Academic Affiliate

Project
PREP0005037

To support risk mitigation from future hazards and conditions, the PREP research faculty will work with
NIST personnel in the Engineering Laboratory to conduct cutting-edge research to inform geotechnical
considerations in design standards. The work will focus on the geohazard of scour and erosion to
develop a work plan and a framework to develop performance indicators (fragilities) in a lifeline system
and assets The position will be fully remote for an anticipated duration of 18 months (November 2027 to
April 2028) and approximate workload of 5 hours per week. . Tasks will include:

  • literature review for scour-induced behavior from scour and erosion
  • Surveying questionnaire to collect stakeholder feedback and methodologies
  • Work plan to collect data for scour and erosion from floods, including a stakeholder survey.
  • Developing a numerical framework to generate geotechnical performance indicators for typologies
    of the lifeline system as function of scour depth, flow velocity, and soil erosion characteristics.
  • Presenting results at internal and occasional external meetings and participating in preparation of a
    special publication to document findings and potential for incorporation in geotechnical standards.

Part-time Geotechnical Research Faculty

Qualifications
  • A doctoral degree in Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering, or Geology, with specialization in
    geotechnical engineering, or a related field.
  • Preference for relevant research experience as principal investigator and for industry experience.
  • Familiarity with geotechnical engineering codes, standards, and guidelines.
  • Ability to lead multidisciplinary research on geotechnical engineering.
  • Demonstrated ability to translate research into publications and disseminated products.
  • Strong oral and written communication skills.
Research Proposal

Key responsibilities will include but are not limited to:

  • Reviewing scour/erosion literature and identifying a lifeline system with available evaluations of
    scour and erosion performance for established national typologies for these assets.
  • Developing a work plan to collect data, including a surveying document
  • Generating a database for a selected large region (e.g., a state) and synthesizing a pilot study for a
    numerical regional framework to be assessed against acquired field data.
  • Exploring analytical means and methods suitable to produce fragilities, including computational
    capacity, input and uncertainties, and recommending the preferred approach for the pilot
    framework.
  • Developing a generalizable framework based on the regional framework to generate geotechnical
    fragilities applicable to the typologies in the system, transferable to stakeholders across the nation
  • Presenting results at internal meetings, and occasional meetings with external stakeholders.
  • Ensuring that results, protocols, software, and documentation have been archived or otherwise
    transmitted to the larger organization.
NIST Sponsor
Sissy Nikolaou
Group
Earthquake Engineering Group
Salary / Hourly Rate {Min}
$100.00
Schedule of Appointment
Part time
Start Date
Sponsor email
aspasia.nikolaou@nist.gov
Work Location
Remote
Salary / Hourly rate {Max}
$105.00
Total Hours per week
5
End Date
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