PhD student position in metabolic and process engineering

The Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering promotes research and education for sustainable development, for improved health and quality of life. Our research ranges from natural science and bioscience, applied chemistry and biotechnology to chemical engineering. Our educational programs are characterized by technological solutions for improving people’s everyday life, and are continuously developed for meeting and promoting societal and industrial development.

We have approximately 380 employees, divided into five research divisions and one administrative unit. We are situated at campus Johanneberg.

Our department is characterized by stimulation of world leading research, in an environment where people develop and create new knowledge.
Information about the project
The Industrial biotechnology group is a very young, dynamic and international group which was established in 2008 and counts now 24 members. The common denominator of the research activities in the group is to optimize the use of renewable raw materials for the sustainable production of fuels and chemicals. The research performed within the group spans from fundamental research, technology development and lab-scale application: this ensures deep knowledge of the studied systems, leading to rational development and optimization of the respective applications.
The main research fields in which the group is involved are production of biofuels and chemicals via fermentation and enzymatic refining of plant material. Studies on bioelectrochemical systems and production of algal biomass complement the research activities of the group within the main concept of biorefinery.

The project that will be performed by the PhD student will be part of a wider collaborative project focusing on  upgrading of renewable raw materials to value-added bulk and fine chemicals towards the development of a biobased economy. Specifically, the project aims at developing microbial strains and bioprocesses for the biosynthesis of an important platform chemical that will play a major role in the development of bio-based economy. In this respect, a wide range of techniques will be implemented, in order to gain a very deep knowledge of the developed system(s).

The collaboration with other partners within the research project will involve the PhD student in terms of acquisition and transfer of specific process-related data for the technical assessment and evaluation of the process feasibility.

Major responsibilities
Your major responsibilities as PhD student is to pursue your own doctoral studies. You are expected to develop your own scientific concepts and communicate the results of your research verbally and in writing, both in Swedish and in English. The position generally also includes teaching on Chalmers' undergraduate level or performing other duties corresponding to 20 per cent of working hours.

Position summary
Full-time temporary employment. The position is limited to a maximum of five years.

Qualifications
To qualify as a PhD student, you must have a master's level degree corresponding to at least 240 higher education credits in biotechnology, molecular biology, biochemical engineering, biochemistry, microbiology or other related disciplines.

The position requires very good verbal and written communication skills in English. If Swedish is not your native language, you should be able to teach in Swedish after two years. Chalmers offers Swedish courses.

Application procedure
The application should be marked with Ref 20130192 and written in English. The application should be sent electronically via Chalmers webpage.

Application deadline: September 1, 2013

For questions, please contact:
Prof Lisbeth Olsson
Dept. of Chemical and Biological Engineering
lisbeth.olsson@chalmers.se
+46(0)317723885

or
Valeria Mapelli, PhD
Dept. of Chemical and Biological Engineering
valeria.mapelli@chalmers.se
+46(0)317723881





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