"PhD Studentship: Real-Time River Water Quality Forecasting through Integrated Hydrodynamic and Surrogate Modelling"

Newcastle University

Award Summary

This studentship provides a tax-free annual living allowance of £25,726 plus a research training support grant of £20,000 and 100% fees paid.

Overview

This PhD project aims to develop a computationally efficient framework for the real-time prediction of river water quality following contamination events associated with Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs). Such events present increasing risks to public health, ecosystems and urban water environments, particularly under pressures from climate change, urbanisation and ageing infrastructure. Although high-fidelity numerical models can simulate hydrodynamic and pollutant transport processes, their computational cost limits their suitability for real-time emergency decision-making. This project addresses this challenge by combining physics-based modelling with data driven surrogate approaches.

The first stage of the project will involve the development of a multi-layer hydrodynamic model capable of representing key three-dimensional flow processes in riverine and estuarine systems. This model will be coupled with advection–diffusion–reaction equations to simulate pollutant transport, mixing and biochemical processes.

To enable rapid prediction, a machine-learning surrogate model based on Gaussian process regression will be developed and trained using datasets generated by the high-fidelity numerical solver. The surrogate will emulate key hydrodynamic and water quality responses while providing robust uncertainty quantification to support reliable decision-making. Evolutionary algorithms will be employed to efficiently explore the parameter space and undertake sensitivity analyses.

The integrated framework will be validated using analytical test cases, laboratory experiments, and field measurements. It will then be applied to a real-world case study on the Ouseburn in Newcastle upon Tyne to demonstrate its capability for real time water quality forecasting and its ability to support decision-making aimed at protecting river users from health risks.

This PhD studentship is part of the Water Infrastructure & Resilience (WIRe) CDT funded by EPSRC and Reece Foundation

Number of awards:1

Start date:28th September 2026

Award duration:4 years

Sponsor:EPSRC and Reece Foundation

Supervisors:Dr Vassilis Glenis and at Newcastle University with Reece Foundation

Eligibility criteria

An MEng/MSc in a relevant subject or First or upper second class UG degree (2:1). Enthusiasm for research, the ability to think and work independently, excellent analytical skills and strong verbal and written communication skills are also essential requirements.

Home and international applicants (inc. EU) are welcome to apply and if successful will receive a full studentship. Applicants whose first language is not English require an IELTS score of 6.5 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in all sub-skills.

International applicants may require an ATAS (Academic Technology Approval Scheme) clearance certificate prior to obtaining their visa and to study on this programme.

How to apply

You must apply through the University’s Apply to Newcastle Portal

Once registered select ‘Create a Postgraduate Application’.

Use ‘Course Search’ to identify your programme of study:

• Search for the ‘Course Title’ using the programme code: 8209F
• Select ‘PhD Water Infrastructure & Resilience (WIRe)' as the programme of study

You will then need to provide the following information in the ‘Further Questions’ section:

• A ‘Personal Statement’ (this is a mandatory field) - upload a document or write a statement directly in to the application form
• The studentship code WRII2604in the ‘Studentship/Partnership Reference’ field
• When prompted for how you are providing your research proposal - select ‘Write Proposal’. You should then type in the title of the research project from this advert. You do not need to upload a research proposal.

Contact details: justine.easten@ncl.ac.uk