Funded PhD Position in Urban Water Engineering – Sustainable Municipal Infrastructure Renewal, Luleå University of Technology, Sweden

Luleå University of Technology (LTU) in Sweden is inviting applications for a PhD position in Urban Water Engineering focused on the sustainable rehabilitation and renewal of municipal water-pipe and street networks. The project combines civil and environmental engineering, infrastructure asset management, Python-based modelling, life-cycle assessment, and economic analysis.

The doctoral researcher will investigate how urban water pipes and streets can be renovated together—or independently—to support sustainable, cost-effective, and resilient municipal infrastructure management. The research is particularly relevant to candidates interested in urban water systems, digital twins, infrastructure modelling, sustainability, data-driven engineering, and climate-resilient cities.

Position Details

• Position: PhD Student in Urban Water Engineering

• Project focus: Optimized and sustainable rehabilitation planning of urban water-pipe and street networks

• University: Luleå University of Technology

• Department: Department of Civil, Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering

• Research group: Urban Water Engineering

• Location: Luleå, Sweden

• Research areas: Urban water systems, infrastructure asset management, Python modelling, life-cycle assessment, economics, statistics, sustainable rehabilitation planning

• Contract: Full-time PhD employment

• Duration: Four years; teaching and other departmental duties may add up to a maximum of 20%

• Start: Autumn 2026

• Funding: Salaried doctoral employment; the official vacancy should be checked for the precise salary and employment terms

• Application deadline: 16 August 2026

• Reference number: 3603-2026

Research Focus

Municipalities must maintain and renew extensive networks of water pipes and urban streets while managing limited budgets, environmental constraints, service requirements, and increasing climate-related risks. Decisions about when, where, and how to rehabilitate infrastructure are often made separately, even though pipe and street works may affect the same physical locations and may be coordinated to reduce disruption and cost.

This PhD project will develop knowledge and decision-support methods for planning the rehabilitation of urban water-pipe and street networks. The research may investigate how asset condition, failure risk, service requirements, construction impacts, costs, environmental effects, and long-term performance can be integrated into a sustainable planning framework.

Potential research activities may include:

• Collection and analysis of municipal asset-management data.

• Development of Python-based models for rehabilitation planning.

• Assessment of pipe and street condition, risk, and remaining service life.

• Life-cycle assessment of alternative maintenance and renewal strategies.

• Economic analysis of coordinated versus separate infrastructure works.

• Multi-objective optimization under budget and service constraints.

• Stakeholder workshops with municipalities and infrastructure organizations.

• Development of decision-support tools for sustainable urban asset management.

• Evaluation of how climate change and urban growth affect renewal priorities.

The precise research plan should be confirmed in the official LTU vacancy announcement and discussed with the prospective supervisor.

Eligibility and Skills

Applicants should hold a master’s degree or equivalent, or have completed at least 240 ECTS credits including at least 60 ECTS at an advanced level. The degree should normally be in one of the following areas:

• Civil engineering.

• Environmental engineering.

• Natural resources engineering.

• Urban water engineering.

• Infrastructure engineering.

• Sustainable urban development.

• A closely related discipline.

The following experience would be advantageous:

• Knowledge of urban water systems and municipal infrastructure.

• Python programming and computational modelling.

• Life-cycle assessment and sustainability analysis.

• Economics, statistics, or risk analysis.

• Infrastructure asset management.

• Geographic information systems or spatial data analysis.

• Optimization, simulation, or decision-support methods.

• Experience working with municipalities or engineering stakeholders.

The official vacancy emphasizes independence, initiative, and the ability to explore new research areas. Strong English skills are required because research results will be communicated through international journals and conferences. Swedish or another Scandinavian language is beneficial for stakeholder engagement and teaching activities.

Funding and Employment

The position is advertised as full-time PhD employment. In Sweden, doctoral students at technical universities are commonly employed by the university and receive a doctoral salary rather than being required to self-fund their research degree.

The official LTU vacancy should be consulted for the exact salary scale, pension, paid leave, insurance, employment percentage, and other conditions. The appointment is limited to four years, with teaching and other departmental duties potentially added at a maximum of 20%.

The position is based in Luleå and is expected to start in autumn 2026. Applicants should be prepared to participate in research, doctoral training, group activities, stakeholder workshops, conferences, and possible teaching or departmental assignments.

Why Apply?

This PhD is a strong opportunity for candidates who want to work on practical infrastructure problems with direct societal and environmental relevance. The project may contribute to:

• More efficient municipal infrastructure investment.

• Reduced disruption from coordinated pipe and street works.

• Improved water-service reliability.

• Lower life-cycle costs and environmental impacts.

• Better prioritization of rehabilitation projects.

• Climate-resilient and sustainable urban development.

• Data-driven asset-management practices.

The project may also appeal to researchers with experience in computational mechanics, finite-element modelling, data science, digital twins, optimization, or physics-informed machine learning. Although the main application domain is urban water infrastructure, quantitative modelling and decision-support methods could connect with broader engineering research.

Luleå University of Technology Research Environment

Luleå University of Technology conducts research across civil engineering and infrastructure, architecture and design, mining and minerals, mechanical engineering and materials, energy, digitalization and AI, space, health, and related fields. The university emphasizes applied research and collaboration with industry and the public sector.

The Department of Civil, Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering hosts research connected to water, infrastructure, environmental systems, and sustainable development. The Urban Water Engineering group works in an international and collaborative environment with links to municipalities, industry, and other universities.

A doctoral candidate at LTU normally participates in a doctoral education programme, completes research training, develops a thesis, presents research at conferences, and contributes to the research group’s scientific activities.

How to Apply

Applications should be submitted through the official LTU vacancy portal. The application must include:

• Curriculum vitae.

• Personal or motivation letter.

• Copies of verified diplomas from high school and universities.

• Any additional documents requested in the official vacancy announcement.

• The vacancy reference number 3603-2026.

Documents must be written in English or Swedish. The motivation letter should explain the applicant’s interest in sustainable urban infrastructure renewal and connect previous experience to Python modelling, asset management, life-cycle assessment, economics, statistics, or urban water systems.

Applicants should provide concrete evidence of technical preparation. For example, describe a modelling project, infrastructure study, optimization method, Python tool, life-cycle assessment, or data-analysis workflow and explain the result.

Application Link

Apply through the official Luleå University of Technology vacancy portal:

LTU – PhD Student in Urban Water Engineering, reference 3603-2026

The university’s general vacancies page is available here:

LTU – Vacancies

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