PhD Position on Uncertainty in Multi-Fidelity Digital Twins for Infrastructure Management

Job description
Despite significant progress in digitalizing the built environment—such as bridges, cities, and other infrastructures—there are critical factors that may limit the benefits of deploying digital twins. Digital twins require comprehensive and accurate initial data for development, along with a continuous influx of data to remain current. However, this data often proves to be incomplete or incorrect. To effectively utilize digital twins, it is crucial to include a fidelity measure that indicates the level of uncertainty in the displayed information.

Furthermore, digital twins are fostering a new ecosystem in decision-making, characterized by a vast amount of current and anticipated information. To maximize their benefits, it is essential to develop specialized tools that support decision-making by integrating digital twins and their fidelity levels into infrastructure management.

The goal of your PhD thesis will be to address this challenge by developing AI-based surrogate modeling processes to condense the available monitoring data into a probabilistic, time- and state-continuous model of an infrastructure system, updated based on real-time monitoring data. Uncertainties arising from conflicting, vague, or incorrect data are usually neglected in existing identification models. However, you will quantify and propagate these uncertainties through the model, providing a more realistic picture of the model’s fidelity. By enhancing the fidelity of digital twins, your research will contribute to more resilient and efficient infrastructure management, ultimately benefiting society.

This position is funded by the FOURIER project (Innovative Artificial Intelligence Methodologies for Monitoring and Maintaining Large-Scale Complex Infrastructures and Obtaining Greener, More Resilient, and Smart Societies). FOURIER is a training network funded under the Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions Doctoral Networks within the Horizon Europe Programme of the European Commission (GA nr. 101169429).

FOURIER intends to establish a network of 15 doctoral individual projects working towards advanced system state monitoring techniques—via the use of AI for large-scale autonomous systemic monitoring, inspection, and proactive testing, including the explicit identification of information gaps and uncertainties (information quality) of complex engineering systems to improve their resilience against failures, accidents, sabotage, disruptions, and disasters.

The FOURIER project involves universities (Politecnico di Torino, Technische Universität München, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, National Technical University of Athens), research institutes (Fraunhofer Society), and industry partners (VCE Vienna Consulting Engineers, Infra Plan Consulting and Factor Social) with expertise in remote sensing, data interpretation algorithms, vision-based platforms, software development, and visualization tools.

During your PhD thesis, you will work in close collaboration with the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management (Rijkswaterstaat, Netherlands). To guarantee the applicability of your results and maximize their impact, you will be hosted for several months by the Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development (ENEA, Italy) and the Technical University of Munich (Germany).

In addition to your research activities, you will participate in educational initiatives at TU Delft (maximum 20% of your time) and internationally within the FOURIER network, further enhancing the collaborative and scholarly dimensions of the program.

Job requirements
We are seeking a highly motivated professional who enjoys working in a multidisciplinary environment. If the following characteristics resonate with you, we invite you to join us on this PhD journey:

• You have a Master's degree in Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Applied Mathematics, or a related field with a focus on structural analysis.
• You demonstrate competence in probability, machine learning, AI and computational mechanics tools (e.g., Finite Element Methods).
• You possess excellent skills in mathematical modeling; prior experience in meta-modelling (or surrogate modelling), sensing, and digitalitation is desirable.
• You have good communication skills in English, both written and oral. Proficiency in Dutch is a plus.

Please, note that if you already hold a PhD degree or have resided or carried out your main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the Netherlands for more than 12 months within the 36 months immediately before your recruitment date are not eligible to apply under the FOURIER project recruitment rules.

All applications will adhere to the security constraints of the organizations hosting the PhD candidate.

TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)
Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences
The Faculty of Civil Engineering & Geosciences (CEG) is committed to outstanding international research and education in the field of civil engineering, applied earth sciences, traffic and transport, water technology, and delta technology. Our research feeds into our educational programmes and covers societal challenges such as climate change, energy transition, resource availability, urbanisation and clean water. Our research projects are conducted in close cooperation with a wide range of research institutions. CEG is convinced of the importance of open science and supports its scientists in integrating open science in their research practice. The Faculty of CEG comprises 28 research groups in the following seven departments: Materials Mechanics Management & Design, Engineering Structures, Geoscience and Engineering, Geoscience and Remote Sensing, Transport & Planning, Hydraulic Engineering and Water Management.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Civil Engineering & Geosciences.

Conditions of employment
Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1,5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2,5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from € 2872 per month in the first year to € 3670 in the fourth year. As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills.

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

For international applicants, TU Delft has the Coming to Delft Service. This service provides information for new international employees to help you prepare the relocation and to settle in the Netherlands. The Coming to Delft Service offers a Dual Career Programme for partners and they organise events to expand your (social) network.

As a member of the FOURIER project, you will have the opportunity to visit various institutes and industrial partners for several months each year. You will also participate in a unique doctoral training program specifically designed for FOURIER researchers.

Additional information
For more information about this vacancy, please contact Dr Maria Nogal, e-mail: m.nogal@tudelft.nl

Application procedure
Are you interested in this vacancy? Please apply no later than 31 January 2025 via the application button and upload the following documents:

1. Motivation letter
2. Academic CV
3. Your MSc thesis or a paper you wrote based on your MSc research. If neither are available in English, include a 1-page abstract of your MSc thesis written in English
4. Transcripts from your BSc and MSc studies

Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure that the candidate is able to communicate and interact well, participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, and write scientific articles and a final thesis. For more details please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements.

Please note:

• You can apply online. We will not process applications sent by email and/or post.
• A pre-employment screening can be part of the selection procedure.
• For the final candidates, a knowledge security check will be part of the application procedure. For more information on this check, please consult Chapter 8 of the National Knowledge Security Guidelines. We carry out this check on the basis of legitimate interest.
• Please do not contact us for unsolicited services.

38 - 40 hours per week

Mekelweg 5