion hardware, data logging equipment for product development, endangered animal tracking, FPGA based image processing etc. Please apply with a full CV with year grades. There is no deadline, however applications are dealt with as they come in, so it is best to apply around April/May. If your interests are outside of those of the Energy Management Group, then your application will be forwarded to the most suitable research group.

Current opportunities

• PhD Studentship in Scalable Pico-Hydro Power
  A fully-funded 3½ year PhD studentship is available in the Electrical Energy Management Group for research involving modular and scalable pico-hydro generation (1kW) for grid-tied DC mini-grids. This project provides a unique opportunity to combine state-of-the-art electrical engineering research, development work in remote areas overseas with a well-known charity, and sponsorship by company that is world leading in design and manufacturing. The work will include power electronics, mechanical design, and a mix of other theoretical and practical work. The PhD candidate will be expected to have an electrical engineering background, and demonstrate a strong interest in mechanical design and development work. Up to £18,000pa tax free (non-UK/EU possible).

• PhD Studentship in Renewably-Powered Wireless Health Sensors
  A fully-funded 3½ year PhD studentship is available in the Electrical Energy Management Group for research involving renewably powered sensors. These miniature sensors power themselves from their surroundings and can be used for example in health sensing or energy management of buildings. The work will include low power electronics, functional materials and a mix of theoretical and practical work. The PhD candidate will be expected to work with industries who are developing health sensors and energy efficiency measures.

• Two PhD Studentships in Advanced Electrical Drive Systems
  Two fully-funded 3½ year PhD studentships in the design of advanced, high-efficiency drives are available in the Electrical Energy Management Group. Please contact us for more details.

• EngD in Urban Micro-Renewable Power Generation Systems
  A fully-funded, company-sponsored 4 year EngD studentship is available in the Electrical Energy Management Group, for research into the design of urban micro-generation systems that are specifically adapted to maximise power generation from airflow around the envelope of large buildings. Research will include work on the aerodynamics of turbines (e.g. turbulence), advanced responsive power management, and system design. The EngD candidate will benefit from a program that includes taught courses and company-based work.

• Postdoctoral Research Assistant in Electrical Energy Management
  You will join the Group whose research explores the challenges of high efficiency electrical drive systems for application in aircraft, hybrid vehicles and renewable generation. Much of this research involves theoretical analyses combined with concept demonstration. To support this activity the group has established excellent hardware-in-the-loop best facilities with ratings up to 250kW. Recent award of research funding has generated an opportunity for the appointment of an electro-mechanical control specialist to support the Group’s research. The post will form part of an interdisciplinary team of postdoctoral researchers and postgraduates investigating novel electrical generation and drive system concepts. It will focus initially on the ‘More Electric Aircraft’. The principal responsibilities will be:
  • Develop dynamic models for electro-mechanical systems
  • Pursue research into observer based control techniques applied to electrical drives
  • Design and execute experiments to validate theoretical analyses
  • Support the group’s undergraduate teaching.

  Salary: £28k – £32k

The fully funded PhD studentship is available to any nationality, however if you are not a UK Home student (or EU student who has spent the past three years in the UK), the salary would need to be reduced to cover overseas university fees. When you apply, please indicate whether you are eligible for UK Home funding, or if you have other sources of funds.

The studentship is available now and the closing date for applications is 31 January 2009. Please either email a cover letter stating your interests and a full CV (including grades) to Dr Bernard Stark (bernard.stark@bristol.ac.uk) or email to arrange an informal discussion.

For details go to:

http://www.bris.ac.uk/eeng/research/em/postdocs/