Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering
Research Assistant
(Ref. 260709014)
[Appointment period: ten months]
Duties
The appointee will assist the project leader in the research project - “Physics-informed AI for quantifying resilience of enclosed underground structures to EV battery fires”. He/She will be required to:
(a) develop and execute thermo-mechanical coupled Finite Element (FE) models of underground structures under EV battery fire conditions, including structural vibration and stability analyses;
(b) participate in the development of Physical-Informed Neural Network (PINN)-based surrogate models to accelerate multi-scenario structural response predictions;
(c) assist in the collection, processing, and analysis of experimental data (e.g., vibration responses, temperature fields) for model validation and updating; and
(d) contribute to the preparation of research publications and project reports.
Qualifications
Applicants should have:
(a) a master’s degree in Mechanics, Acoustics, Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering, or a closely related field or an equivalent qualification;
(b) solid theoretical foundation and hands-on experience in the Finite Element Method (FEM), with proficiency in both static and dynamic structural analysis;
(c) knowledge or project experience in structural vibration, vibro-acoustic coupling, or thermo-mechanical coupling; and
(d) basic programming skills (e.g., Python, MATLAB).
Preference will be given to those with:
(a) proficiency in at least one major FE software package (e.g., ANSYS, ABAQUS, COMSOL); and
(b) familiarity with machine learning/AI.
Applicants are invited to contact Dr Yunke Huang at telephone number 2766 4814 or via email at yunke.huang@polyu.edu.hk for further information.
Conditions of Service
A highly competitive remuneration package will be offered.
Consideration of applications will commence on 16 July 2026 until the position is filled.
Posting date: 9 July 2026