Geotechnical Engineer

As one of the largest research centers in Belgium, we develop nuclear applications that make a difference now and in the future. Driven by our passion for science and empowered by our unique infrastructure, we continuously build on our current insights and expand our high-tech expertise across various nuclear domains. These are the building blocks we use to develop innovative applications for society. This approach involves isolating the waste deep underground in a stable geological formation, typically hundreds of meters below the surface. engineered barriers, rock formations) that contain and isolate the waste for thousands to millions of years. The Belgian R&D programme for geological disposal is not yet at the stage of siting but deep clay rocks are considered as possible candidate hosts and the current, generic concept considers an engineered barrier system that includes metallic, concrete and clayey components for the containment of the waste and sealing of a repository.
In support to this R&D programme, EURIDICE operates the underground laboratory HADES that was built in the 1980s at 225 meters underneath the premises of SCK CEN and that has been progressively extended in close collaboration with ONDRAF/NIRAS, the Belgian agency that manages the radioactive waste. As a research centre focused on the civilian use of nuclear technologies, SCK CEN is an important contributor to this programme. At EURIDICE, engineers and scientists explore construction techniques and structural materials for building underground infrastructures and perform research on the long-term behaviour of host rocks as natural barriers for the confinement of radioactive waste.
Your role as a research engineer in the EURIDICE team:
carry out or contribute to feasibility studies for a future geological disposal facility. You will focus on geotechnical engineering in deep geological layers for the construction of access shafts and galleries for the disposal of radioactive waste and on the development of the engineered barrier system (e.g. from disposal packages to repository sealing structures)
actively participate in R&D studies about rock-structure interactions, short- and long-term Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-(Chemical) (THMC) behaviour of engineered materials and of the host rock as a natural barrier. These studies might include the interpretation of lab and in situ experiments and the use of numerical modelling tools to investigate multi-physical processes in geomaterials
Civil engineer and/or PhD in mining, geotechnical or civil engineering with a solid basis on geotechnical modelling and stability of underground structures
knowledge in soil-rock interactions and multi-physical coupling (e.g. thermo-hydro-mechanical) in low-permeability geomaterials and/or engineered materials
good communication skills in French or Dutch, and English
good writing skills for technical and scientific documents (mostly in English: technical notes, scientific reports and scientific)
opportunities for personal development and extensive training both within and beyond your field of expertise
an inspiring, international, and highly qualified working environment