PhD Studentship: Carbon Accounting and Optimisation Strategies for the Pipe Industries: A Life Cycle Approach

The pipe industry, comprising PVC, HDPE, steel, ductile iron, and concrete pipes, significantly contributes to greenhouse gas emissions due to energy-intensive production, material sourcing, and transportation. Despite global efforts toward decarbonisation, the pipe industry lacks standardised, industry-specific carbon accounting frameworks and optimisation strategies to reduce its carbon footprint across the life cycle of its products. Existing practices often overlook indirect (Scope 3) emissions and fail to integrate real-time data analytics or life cycle assessments for decision-making. Therefore, there is a critical need to develop and implement life cycle carbon accounting tools and optimization techniques tailored to the specific operations and materials used in the pipe industry.

This PhD is co-funded and co-supervised by the Pipeline Industries Guild and aims to develop a comprehensive carbon accounting framework and decision-support tools to reduce the life cycle carbon footprint of the Guild’s products. The project will support the Guild’s companies in understanding, quantifying, and reducing their carbon emissions while improving transparency and compliance with emerging regulations.

Entry requirements:

Applicants should have, or expect to achieve, a first-class or high 2:1 undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering, Construction Management, or a closely related discipline. A relevant master’s degree and/or industry experience in construction, infrastructure delivery, or sustainability – particularly with an understanding of lifecycle processes in the built environment – will be an advantage.

The ideal candidate will:

• be enthusiastic and self-motivated
• be familiar with carbon accounting principles, such as Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, or life cycle assessments
• demonstrate an ability to work with quantitative data, including spreadsheets, emissions databases, or modelling tool
• possess strong analytical and communication skills, with the ability to engage and collaborate effectively with both academic researchers and industry professionals
• show a genuine interest in developing practical, real-world solutions for carbon reduction in the pipe and construction sectors.

English language requirements:

Applicants must meet the minimum English language requirements. Further details are available on the International website (International website).

Funding information:

The studentship is for 3.5 years and provides a tax-free stipend of £20,780 per annum plus tuition fees at the UK rate. Due to UKRI funding rules, this studentship is only available to those eligible for UK fees.

How to apply:

All applications must be made online and must include a completed studentship application form (instead of a personal statement) and a two-page research proposal based on the project description outlining how you would approach the project and what methods you would use. Under Campus, please select ‘Loughborough’ and select programme ‘Architecture, Building and Civil Engineering’. Please quote the advertised reference number ‘ABCE-Pipeline-26’ in your application.

To avoid delays in processing your application, please ensure that you submit the minimum supporting documents including an up-to-date CV, but a personal statement is not required.

ABCE will use these selection criteria to help us to make a decision on your application.

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