research fellowship (RF) in the scope of the research project AQUALEARN – Machine learning-based digital twins for real time anomaly detection in water supply systems.

Organisation/Company

LNEC, I.P.

Department

Human Resources and Facilities Services

Research Field

Other

Researcher Profile

First Stage Researcher (R1)

Positions

Bachelor Positions

Application Deadline

21 Apr 2026 - 23:59 (Europe/Lisbon)

Country

Portugal

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Full-time

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Other EU programme

Reference Number

LISBOA2030-FEDER-00816100 (FEDER)

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

1 – Title

RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP (RF GRADUATE)

2 – Offer description

As per the terms laid down in Regulamento de Bolsas de Investigação da FCT (FCT Regulation for Research Fellowships), approved by Law no. 40/2004 , 18 August, as it stands, we announce the launching of a call for awarding a research fellowship (RF) in the scope of the research project AQUALEARN – Machine learning-based digital twins for real time anomaly detection in water supply systems.

3 – Financing source

The Grant will be funded within the scope of the research project “AQUALEARN – Machine learning-based digital twins for real time anomaly detection in water supply systems”, project no. 16878, with the operation code LISBOA2030-FEDER-00816100 of Balcão dos Fundos. The project is subsidised by the Lisbon Regional Programme of FEDER and the State Budget of Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P.

4 – Scientific area

Sanitary and Environmental Engineering

5 – Duration

The Grant shall be awarded for a 6-month period.

6 – Activity Regime

All the work shall be developed on an exclusive dedication regime, as per the provisions laid down in the Statute of the Research Fellow, approved by Law no. 40/2004, 18 August, as it stands, and in FCT Regulation for Fellowships, available on LNEC website.

7 – Work plan and objectives

The grant holder will participate in R&D activities within the scientific area to which the grant is assigned, integrated in the aforementioned research project, including:

• Development and calibration of numerical models of pilot networks to explore the use of multiple monitored parameters (pressure, flow rate, basic and advanced water quality parameters) for anomaly detection, and to better understand the impact of anomalies on hydraulics and water quality in distribution networks;
• Implementation in EPANET-MSX of water quality models for water distribution networks;
• Advanced characterisation of water quality from grab samples collected in the project’s pilot distribution networks, e.g. through dissolved organic carbon analysis and UV–Vis and fluorescence spectroscopy;
• Application of statistical methods for result analysis (e.g., correlation analysis between hydraulic and water quality parameters);
• Production of scientific articles, papers, and reports, in close collaboration with the project team.

8 – Location

Main Workplace: LNEC – National Laboratory for Civil Engineering, I.P.

Avenida do Brasil, 101 – 1700-066 Lisboa

Country: Portugal

Website: https://www.lnec.pt

Email: recrutamento@lnec.pt

The above activities shall be conducted at the Urban Water Unit of the Hydraulics and Environment Department of LNEC, without prejudice to the possibility of performing temporary missions in Portugal

9 – Qualifications

Applications are open to:

• Individuals holding a degree in Sanitary and Environmental Engineering or related fields, enrolled in  a Master’s programme in Sanitary and Environmental Engineering or in related fields or in a non-degree granting course integrated into the educational project of an academic institution, developed in association or cooperation with one or more R&D units.

Candidates must be fluent in Portuguese and have a good knowledge of English.

10 – Scientific supervision

The activities will be supervised by the Senior Researcher, Dália Loureiro and by the Assistant Researcher Rui Viegas, from the Urban Water unit.

11 – Monthly allowance

The Grant shall include a  monthly allowance in the amount of 1,040.98 €. The Grant fellow shall also be entitled to a specific social security system and to insurance against personal accidents at work.

When traveling abroad (if applicable), the scholarship holder will have paid travel and accommodation expenses.

12 – Selection methods and criteria

The evaluation of the applications shall be based on the Applicant’s Merits (MC), and the following evaluation criteria shall be scored on a 0 to 20 scale. 

Applicant’s merits:

• Academic Background (PA) – scores of the academic degrees required by this call – 50%
• Professional Résumé (CP) – scientific and professional career – 30%
• Interview with the selection jury (ES) – 20%

Hence:

MC = (0.5 * PA) + (0.3 * CP) + (0.2 * ES).

The jury is entitled to decide not to award the Grant if the quality of the applicants is deemed below par.

13 – Selection jury

President:

– Maria João Rosa, Principal Researcher.

Members:

– Dália Loureiro, Senior Researcher

– Rui Viegas, Assistant Researcher.

Alternates:

– Elsa Mesquita, Assistant Researcher

– Paula Vieira, Assistant Researcher.

14 – Application documents

• Letter of motivation (maximum: one A4 page).
• Degree certificate, with indication of the partial scores and final classification.

• Official document certifying the grade obtained in each course unit.

   

   

  Foreign certificates shall be valid only if they are dully endorsed by an issuing entity, or if a recognition/equivalence document is produced stating that the foreign qualifications correspond to the same Portuguese qualifications. The respective scores can only be used if they are officially converted to the Portuguese scoring scale (by DGES – Direção Geral do Ensino Superior or by a public higher education institution), even if the foreign classification corresponds to a 0 to 20 scale.

• Official document certifying enrolment in the degree referred to in section 9 of this call for applications.

If the candidate is unable to obtain this document for reasons not attributable to them, it may be replaced by a declaration of honour attesting such enrolment.

• Detailed Curriculum Vitae.
• Other documents (optional), such as letters of reference and supporting documents of internships or complementary courses considered as relevant for the purposes of this Grant.

• Official document certifying enrolment in the degree /course referred to in section 9 of this call.
• Necessary information for preparing the contract.

15 – Deadline for applications

Between March 23, 2026 and April 21, 2026

16 – Formalization of applications

The applications shall be formalized by one of the following means:

• Electronic mail addressed to recrutamento@lnec.pt ., until 24h00 of the last day of the stipulated time limit;
• directly to Setor de Arquivo e Expediente Geral of LNEC, at Avenida do Brasil, no. 101, 1700-066 Lisboa;
• registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt addressed to LNEC, I.P., Avenida do Brasil, no. 101, 1700-066 Lisboa; the date of delivery considered for the purpose of compliance with the stipulated time limit being the date of registration.

In the last two cases, the applications shall be delivered in a sealed envelope, bearing the following information on the outside: “Concurso para atribuição de uma bolsa de investigação (BI), in the framework the research project AQUALEARN – Deteção de anomalias em tempo real em sistemas de abastecimento de água através de gémeos digitais baseados em métodos de aprendizagem automática.

17 – Notification of results

The final score of each evaluation stage shall be advertised in a list sorted by the final score obtained, all applicants being notified by electronic mail. The results shall also be published on the Recruitment page of LNEC’s website.

18 – Deadlines and procedures for preliminary hearing, claims and appeals

Once the provisional ranked list of the evaluation results has been communicated, applicants who have an unfavourable provisional decision may use their right to dispute it during the preliminary hearing phase (if requested), which takes place within 10 working days, according to the Administrative Procedure Code (CPA).

The final decision shall be disclosed after the analysis of applicants’ arguments presented in the preliminary hearing. Final decision can be claimed within 15 working days or, alternatively, appealed to the Board of Directors, within 30 working days, after the communication of the final results, respectively.

19 – Further information

Additional information can be obtained by phone: +351 218 443 892 or +351 218 443 754 or by electronic mail to the address referred to in 16. The applicants living outside of Portugal can also refer to the portal EURAXESS Portugal .

20 – Standard fellowship contract

Available on the Recruitment  page of LNEC’s website.

21 – Model of the final report to be prepared by the research fellow and supervisor

Available on the Recruitment page of LNEC’s website.

E-mail

recrutamento@lnec.pt

Research Field

Engineering

Education Level

Bachelor Degree or equivalent

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

LNEC - Laboratório Nacional de Engenharia Civil

Country

Portugal

City

Lisbon

Postal Code

1700-066 Lisboa

Street

Avenida do Brasil, 101

Geofield

State/Province

Lisbon

City

Lisbon

Website

http://www.lnec.pt/pt/

Street

Av. do Brasil, 101

Postal Code

1700-066

E-Mail

recrutamento@lnec.pt

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