Research Associate - Water Resources Engineering

University of Alberta; Edmonton; On-site; CAD 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

University of Alberta in Edmonton invites applications for a Research Associate focused on optimization algorithms for river basin planning and management. The role collaborates with a prominent irrigation district to optimize daily reservoir operations to meet irrigation demands using WEB.BM.

The project aims to link WEB.BM and other software with a SCADA data monitoring system to achieve full control and optimization of water balance across the canal system, including travel time and

Responsibilities

• Apply optimization algorithms for river basin planning and management.
• Collaborate with an irrigation district to optimize daily reservoir operations to meet irrigation demands.
• Explore linking WEB.BM with a SCADA data monitoring system to achieve full water balance control.

Job description

This position has an end date of December 31, 2028.

Location - This role is in-person. Work primarily takes place at North Campus, Edmonton.

Applications are invited for a Research Associate position in the application of optimization algorithms for river basin planning and management. The selected research associate will work with a prominent irrigation district in Alberta to optimize daily reservoir operations (storage and releases) to meet irrigation demands, using a river basin management model called WEB.BM. WEB.BM is an optimization model that simulates river diversions, reservoir storage, and reservoir releases, subject to water licences and WCO/IFN constraints, to meet downstream water demands throughout the open water season. The ultimate goal of the project is to link WEB.BM and other software components with a SCADA data monitoring system to obtain full control and optimization of water balance throughout the district’s canal system, which involves both travel time and attenuation processes, in addition to optimal balancing of storage.