Design of Steel Structures for Functional Recovery

Overview

A postdoctoral fellow is sought for a position in Structural Engineering to contribute to cutting-edge
work on resilience-based seismic design of steel structures. This opportunity is part of a high-impact
research effort focused on advancing the science of seismic design to enable the functional recovery of
steel buildings at both the component and system levels. The researcher will collaborate closely with
leading experts at NIST and academia to accelerate the development of next-generation seismic design
and post-earthquake evaluation procedures.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Civil Engineering with a focus on the behavior of steel structures
• Strong background in the experimental testing of structural steel components and nonlinear analysis of steel systems, with emphasis on seismic effects
• Experience in developing high-fidelity finite element models of steel components and calibrating them to test results
• Experience in developing and validating high-fidelity finite element models for steel buildings
• Experience in developing and validating steel component modeling parameters against experimental outcomes and finite element models
• Proficiency in Python and/or MATLAB
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Strong publication record in leading peer-reviewed journals

Research Proposal

Key Responsibilities:

• Synthesize knowledge from past experimental tests and high-fidelity models of structural steel components.
• Develop new nonlinear finite element models to address key data gaps in steel component behavior.
• Develop and validate functional recovery design limits for various steel components and systems
• Translate findings into technical guidance that informs seismic design for functional recovery, post-earthquake assessment, and decision-making for structural engineers.
• Conduct nonlinear dynamic analyses and consequence modeling across a suite of steel building archetypes to demonstrate the real-world application of the developed procedures.
• Prepare high-quality research papers for peer-reviewed journals, and present findings at national conferences.