PhD student position in Colloidal organic pollutants in road runoff

Project description
During rain and snowmelt, stormwater from urban surfaces accumulates pollutants emitted from human activities such as transportation, construction and trade. The highest stormwater concentrations of pollutants such as particles, metals and organic pollutants are generally found in areas with high traffic volumes. Organic pollutants are diffusely emitted from numerous sources in our society, e.g. through combustion of fuels and waste, leaching from construction materials, vehicle exhaust and wear, abrasion of asphalt and tires, plastic surfaces and many other products used in our everyday lives. Organic compounds are often persistent and may bioaccumulate in living organisms, can be acutely toxic and may also interfere with hormonal systems in organisms. Polluted stormwater has been identified as one of the greatest threats to aquatic ecosystems, and stormwater treatment is seen as a prerequisite to achieve water quality goals set by Sweden and the EU.

Previous research has shown that a large proportion of the organic contaminants are bound to colloids. The distribution of pollutants between the particulate, colloidal and dissolved phases is crucial for the fate of organic pollutants in water, and stormwater treatment methods must be developed accordingly. Existing treatment technologies are often designed to separate particles, such as disc filters with large mesh size and stormwater ponds for settling pollutants bound to particles. The disadvantage is that these methods cannot remove colloid-bound pollutants, which are then discharged into natural waterways. Innovative technologies that can treat colloidal contaminants are currently lacking and existing techniques are in need of further development.

The aim of this PhD project is to propose and evaluate the best practices to prevent diffuse emissions of organic pollutants from traffic and the best technologies to remove colloid-bound organic pollutants from road runoff. The results will serve as a base for proposing and developing preventive measures to reduce the diffuse spreading of organic pollutants with stormwater. This research will support the EU and Sweden in their efforts to achieve set environmental objectives for water quality. The knowledge will also be relevant to stakeholders responsible for improving the quality of stormwater, such as landowners, municipalities, environmental and transportation departments. 

Specific job responsibilities
- By studying the literature, identify and quantify emissions of selected organic pollutants from sources such as vehicles, fuels, road and construction materials.
- Research how fractions of organic colloids are formed and transported in water by means of laboratory experiments. The lab work will also involve performing chemical extractions and analyses.
- Examine the effect of street cleaning and car washing on the amount of colloidal contaminants in stormwater.
- Examine the capacity to separate colloidal forms of organic pollutants using different types of filters in field.
- Provide decision support on the most effective and sustainable methods to eliminate the diffuse emission of organic pollutants from traffic and roads using multi-criteria analysis. 
- Supervise and teach in courses on water technology, environmental technology, environmental analysis and sustainable development.

Position summary
The position is limited to a maximum of five years, which is equivalent to four years of full-time research studies and 20% teaching at undergraduate or master level at Chalmers. We hope that the successful candidate is able to begin the employment on March 1 2014. 

Expected skills and qualifications 
To qualify as a PhD student, you must have a master's level degree corresponding to at least 240 higher education credits in civil engineering, environmental engineering, water engineering or chemical engineering. We see it as an advantage if the candidate has experience in: building and operating pilot plants and facilities in field for treatment of polluted water; sampling of water and sediment in field; designing and conducting experiments on contaminated water and sediment in the laboratory; extractions and chemical analyses of organic contaminants in water and sediment; and a driver’s license.
 
As a PhD student in our group, you are expected to:
- work independently, plan and organize your own work. 
- work well with your team members and other project partners. 
- efficiently communicate scientific results in written and spoken English. 
- be a motivated, persevering and flexible person. 
- have creative problem-solving skills and good analytical skills. 
- have a great interest in practical work both in field and in the laboratory. 
- work as a visiting researcher at the Technical University of Denmark, for a limited part of the project. 



Application deadline: February 1, 2014

For questions, please contact:
Ann-Margret Strömvall, Water Environment Technology, ann-margret.stromvall@chalmers.se, +46 31-772 8600
Karin Björklund, Water Environment Technology, karin.bjorklund@chalmers.se 
Yuliya Kalmykova, Water Environment Technology, yuliya.kalmykova@chalmers.se




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