PhD Studentship - Understanding Change in Process Chemistry

PhD Studentship – Understanding Change in Process Chemistry

Chemistry

Location:  Highfield Campus
Closing Date:   Friday 24 June 2016
Reference:  735716EB

PhD Supervisor: Dr Peter Wells                           co supervisor: Prof. Andrew Hector

Interviews will be held in July at the Research Complex at Harwell

We are looking to recruit a PhD student for a joint University of Southampton and Johnson Matthey Technology Centre funded project. The position will be based at the UK Catalysis Hub, Harwell, Oxfordshire. The UK Catalysis Hub is a new EPSRC initiative aimed at coordinating UK efforts in catalytic science, with the laboratories at the Research Complex at Harwell (RCaH) providing the physical base for this network. This is a unique opportunity to engage with leading UK academics in catalytic science, alongside exposure to the advanced characterisation techniques made possible by the synchrotron and neutron source on the Harwell Campus.

Processes that are used to manufacture or convert materials from one form or state to another are the cornerstone of manufacturing and play a vital part in both the UK and global economy.  Within industry, processes, including precipitation, are used to manufacture catalysts for applications such as methanol synthesis, water gas shift, steam reforming and Fischer Tropsch.  Other processes, such as wet milling, are used to prepare automotive washcoats and new techniques such as mechanochemistry (dry milling) are also of interest.  These processes all involve dynamic change in physical properties (particle size, morphology) and chemical properties (phase, chemical environment) that affect materials over short (ms) and long (hours) timescales and short (nm) and long (micron) length scales.  Currently the starting materials and products of these processes can be studied using ex situ techniques, such as XRD or Raman. This is coupled with rheology approaches to model and measure what is happening to the bulk properties of the material during the process itself.  However, there is a lack of detailed chemical and physical knowledge of what is actually happening from the point of view of the chemistry in real time.  The aim of the project is to join up the different length scales and move towards a description of materials at the atomic/molecular scale from the average properties of bulk materials.

This project will examine and understand process changes by:

• Developing continuous flow methods for the precipitation of metal oxides. Working in flow provides static time points for assessing the chemical events at the molecular level using techniques such as XAFS, SAXS, XRD, and Raman, which allows the approach to bridge both time and length scales.
• Systematic environmental (humidity, atmosphere) investigations of the mechanochemical production of metal oxide phases, both crystalline (XRD) and amorphous (XAFS, PDF).
• The project is funded for 4 years and welcomes applicants from the UK and EU who have or expect to obtain at least an upper second class degree in Chemistry or relevant disciplines. Funding will cover fees and a stipend at current research council rates of £ 14,296 per annum.

Due to funding restrictions this position is only open to UK/EU applicants

Apply below.

Please place Dr Peter Wells in the field for proposed supervisor/project

General enquiries should be made ppwells@soton.ac.uk.  Any queries on the application process should be made to pgafnes@soton.ac.uk

 Applications will be considered in the order that they are received, and the position will be considered filled when a suitable candidate has been identified.