Postgraduate research opportunities Clean Energy - Understanding hydrate formation in porous rock for enhanced geothermal energy

Nucleation experiments will be used to measure crystal growth rates and the effects of crystal growth inhibitors on blocking rock pores. Techniques used will include a high-throughput nucleation setup, spectroscopy (Raman or Infra-Red) and X-ray diffraction for analyzing the crystals formed. In addition, simulations can provide molecular-level insight into the formation of hydrates at the nanometer-scale that is not accessible by experiment. Classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations will be used to predict the structure of the aqueous solution near the rock interface.  The solution structures will be analyzed to obtain concentration profiles, order parameters, etc. and their variation near the interface. This insight will provide understanding about why nucleation differs in different rock types and enhance geothermal energy production. The student will have access to the high performance Archie-WeSt supercomputer and will gain expertise in using a Linux environment, and MD software, such as LAMMPS. The student will be based in the Faculty of Engineering, one of the largest and most successful engineering faculties in the UK, and the largest in Scotland.