COFUND PhD position

Organisation/Company La Rochelle Université Research Field Engineering » Civil engineering Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Country France Application Deadline 12 Dec 2025 - 23:00 (Europe/Paris) Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Offer Starting Date 15 Sep 2026 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Horizon Europe – COFUND Marie Curie Grant Agreement Number 10117912 Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? NoOffer DescriptionTitle of the thesis project: Study of the mechanical behavior and stability of partially saturated heterogeneous soils on the seafrontCotuelle: University of Calgary (UC), Canada. Department of Civil Engineering.Since its creation in 1993, La Rochelle Université has been on a path of differentiation.Thirty years later, as the university landscape recomposes itself, it continues to assert an original proposition, based on a strong identity and bold projects, in a human-scale establishment located in an exceptional setting.Anchored in a region with highly distinctive coastal features, La Rochelle Université has turned this singularity into a veritable signature, in the service of a new model. Its research it addressesthe societal challenges related to Smart Urban Coastal Sustainability (SmUCS).An information session on the program will be organized on November 4 from 2 pm to 4 pm to provide you with information on eligibility criteria and the recruitment process. To connect to the meeting on Teams, click here .Scientific description of the research projectIn the current context of climate change, the frequency and intensity of storms and extreme weather events are increasing, placing greater and sometimes different stresses on soils, particularly in coastal areas. Under the effect of rapid and intense cycles of water saturation/desaturation, heterogeneous soils may be subject to swelling/shrinking phenomena or undergo significant changes in their mechanical strength, causing damage to the structures (housing or flood protection works) built on them.The work proposed in this research endeavor aims to improve understanding of the mechanisms of deformation and modification of the mechanical strength of heterogeneous granular soils in coastal areas through the development of appropriate numerical tools and models. Heterogeneous clay soils, whose behavior is more complex, will be addressed in a second phase. This work will help to clarify the possible failure modes that cause complex processes such as soil deformation and the associated loss of mechanical strength, which can damage structures built on top of them (housing or protective structures). It should also lead to a tool for characterizing and predicting possible risks and will improve the design of structures built on heterogeneous soils. This project is part of the environmental and energy transitions defined in the Néo Terra roadmap, which is a scientific priority for the Nouvelle Aquitaine region.Granular soils display intricate constitutive behavior due to their discrete composition, rendering their mechanical properties inherently complex. When both liquid and gas phases are present, forming a three-phase system, this complexity is further amplified, challenging the effectiveness of traditional constitutive models. However, it remains crucial for engineers to develop accessible and practical models to accurately analyze and predict the mechanical behavior and stability of granular soils, especially when subject to wetting and drying cycles at the structural scale.Recent collaborative research conducted by La Rochelle University and the University of Calgary has successfully combined multiphase Lattice Boltzmann Methods (LBM) with the Discrete Element Method (DEM) to investigate the influence of increased water content and relative humidity on the apparent cohesion of granular soils. For the first time, their study numerically captures a regime transition in partially saturated porous media—from the pendular regime, dominated by capillary doublets between solid particles, to the funicular regime, where most capillary bridges have coalesced.This transition leads to a substantial reduction in capillary forces, triggering a spontaneous decrease in the overall mechanical strength of the granular assembly. While multiphase Allen-Cahn LBM approaches offer the possibility of phase separation and interface dynamics at the pore scale, current computational constraints, even with intensive GPU calculations, limit their ability to simulate the mechanical strength and stability of granular soils at the geostructure scale. To overcome this limitation, this project aims to implement a special scale-shifting technique that integrates small-scale capillary effects, enabling the derivation of mechanical properties at the engineering scale for multiphasic-heterogeneous soils.To achieve this, we propose the numerical computation of an average stress tensor through homogenization of coupled DEM x LBM simulation results of a highly polydisperse, partially saturated granular assembly. These simulations will encompass three-dimensional models containing several tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, of elementary particles, subjected to a variety of mechanical and hydraulic loadings. This mean stress tensor will be derived from discrete interparticle contact forces and small-scale capillary forces, facilitating the creation of a comprehensive database.The above-mentioned database will then be utilized to determine the mechanical strength of partially saturated heterogeneous granular soils undergoing wetting and drying cycles. Transitioning to the macroscopic scale will involve coupled MPM x DEM or FEM x DEM numerical simulations at the geostructure scale, supported by Deep Learning techniques to identify a constitutive law tailored to partially saturated soils. Neural network approaches, trained on the previously established database, will play a central role in this scale-shifting process.Where to applyE-mail eudocs_cofund@univ-lr.frRequirementsResearch Field Engineering » Civil engineering Education Level Master Degree or equivalentSkills/QualificationsApplicants should hold a master’s degree in engineering or applied mathematics, with a strong background in Continuum mechanics, coupled phenomena in physics, and some knowledges in Machine Learning and/or IA, Applied and computational mechanics, Discrete Element Simulation.EUDOCS_COFUND_GUIDE FOR APPLICANTS_5.pdf36-month PhD contract based in La Rochelle (17).Salary: €2700 gross per month. The salary offered as part of this doctoral program is particularly attractive, and exceeds the minimum requirements of current French legislation. In addition, doctoral students will benefit from a mobility allowance and budget lines to cover expenses related to research, training and professional travel.You are registered with the Doctoral School for the duration of your contract and benefit from the DS's training offer, in particular cross-disciplinary activities such as MT180, the doctoral students' colloquium, etc.Recruitment open to anyone with a RQTH (Qualified Health and Disability certificate).Eligibility criteriaThe following criteria are used to check the eligibility of applications received:Compliance with the Marie Sklodowska-Curie mobility rule: applicants must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in France for more than 12 months between December 2022 and December 2025. Compulsory national service, short stays such as vacations, and time spent as part of a procedure to obtain refugee status under the Geneva Convention (1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and 1967 Protocol) are not taken into account.Possession of a Master’s degree (or equivalent) at the date of the call deadline (December 12, 2025).Not in possession of a PhD. Researchers who have successfully defended their doctoral thesis, but who have not yet officially obtained their doctoral degree, are not eligible.Previous training or work experience in research.All required documentscombined in a single PDF document (CV, covering letter, ID, copy of Master’s degree, application form) must be sent by December 12, 2025.Selection processThe application should be completed in English and submitted along with the mandatory supporting documents.You must provide a file named as follows “ProjectName_NameApplicant” with:Your resume (giving a detailed account on your marks, and assessment of your level of English) – max 5 pagesA proof of identity (passport or ID card)Copy of Master’s diploma (or equivalent)In case you want to propose your own thesis subject (see below): filled subject proposal form (fully dated and signed)Incomplete applications will not be considered. #J-18808-Ljbffr