Netherlands : PhD position Heterogeneous Catalysis

The Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry is one of the nine departments of Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) established in 1957. The department has approximately 500 employees, 13 full professors, 370 undergraduate students and about 170 graduate students (140 Ph.D. and 30 design engineers). The department aspires to be an academic institution for education and research in chemical science and engineering that meets the highest international standards. The aim is to generate and to develop technology and scientific knowledge relevant for the long-term needs of society. Scientific curiosity and the use of newly generated knowledge are the main driving forces for the continuing enhancements of the three chosen fields of expertise: molecular, materials, and process engineering.

The research of the group Inorganic Chemistry and Catalysis focuses on the molecular understanding of heterogeneous catalysis with a goal to develop novel and improved catalytic systems relevant to sustainable energy technologies. Areas of interest include the conversion of renewable and conventional feedstocks, novel chemical conversion routes and photocatalysis. Reaction mechanism is studied by advanced spectroscopic and modern quantum-chemical methodologies.

This project aims to identify and optimize catalysts for the depolymerization of lignin. Biorefineries will convert biorenewable resources to useful chemicals and fuels. To make the biorefinery industry economically viable, all biomass constituents need to be valorised. Just like cellulose and hemicellulose, lignin is a biopolymer present in plant biomass. To use biomass efficiently, the long chains or networks of these polymers need to be deconstructed. This is especially a challenge with lignin, as it consists of a very strong polyphenolic network. The basic structure of lignin resembles that of gasoline fuel components. Therefore, an attractive method to employ lignin would be to convert this polymer into fragments which can be used as fuel additives or in the more distant future as a pure clean-burning gasoline fuel. In this collaboration between Eindhoven University of Technology and University of Groningen, we intend to develop novel catalytic processes to convert lignin to biofuel components. As lignin is a polymer, the first step is to depolymerise it into its primary building blocks. To obtain the desired fuel components, we need to remove some oxygen atoms. As the use of molecular hydrogen is not preferred in future biorefineries, we will explore the use of formic acid as a biorenewable hydrogen donor. Formic acid is produced during the valorization of carbohydrates from cellulose.

This position offers full-time employment for 4 years, with an initial evaluation period. The monthly (gross) salary will be 2042 Euro in the first year and increase to 2612 Euro in the fourth year, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement of the Dutch Universities. The TU/e offers attractive labor conditions, please see http://w3.tue.nl/en/services/dpo/ for details.

Ref no : V37.1084

More information about this vacancy can be obtained with prof. dr. Emiel Hensen (e-mail: e.j.m.hensen@tue.nl; tel.: 31-40-2475178).

More information about the employment coditions can be obtained with Mrs. Arianne Boekema (e-mail: sollicitaties.st@tue.nl, tel.: 31-40-2474960)

Further Information

Application Deadline : 1 April 2010

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Posted on 2010-03-02 09:44:37

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