Postdoctoral Research Associate; Geological COStorage

Grade UE07: £41,064 to £48,822 per annum

College of Science and Engineering / School of Geo Sciences

Full-time: 35 hours per week

Fixed-term: for 15 months

The University of Edinburgh is a world-class, research-intensive institution. We offer a supportive working environment, excellent facilities, and opportunities for professional development within a diverse and international community.

This is an Academic Research (Postdoctoral Research Associate) opportunity within the School of Geo Sciences.

We are seeking a Postdoctoral Research Associate (Geological CO₂ Storage) to support the University of Edinburgh contribution to the CETP-funded CO2

Safe Quest project. The project focuses on improving the characterisation and modelling of faults and their behaviour during geological CO₂ storage to strengthen storage integrity and leakage risk assessment.

The postholder will lead the University of Edinburgh contribution to static and geomechanical modelling of faulted CO₂ storage sites (with a focus on North Sea case studies). You will integrate multi-scale datasets (e.g., well logs, seismic interpretation, petrophysical analysis, and laboratory-derived rock/fault properties) to build and calibrate geomechanical models, including 1D Mechanical Earth Models and 3D geomechanical models with explicit fault representations.

You will prepare model-ready properties and workflows that support coupled hydro-mechanical simulation, fault reactivation assessment, and uncertainty/sensitivity analysis, working closely with consortium partners and industrial collaborators to ensure timely delivery of robust, well-documented outputs.

You will work within a strong international consortium, engaging with academic and industrial partners including IFPEN, ETH Zürich, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), NGI, the University of Oslo, Hydrafact, TRACS, and industrial partners (AkerBP, OMV (Norge), Shell).

• PhD (awarded, or thesis submitted by the start date) in geoscience, geophysics, geomechanics, geoenergy, or a closely related discipline.
• Demonstrated experience in static and geomechanical modelling of subsurface systems, including development of Mechanical Earth Models and 3D/4D geomechanical models.
• Experience integrating multi-scale datasets (e.g., seismic, petrophysical and rock/fault property data) and maintaining robust QA/QC and documentation of assumptions, inputs and outputs.
• Experience with fault mechanics / fault reactivation analysis and/or coupled hydro-mechanical (or thermo-hydro-mechanical) modelling, including use of appropriate numerical tools (e.g., finite-element methods).
• Experience with relevant subsurface/geomechanics software (e.g., Petrel, Techlog, Eclipse, Visage, Abaqus, or equivalent platforms).
• Strong quantitative and computational skills (e.g., Python and/or MATLAB) for data handling, workflow development and analysis.
• Strong communication and organisational skills, and the ability to deliver modelling outputs to deadline in a collaborative, multi-partner project environment.

This is an office- and computer-based role requiring regular on-site attendance for collaboration, meetings, and secure data access. Remote working will be limited to occasional tasks and only by prior agreement with the line manager. Applicants should not expect routine or regular home working as part of this post.

• Competitive salary
• Generous annual leave and public holiday entitlement
• Defined benefits pension scheme
• A wide range of staff discounts
• Family-friendly initiatives and wellbeing support
• Professional development and training opportunities