Faculty of Natural Sciences and Technology
Department of Chemical Engineering
Three PhD Research fellowships are available at the Department of Chemical Engineering, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). Two fellowships are affiliated with “iCSI – industrial Catalysis Science and Innovation for a competitive and sustainable process industry”, which is a National Centre for Research-based Innovation (SFI) granted by the Research Council of Norway for the period 2015-22. In addition to NTNU, SINTEF Materials and Chemistry and the University of Oslo are research partners, and Yara, INOVYN, Haldor Topsøe AS, Dynea, and KA Rasmussen AS are the iCSI industrial partners. The iCSI basic vision is to establish an integrated competence and technology platform that promotes world-class energy and raw material efficiency and allows spin-off activities in the different directions of prime interest for the industrial partners.
iCSI joins the three major research institutions involved in heterogeneous catalysis in Norway with five industrial partners competing globally in a collaborative utilization of competence and infrastructure. Industrial catalysis links material properties on the nano-scale to the raw material efficiency, energy consumption and emission abatement of thermochemical processes. The research efforts target fundamental understanding of phenomena relevant to the productivity, selectivity and stability of the catalytic processes, and will build knowledge important to both continuous technological improvements and possible breakthroughs that may induce step changes to the industry. The PhD project topics are:
- Improving the performance of existing formalin production process technolog
- Advanced in situ characterisation of catalysts for sustainable process industry
The third fellowship is in a project for reduced exhaust emissions in the Norwegian marine transportation sector. The project targets new knowledge and innovation for emissions abatement, more specifically nitrogen oxides (NOx) and methane (CH4) from LNG engines in the marine sector. With the recent development in marine regulations, the need to stay competitive in the Norwegian marine sector, and to share our part of the responsibility for environmental emissions by meeting our international obligations and increasing the research efforts. Efficient, complete combustion of natural gas involves temperatures that lead to NOx formation. It is generally difficult to maintain high efficiency, lower formation of NOx and avoid methane slip under the dynamic loads of an engine. A combination of methane oxidation and selective catalytic reduction of NOx is therefore required. The project is funded by the Research Council of Norway through the Transport2025 programme:
Selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NOx from heavy-duty engine exhaust in the marine sector.
The main part of the PhD research is to be conducted at NTNU in Trondheim, Norway, in the laboratories of the Petrochemistry and Catalysis group (KINCAT, http://www.ntnu.edu/chemeng/kincat ). Opportunities exist, however, for performing research at other laboratories through international exchange.
Catalysis and kinetics is core research in the projects, and a suitable background for the candidates ranges from chemical engineering and catalysis to physics, inorganic chemistry and materials science. Previous experimental training in catalyst testing, synthesis and characterization, as well as experience in kinetic or reactor modelling is highly advantageous. For more information about the Department, please look at our web page http://www.ntnu.edu/chemeng/
The appointments have a duration of 3 years with the possibility of 1-year extension with 25% teaching duties in agreement with the department. The position as PhD research fellow is remunerated according to the Norwegian State salary scale. The appointment of the PhD fellow will be made according to Norwegian guidelines for universities and university colleges and to the general regulations regarding university employees. Applicants must agree to participate in organized doctoral study programs within the period of the appointment. A contract will be drawn up regarding the period of appointment and work related duties.
The regulations for PhD programs at NTNU state that a Master degree or equivalent with at least 5 years of studies and an average grade of A or B within a scale of A-E for passing grades (A best). Candidates from universities outside Norway are kindly requested to send a Diploma Supplement or a similar document, which describes in detail the study and grade system and the rights for further studies associated with the obtained degree. See http://www.ntnu.edu/research/phd-opportunities for details on NTNU PhD program requirements. The position furthermore adheres to the Norwegian Government’s policy of balanced ethnicity, age and gender.
All applicants must be able to communicate fluently in English (in speaking and writing), while knowledge of Norwegian is considered an additional advantage. Applicants must indicate their level of language skills in English and Norwegian.
Contact: iCSI Centre Director Professor Hilde Venvik (hilde.venvik@chemeng.ntnu.no) or Professor Magnus Rønning (magnus.ronning@ntnu.no).
An application with CV, certified copies of transcripts, certified copies of documentation on English language proficiency (e.g. TOEFL, IELTS, etc.), and reference letters is to be submitted electronically through this page.
The reference number of the position is NT-16/16.
Application deadline: 03-03-2016