08 Postdoctoral Fellowships: DTU Physics

By Monika Tyagi Dec 29 2022

The department of Physics (DTU Physics) at the Technical University of Denmark has eight open positions in the funded projects. The aim is to develop fast, cheap, environmentally-safe ways to mineralize Carbon dioxide, to convert it back to solid, where it will remain steady for ages. The project aims to reduce climate change and ocean acidification, and Carbon dioxide must be transformed into solid and put back into the Earth, where it came from.

The positions are open to highly motivated researchers, including nanoscientists, chemists, engineers, physicists, geoscientists, mineralogists, and others. The members from all levels (viz., young bachelor students to experienced scientists and engineers) are welcome to work together in a supportive team. The team shall work together as a cross-disciplinary group to understand solid-fluid (H2O and gas) interactions and the effect of organic compounds on them, using traditional techniques and state-of-the-art ultrahigh-resolution instruments and molecular modeling. The potential candidates are expected to work individually and within the team with good communication and people skills and to be fluent in English. The duration of employment will be two years; the workplace is the DTU Lyngby Campus.

Research areas:

Computational/Theoretical Physics/Chemistry (DFT/MD/coarse-graining)
Geochemistry (mineral-fluid interactions)
Materials Physics (glass interaction with fluids/thermodynamics/kinetics of mineral)
Physics/Surface Chemistry
Organic Chemistry (analysis/synthesis)
Reactor Design
Atomic force microscopy
X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy
X-ray 3D/4D imaging
Mineralogy (dissolution/precipitation)

The research questions include the following:

Can we understand the molecular-level processes that control the behavior of natural materials so that we can design an environmentally friendly product or method that will hasten the solidification of Carbon dioxide?
Can we identify and characterize the secondary minerals that form during Carbon dioxide reactions and determine the mechanisms that create them?
Can we comprehend changes in reactivity when organic compounds act together with mineral surfaces in the presence of Carbon dioxide and water so that we can simulate them with molecular modeling?
Can we evaluate how microorganisms design and grow particular mineral phases during biomineralization?
Can we view porous materials in 3D, at the nanometre scale, as a time function to predict the mobility of fluids (Carbon dioxide and H2O) through pore networks at scales ranging from nanometres to centimeters?
Can we build a reactor that traps Carbon dioxide and mineralizes it to solids?

Application:
Apply online and attach the following:

A cover letter describing the candidate’s reasons for applying and how their background and interests fit the group’s expectations.
Resume including publication list, course list, and grades from the university education
References with name, email, and phone number for three personal references (letters of reference not to be included).
Links for up to 5 publications

The university encourages applying irrespective of age, gender, race, disability, religion, and ethnic background.

Last date: 12 January 2023