Cardiff School of Engineering – PhD Studentship
Reference
DS-EPSRC-13
Supervisors
Dr D Sapsford, Dr A Babatunde
Programme of Study
PhD in Engineering
Project title
Development of bespoke design criteria for mine water treatment systems
Start date
1st April 2012 / 1st July 2013
Duration
3 years
Source of funding
EPSRC and the Coal Authority
There are enormous opportunities for multimillion pound cost‐savings in mine
water treatment. Many cases of unnecessary overspend are related to over‐sizing
caused either by an overly cautious approach or by over‐dependence upon
‘rule‐of‐thumb’ design guidelines (such as designing on the basis of iron removals
of 10 g/m2/day) that have no basis on any of the physicochemical processes
occurring within the treatment systems.
Project summary
The Cardiff School of Engineering has already been working with the Coal
Authority for a number of years to develop process‐based assessments for the
design of mine water treatment systems i.e. an approach that looks at the rates
and mechanisms of pollutant removal in order to be able to tailor the design of a
treatment system specifically to the mine water in question to avoid over‐ or
under‐design.
This PhD seeks to take this work to the next stage, that is to develop an on‐site
testing protocol for mine waters to determine the rates of the key processes
(Fe(II) oxidation and settling). Data from this testing will be combined with a
computer model to generate bespoke sizing criteria for individual mine waters.
Number of awards
1
Amount of funding
The award will cover fees at the Home/EU fee rate and will provide an annual
stipend (£13,590 in 2012/13).
Eligibility
Academic criteria
Contact for further
information
The full award is open to Home students, or EU candidates who have been
resident in the UK for three years at the course start date.
Applicants should hold or expect to gain an undergraduate degree in a relevant
discipline (2.1 or 1st class honours) and/or an appropriate Masters level
qualification.
Dr D Sapsford, SapsfordDJ@cf.ac.uk
Applications can be made online at www.cardiff.ac.uk.
How to apply
PLEASE ENSURE YOU QUOTE THE STUDENTSHIP REFERENCE ABOVE ON YOUR
APPLICATION. (For online applications, please put reference in the “Prospective
Supervisor” section).
Deadline for applications
Open until application filled