PhD Candidate in AI-driven condition-based opportunistic maintenance for resilient energy supply

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NTNU is a broad-based university with a technical-scientific profile and a focus in professional education. The university is located in three cities with headquarters in Trondheim.

At NTNU, 9,000 employees and 43,000 students work to create knowledge for a better world.

You will find more information about working at NTNU and the application process here.

   

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About the position

The Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering is seeking a motivated PhD Candidate to join our research team. This position focuses on AI-driven condition-based opportunistic maintenance aimed at ensuring a resilient and sustainable energy supply.

As a candidate, you will research and develop advanced AI methodologies, such as fine-tuning Large Language Models (LLMs), to revolutionize decision-making processes for renewable energy production and storage systems.

This role is designed for those looking to bridge the gap between industrial engineering and modern data science. You will work toward your doctorate in an environment that values both academic excellence and practical impact, gaining the expertise necessary for a high-level career in research, academic, and the global energy sector.

Your immediate leader will be the Head of Department.

About the project

The transition to a carbon-neutral society relies on intermittent renewable energy sources like wind and solar. To ensure a resilient energy supply, renewable energy production systems are increasingly integrated with energy storage modules, such as batteries. In such coupled systems, the storage units act as a critical buffer, absorbing excess production and discharging it during periods of low generation. However, this synergy introduces operational challenges. Both production- and storage modules are "maintenance-dependent." Taking an energy storage unit offline for service effectively removes the system's primary safeguard against production volatility, while performing maintenance on production assets during low-storage periods directly threatens the resilience of the energy supply.

To maintain a resilient supply, maintenance must be coordinated through Condition-Based Opportunistic Maintenance (CBOM). This strategy identifies "windows of opportunity" by simultaneously analyzing the degradation state of the hardware, the current energy levels in storage, and external market factors such as fluctuating electricity prices and weather-dependent production forecasts.

Traditional model-based approaches often struggle with the sheer volume of multi-modal data required to balance different factors in maintenance decision-making. The primary objective of this PhD project is to harness the power of artificial intelligence to manage this complexity. The candidate will research how AI tools, especially fine-tuning Large Language Models (LLMs), can serve as an intelligent decision-support layer, integrating multi-modal data, domain knowledge, and diverse requirements into optimized, explainable maintenance strategies that maximize power supply resilience and control cost.

Duties of the position

• Complete doctoral education until obtaining a doctorate
• Carry out research of good quality within the framework described above
• Academic publications and popular science dissemination
• Participate in the research group of Reliability, Availability, Maintainability, and Safety (RAMS)
• Participate in international activities such as conferences and/or research stays at foreign educational institutions
• Other career-promoting work 

Be prepared for changes to your work duties after employment.

Required selection criteria

• You must have a relevant Master's degree in industrial engineering, reliability engineering, operational research, data science or equivalent. Your course of study must correspond to a five-year Norwegian course, where 120 credits have been obtained at master's level. Master students can apply, but the master's degree must be obtained and documented before starting the position and no later than 1st August 2026.
• You must have a strong academic background from your previous studies and have an average grade from your Master's degree study, or equivalent education, which is equal to B or better compared to NTNU's grading scale. If you do not have letter grades from previous studies, you must have an equally good academic foundation. If you have a weaker grade background, you maybe considered if you can document that you are particularly suitable for a PhD education.
• You must meet the requirements for admission to the faculty's Doctoral Programme
• Good oral and written presentation skills in English

PLEASE NOTE: For detailed information about what the application must contain, see paragraph “About the application”.

The appointment is to be made in accordance with NTNUs guidelines for recruitment positions and Regulations for the degrees philosophiae doctor (ph.d.) and philosophiae doctor (ph.d.) in artistic development work at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)for general criteria for the position.

Preferred selection criteria

• Knowledge about decision-making and optimization theories
• Knowledge about energy systems, especially the operational characteristics of renewable energy production (wind/solar) and batteries
• Knowledge and interest in applying AI/machine learning to time-series data and fine-tuning large-language models

Personal characteristics

To complete a doctoral degree (PhD), it is important that you are able to: 

• Work independently
• Work in a structured way, set goals and make plans to achieve them
• Present and discuss your research with other professionals
• Get involved and contribute constructively with feedback
• Work constructively under pressure or in the face of adversity 
• Show curiosity and strong motivation for the subject
• Analyze data, assess different perspectives and draw well-founded conclusions 
• Be flexible and open to adjusting the plan for the project as needed

Emphasis will be placed on personal qualities.

We offer

• An exciting job with an important mission in society
• Developing tasks in a strong and international professional environment
• Career guidance and follow-up during the PhD period
• Open and inclusive working environment with committed colleagues
• Working capital that can be used to implement the project
• Mentor programme as a new employee at NTNU
• Favorable terms as a member of the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund (SPK)
• Free Norwegian language training at a basic level (A2)

As a PhD Candidate at NTNU, you will have access to employee benefits.

Diversity

Diversity is a strength, and at NTNU we aim to be an employer that reflects the diversity in society and that makes use of the potential of the population's collective skills. Our vision is Knowledge for a better world and our values ​​are creative, critical, constructive and respectful. We believe that an organization that is equal, diverse and gender-balanced is essential for us to achieve our goals. 

We strive to attract employees with different skills, life experiences and perspectives to contribute to even better problem solving of our societal mission in research and education. 

If you think this position is relevant and interesting, we encourage you to apply, regardless of gender, functional ability and cultural background, or whether you have been out of work for a period of time.

At NTNU we want to increase the proportion of women in scientific positions. We have a number of measures to promote equality.

Salary and conditions

In the position of PhD Candidate, code 1017, your gross salary will normally be NOK 550 800,-per annum depending on qualifications and seniority. A 2% statutory contribution to the State Pension Fund is deducted from the salary. 

The employment period is 3 years.

For employment as a PhD Candidate, it is a prerequisite that you gain admission to the PhD programme in Engineering within three months of your employment contract start date, and that you participate in an organized doctoral programme through out the period of employment.

The position is conditional on external funding.

As an employee at NTNU, it is important that you keep yourself up to date with academic and organizational changes and adapt to them.

For the necessary professional and social interaction, it is a prerequisite that you are physically present and available to the institution on a daily basis.

The appointment is carried out in accordance with the principles of the State Employees Act, and Export control (legislation that regulates the export of knowledge, technology and services). Candidates who, after assessment of the application and attachments, are considered to bein conflict with the criteria in the latter act, will not be able to be employed.

About the application

The attachments (including a description of your scientific work) must accompany the application as these documents form the basis of the application assessment. The documents must be in English.

Please note: the application will only be assessed on the basis of the information we have received by the application deadline. Therefore, make sure that your application clearly shows how your skills and experience meet the criteria described above. The application and all attachments must be sent electronically via Jobbnorge.no. If you are invited to an interview, you must bring certified copies of certificates and diplomas upon request.

The application must include:

• Transcripts and diplomas for Bachelor's and Master's degrees
• CV (include brief introduction of master thesis)
• Project outline containing proposals for an overall description of research questions, theoretical perspectives, methodological design for the project and progress plan (maximum 1500 words/4 pages) 
• Possibly publications etc. other relevant research work
• Possibly certificates
• Names and contact information of two relevant referees

If all, or parts, of your education has been taken abroad, we also ask you to attach documentation of the scope and quality of your entire education, both Bachelor's and Master's education, in addition to other higher education. If your institution uses “diploma supplement” (normal for most European institutions), you must attach this. A description of the documentation required can also be found here. If you already have a statement from Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills (HK-dir), please attach this as well.

Joint work will be considered. If it is difficult to identify your contribution to joint work, you must attach a brief description of your participation.

When assessing the best qualified, we emphasize necessary qualifications such as education, experience and personal suitability. Motivation for the position, ambitions, and potential for research will also count when assessing the candidates.

NTNU recognizes a wide range of academic contributions and has committed itself to The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment and CoARA (responsible assessment of research and recognition of a greater breadth of academic contributions in accordance with NTNU's social mission).

General information

A public list of applicants with name, age, job title and municipality of residence is prepared after the application deadline. If you wish to be exempt from entry on the public applicant list, this must be justified. Assessment will be made in accordance with current legislation. You will be notified if the exemption is not granted.

If you think this position looks interesting and in line with your qualifications, you are welcome to apply.

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Professor Yiliu Liu, e-mail: yiliu.liu@ntnu.no. 

If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact HR Senior Consultant Hedda Winnberg, e-mail: hedda.winnberg@ntnu.no.

Application deadline: 15.03.2026

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For practical information about working at NTNU, please visit this webpage. 

The city of Trondheim is a modern European city with a rich cultural scene. Trondheim is the tech capital of Norway with a population of 200,000. The Norwegian welfare state, including healthcare, schools, kindergartens and overall equality, is probably the best of its kind in the world. Professional subsidized day-care for children is easily available. Furthermore, Trondheim offers great opportunities for education (including international schools) and possibilities to enjoy nature, culture and family life and has low crime rates and clean air quality.