PhD: Eddies and Sinking of Ocean Waters

Engels -- Faculty/department Civil Engineering and Geosciences

Level Master degree
Maximum employment 38 hours per week (1 FTE)
Duration of contract 4 years
Salary scale 2083 to 2664 per month gross

Civil Engineering and Geosciences

The Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences provides leading, international research
and education. Innovation and sustainability are central themes. Research addresses
societal issues. Research and education are closely interwoven. The faculty consists of
the departments of Transport and Planning, Structural Engineering, Geoscience and
Engineering, Water Management, Hydraulic Engineering, and Geoscience and Remote
Sensing.
The Department of Hydraulic Engineering is mainly concerned with major surface waters
such as rivers, estuaries and seas. The focus is on understanding, designing and
implementing human interventions in the natural environment for the discharge of water,
for protection against water and for transport over water. Within the department, the
Environmental Fluid Mechanics section focuses on the physical and mathematical aspects
of free-surface water motion and directly contributes to the work of sections in the
department.

The Environmental Fluid Mechanics section is concerned with the fundamental fluidmechanical aspects of processes in rivers, estuaries, coastal zones and oceans. The
following research themes can be distinguished: wave dynamics, physical oceanography,
shallow environmental flows and turbulence, and numerical fluid mechanics. Field
observations, laboratory experiments and numerical modelling are considered key
ingredients of successful research with relevance for practical applications. How the
circulation near coasts and in the deep ocean interact is an important sub-theme within
the section.
Job description
This PhD position is one of four positions available within this NWO-funded VIDI project.
It involves fundamental research on deep ocean convection and sinking of dense waters
in the North Atlantic Ocean, focusing on the role of ocean eddies for these processes. The
research will be carried out in close collaboration with Utrecht University, Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institution (USA) and University of Bergen (Norway). Exchange visits to
these institutes are anticipated.
At the margins of the North Atlantic (in the Labrador, Irminger, and Nordic Seas), surface
waters cool, mix vertically with waters below, sink, and return southward at depth. This
so-called Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is of paramount importance
for climate. Models predict that it slackens as climate warms, with considerable
consequences. However, ocean eddies - recently found to be crucial for the sinking of
dense waters - are still lacking in this picture. This project aims to quantify the role of

eddies for the response of the AMOC to high-latitude climate change, covering all
relevant scales.
The PhD candidate will focus on the Labrador and Irminger Seas. Using a highly idealised
regional model, he/she will study the impacts of the local eddy activity on deep
convection and sinking of dense waters and will determine the sensitivity of these
processes to changes in local environmental conditions.
For more information about this project please visit our website: [link waar pdf file]

Requirements
We are looking for an enthusiastic PhD student with a strong background in physical
oceanography and/or (environmental) fluid mechanics, and strong numerical modelling
skills. You have an MSc in physical oceanography, civil engineering, physics,
mathematics, or a related subject. You have experience with numerical simulations and
preferably experience in handling and analysing large data sets. You are able to work in a
multidisciplinary team including oceanographers, civil engineers and mathematicians, and
have good written and spoken communication skills in English.

Conditions of employment
The TU Delft offers an attractive benefits package, including flexible work hours and the
option of assembling a customised compensation and benefits package (the 'IKA'). Salary
and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch
Universities.
As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft
Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment; an excellent team of
supervisors, academic staff and a mentor; and a Doctoral Education Programme aimed at
developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills. Please visit
www.phd.tudelft.nl for more information.
Information and application
For more information about this position, please contact Caroline Katsman, e-mail:
C.A.Katsman@tudelft.nl , phone: +31 (0)15-2783380. To apply, please send
(1) a letter of application (max. 1 page),
(2) a detailed Curriculum Vitae that explicitly states your educational record, list of
publications (if any), industrial experience (if any), and the names of three persons who
could be contacted for a reference.
Please e-mail your application by 19 November 2014 to Annemarie Gerretsen,
Recruitment-CiTG@tudelft.nl .
When applying for this position, please refer to vacancy number CITG14-41.