PhD - Material and Safety challenges in lead and lead/bismuth

Information about the research/the project/the division
Chalmers University of Technology's Department of Chemistry has about 300 employees which are working within four research divisions and one administrative unit.

The division of Energy and Materials hosts the research group of Nuclear Chemistry / Industrial Materials Recycling comprising 8 senior scientists as well as 11 PhD students and postdocs, headed by two professors in Nuclear Chemistry and Industrial Materials Recycling. The research group is highly international and has a wide international network.

Besides the research on material interactions in reactors at elevated temperatures, the group is  specialized in aqueous chemistry and solvent extraction used for both recycling of materials and nuclear applications.

In the field of nuclear chemistry, there are four major research areas: 1)  novel nuclear fuels for the generation IV nuclear power systems, 2) radionuclide release from severe nuclear accidents, 3) partitioning and transmutation of spent fuel, and 4) final repository of radioactive waste. The nuclear chemistry research facilities are unique for an university in Europe, with a dedicated alpha laboratory for nuclear fuel research and a gamma lab with "hot cell" and irradiation source. In addition, there are several radiochemistry laboratories for trace-level work.

More information about the groups can be found on the webpage: https://www.chalmers.se/en/departments/chem/research/energymaterials/Pages/default.aspx

Major responsibilities
The succesful candidate will take several important steps to increase the understanding of and opportunities to investigate the reactor safety from a chemical point of view for Lead and Lead/Bismuth-Cooled Gen IV Reactors. The physical barriers set up for a safely functioning nuclear reactor are (generally): the fuel matrix, the cladding, and the coolant (Lead-Bismuth eutectic (LBE), Pb, other), reactor vessel, primary containment and the secondary containment. This specific project aims to test the capability of the 3rd physical barrier's (the coolant, here LBE and Pb) capability of retaining, converting and containing potential fission products (both volatile: iodine, Cs and Rb and non-volatile e.g. U, Te, Ru, Mo) released from e.g. a damaged fuel pin before leaving the reactor vessel. The hypotheses to be studied are that the majority of the resulting fission products will be retained and immobilized in the LBE or PB, forming either chemical very stable species through or their release into a gas phase (e.g. air) is very slow.

The candidate's work will be mainly experimental. Results will however be evaluated and brought into context by the project partners from theoretical and computational chemistry. The use of radioactive tracers, work in a controlled environment as well as access to corrosion labs and microscopy infrastructure is foreseen.

Position summary
Full-time temporary employment. This position is limited to a maximum of four and half years.

Qualifications
For you to qualify as a PhD student, you must have a master's level degree corresponding to at least 240 higher education credits in in Chemistry, Matallurgy and Materials Science. We believe that you as a candidate has expertise in experimental work in Chemistry or Materials Science. We also think you are able to work independently and take responsibility for progress and quality of the project. 

The position requires sound verbal and written communication skills in English. Swedish is not a requirement but if you have an interest in learning Swedish, Chalmers offers Swedish courses.

Chalmers continuously strives to be an attractive employer. Equality and diversity are substantial foundations in all activities at Chalmers.

Our offer to you
Chalmers offers a cultivating and inspiring working environment in the dynamic city of Gothenburg. 
Read more about working at Chalmers and our benefits for employees.

Application procedure
The application should be marked with Ref 20200027 and written in English. The application should be sent electronically and be attached as pdf-files, as below:

CV: (Please name the document: CV, Family name, Ref. number)
• CV
• Other, for example previous employments or leadership qualifications and positions of trust.
• Two references that we can contact.

Personal letter: (Please name the document as: Personal letter, Family name, Ref. number)
1-3 pages where you:
• Introduce yourself
• Describe your previous research fields and main research results
• Describe your future goals and future research focus

Other documents:
• Copies of bachelor and/or master’s thesis.
• Attested copies and transcripts of completed education, grades and other certificates, eg. TOEFL test results.

Please use the button at the foot of the page to reach the application form. The files may be compressed (zipped).

Application deadline: 2020 - February 25th 



For questions, please contact:
Prof. Teodora Retegan Vollmer, Energy and Materials,
tretegan@chalmers.se

Dr. Christine Geers, Energy and Materials,
geersc@chalmers.se