Dear All,
The Centre for Sustainable Heritage, Bartlett School for Graduate Studies, University College London (UCL) and The National Archives, London are seeking applications for one fully funded Thames Consortium Studentship on the topic 'Uncertainty of damage functions in preventive conservation'. Funded by AHRC, the three year PhD research programme will be supervised jointly by UCL and The National Archives.
This is a highly prestigious studentship on a challenging topic of strategic importance to the field. In preventive conservation, it is customary to rely on damage functions to predict the future state of a heritage object or a collection in certain environmental conditions. Damage functions are mathematical models, derived experimentally or empirically, and are associated with an uncertainty. This uncertainty is rarely assessed and as a consequence, the reliability of predictions and consequently, conservation decisions has often been questioned. This project will develop a damage function for discolouration of particularly unstable paper types, and critically examine the associated uncertainties. This will be compared with a general review of uncertainty calculation in long-term predictions, and conclusions drawn for predictive maintenance of heritage. The particular research questions of this interdisciplinary project are:
The research project will enable the PhD student to seek employment in any multidisciplinary environment: from academia to conservation, including engineering and industry.
Eligibility to apply
The student will have a good first degree in a relevant discipline: mathematics, physics, chemistry, engineering, material science or conservation science with understanding of cultural heritage preservation issues. Experience in data analysis, experimental design and modelling will be highly welcomed. For further details contact Dr. Matija Strlič, [log in to unmask] / 020 3108 9036 or Kostas Ntanos, [log in to unmask] / 020 8392 5330 ext. 2019.
The Studentship will cover fees and a stipend of up to a maximum of £15,726 per year (current rate) for UK students. Please note that students from EU countries other than UK are eligible for remission of fees only. Non-EU students are not eligible to apply. For detailed terms and conditions see the RCUK Student Funding Guide. Application deadline: 10 July 2012 Interviews: 18 July 2013
Full information and application available on our website: http://nationalarchives.gov.uk/jobs/collaborative-doctoral-partnerships.htm
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The Thames Consortium is comprised of The National Maritime Museum, The National Portrait Gallery and The National Archives has been awarded six Collaborative Doctoral Partnerships (CDPs) per year for the next three years to support doctoral students. The CDP studentships are distributed by the Arts and Humanities Research Council to sustain and promote high-quality research and skills in the sector.
Victoria Lain, Research Grants Adviser
The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 4DU