PhD student in biomass utilization with carbon capture and storage

The department of Space, Earth and Environment is recruiting a PhD student to carry out research with the aim to develop efficient technology for combustion of biomass and waste-derived fuels. Chemical-Looping Combustion (CLC) is a revolutionary method for fuel conversion, that provides inherent CO2 capture and drastically reduces problems related to corrosive ash elements present in difficult fuels. You will work together with researchers with long and internationally recognized experience in the development of technologies for biomass conversion and carbon dioxide capture.

Information about the division and the department
The announced position is within the project “Advancing Chemical-Looping Combustion of domestic fuels”. The project is funded by the European Clean Energy Transition Partnership and involves ten academic and industrial partners from Sweden, Germany and Finland.

The goal of the project is to further the development of Chemical-Looping Combustion (CLC), a concept related to Fluidized-Bed Combustion (FBC), but which involves the use of chemically active bed materials. CLC provides two important advantages over FBC, namely inherent CO2 sequestration and separation of corrosive ash elements and vulnerable heat-transfer surfaces. These advantages make CLC an ideal technology for Bio-Energy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS), which has been identified as a necessary technology for achieving climate policy targets. BECCS involves capturing and storing CO2 absorbed by biomass from the atmosphere during its utilization, and allows for co-generation of negative CO2 emissions, power and heat. In the Nordic countries we have unusual access to biomass resources, unique infrastructure for biomass utilization and technological know-how to realize BECCS in the near term.

Chalmers University of Technology has been a pioneer institution in the development of CLC and related technologies. The goal of the larger project is to advance the technology for waste-derived fuels and to pave way for an industrial-scale CLC demonstration in the immediate future. Your role in the project will be to lead and perform experimental work that relates to operation of a CLC pilot unit, characterization of bed material and ash samples, and application of novel measurement techniques. You will collaborate with a second PhD student at the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, which will work within the field of material science and corrosion.

Major responsibilities
Your primary responsibility as a PhD student is to pursue your own research studies. This includes developing your own scientific concepts and communicating the results of your research verbally and in writing. You are expected to write scientific articles, a mid-term licentiate thesis and defend your doctoral thesis in 5 years. The position also includes teaching in Chalmers’ undergraduate programs and certain departmental duties, corresponding to a maximum of 20% of the working time in total. You will also take graduate courses, corresponding to 60 ECTS credits.

Qualifications
To qualify for the position, you need a MSc degree corresponding to at least 240 ECTS credits in any of the following fields of engineering: chemical, mechanical, thermal, energy, environmental, physics, or alike.

Courses in energy-conversion processes, engineering thermodynamics, fluidization, heat and mass transfer and biomass utilization are meritorious. Experience from practical experimental work in lab environment, or experience from thermal or process industries, are meritorious.

The position requires excellent verbal and written communication skills in English, and preferably also in Swedish. If Swedish is not your native language, Chalmers offers Swedish courses.

Contract terms
Full-time temporary employment. The position is limited to a maximum of five years.

For more information about what we offer and the application procedure, please visit Chalmers Webpage. See link: PhD student in biomass utilization with carbon capture and storage