PhD Position Tectono-Sedimentary Evolution of the Northern Margin of the Saharan platform, Tunisia.

This multiscale and multidisciplinary geological project aims at understanding the tectono-sedimentary evolution of the northern margin of the Saharan platform during the Early Mesozoic. This period of time is key because it marks the end of the Variscan orogeny and the onset of a succession of tectonic events influencing lithospheric vertical movements (subsidence and exhumation) that are currently debated in the scientific community. These vertical movements shaped the Triassic and Jurassic landscape and influenced erosion patterns which controlled the deposition of sedimentary units. Combining tectonic and sedimentary models has not yet been performed in the area of interest and will be a robust way of predicting sedimentary facies distribution throughout the Early Mesozoic times. Vertical movements also generated multiscale deformations such as complex fractures and fault networks and large scale low amplitude folding. These deformation have been largely overlooked in the northern margin of the Saharan platform and their origin and evolution is still poorly known.

This research project is embedded into the North African Research Group (NARG) which perform high level research in Northern Africa since 2000. The NARG is sponsored by industrial partners offering access to unique databases ensuring the impact of the generated research on the scientific community.

The proposed approach combines subsurface data interpretation available in the NARG consortium with outcrop characterisation (fieldwork) and low temperature thermochronology data.

The key expected outputs of the project are the following:

• A robust tectono-sedimentary model for the northern margin of the Saharan platform. This model will be constructed from available 2D/3D seismic data, historic well data, low temperature thermochronology, and geochemical analyses. The objective will be to constraint the burial and thermal history of the northern margin of the Saharan platform. Within the project you will also analyse and quantify the evolution of the shape, position and content (facies) of sedimentary basins in the Early Mesozoic times.
• The characterisation of sub-seismic fault systems in subsurface reservoir to derisk compartmentalization issues in the subsurface. This characterisation combines fieldwork missions in the Jeffara area where faulted and fractured Triassic and Jurassic units are exposed, as well as borehole data analysis, 3D seismic interpretation and strain reconstructions near identified faults, and unconventional seismic attributes computation. This part of the project ambition to develop a robust workflow to predict the occurrence and distribution of sub-seismic scale faults in the subsurface.

The outcomes of the project will be published open-access and hence released to the scientific community. This project aims to generate fundamental outcomes (sedimentological and structural) to a better understanding of the northern margin of the Saharan platform.     

Interested by the proposed research? Join the Applied Geology section at TU Delft and spend the next four years working on a challenging and multidisciplinary project!

You have a strong background in geology with affinities/specialty in structural geology. You are willing to acquire and process data (in outcrops, and via modelling tools). You have demonstrated competences working with subsurface data (well data, seismic) and with standard interpretation and 3D modelling programs (e.g. Petrel, openflow suite, OpenDtect). You have interest in coding (python experience is a plus).

You are willing to work in an international, diverse and inclusive team and to travel abroad. You are a dynamic person.

Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure that the candidate is able to communicate and interact well, participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, and write scientific articles and a final thesis. For more details please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements .

Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1,5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2,5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from € 2770 per month in the first year to € 3539 in the fourth year. As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills.

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged. 

For international applicants, TU Delft has the Coming to Delft Service . This service provides information for new international employees to help you prepare the relocation and to settle in the Netherlands. The Coming to Delft Service offers a Dual Career Programme  for partners and they organise events to expand your (social) network.

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values  and we actively engage  to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

The Faculty of Civil Engineering & Geosciences (CEG) is committed to outstanding international research and education in the field of civil engineering, applied earth sciences, traffic and transport, water technology, and delta technology. Our research feeds into our educational programmes and covers societal challenges such as climate change, energy transition, resource availability, urbanisation and clean water. Our research projects are conducted in close cooperation with a wide range of research institutions. CEG is convinced of the importance of open science and supports its scientists in integrating open science in their research practice. The Faculty of CEG comprises 28 research groups in the following seven departments: Materials Mechanics Management & Design, Engineering Structures, Geoscience and Engineering, Geoscience and Remote Sensing, Transport & Planning, Hydraulic Engineering and Water Management.

Click here  to go to the website of the Faculty of Civil Engineering & Geosciences.

For more information about this vacancy, please contact Dr. Pierre-Olivier Bruna, Assistant professor, email: [email protected] , Prof. Giovanni Bertotti, full professor, email [email protected] or Dr. Remi Charton, Assistant professor, email: [email protected].

Are you interested in this vacancy? Please apply no later than 1 September 2024 via the application button and upload:

• your motivation (500 words at most)
• A curriculum vitae
• A short summary (350 words at most) and a key figure of your MSc thesis or latest ongoing industrial project.
• Contact information for two referees we can call for feedback (no letter needed at this stage).

Please note:

• You can apply online. We will not process applications sent by email and/or post.
• A pre-employment screening can be part of the selection procedure.
• Please do not contact us for unsolicited services.

Our goal is to help the next generation of scientists thrive in a safe and inclusive environment. Fostering a community representative of our society in our department and in the geosciences is essential to tackle the world's most critical problems, and we encourage women, persons with disabilities, and underrepresented minorities to apply.