Modelling Fire Spread - SAFEBATT

About the Project

This is a 3.5 year PhD project at KCL affiliated to the Faraday Institution SAFEBATT project, which is a major project increasing the fundamental understanding of the root causes of cell failure and the mechanisms of failure propagation, and utilising this improved knowledge of the science of safety to inform the design of safer batteries and battery systems, as well as informing standards and stakeholders such as regulatory bodies and first responders.

As battery energy storage expands to increasingly demanding markets and starts to encompass emerging battery chemistries, there is a critical need to understand and validate the safety of these new systems.

The PhD research in fire science will work closely with other members of the SAFEBATT team. The aim of this PhD is to accurately simulate flame propagation in multi-cell packs, and investigate effects of smoke, module geometry, orientation, cell rupture and cell spacing on propagation speed for packs of various forms and chemistries.

The overarching goal is to create and expand predictive tools that can be used both in the design of BESS systems with potential fire protection measures as well as contribute to a Quantitative Risk Assessment toolkit for fire and explosion risk evaluation in battery systems.

You will be part of an active research programme in the Heat and Fire Lab (https://heatandfire.github.io/) in the Department of Engineering under the supervision of Dr Francesco Restuccia. Our group is focused on carrying out experimental and computational multidisciplinary research in the thermal sciences covering heat transfer, combustion, fire science, and bioenergy. Our interests range from helping develop more efficient and durable energy storage to understanding the fundamentals of ignition and fire spread for prevention of damage to people, property, and the environment from unwanted fires in areas such as wildfire and electrification. Our current projects focus on wildfire dynamics, battery fires, thermal management of Lithium-Ion batteries, and ignition research.

Application Details

To be considered for the position candidates must apply via King’s Apply online application system. Details are available at https://www.kcl.ac.uk/engineering/postgraduate/research-degrees

Please apply for Engineering Research (MPhil/PhD) and indicate Dr Francesco Restuccia as the supervisor and quote the project title in your application and all correspondence.

Please ensure to add the following code [1018] in the Funding section of the application form.

Please select option 5 ‘I am applying for a funding award or scholarship administered by King’s College London’ and type the code into the ‘Award Scheme Code or Name’ box. Please copy and paste the code exactly.

The selection process will involve a pre-selection on documents and, if selected, will be followed by an invitation to an interview. If successful at the interview, an offer will be provided in due course.

Further information can be found at https://www.kcl.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/how-to-apply

Funding Notes

Funding is available for 42 months and covers tuition fees at the UKRI level set for home students and a tax-free stipend with possible inflationary increases after the first year.

Stipend: UKRI standard 26/27,

£23,805 per annum with possible inflationary increases

Bench Fees: £2,500 per annum

Tuition fees: UKRI home fees 26/27, £5,238.00 per annum with possible inflationary increases