In today’s ever-changing world, where sustainability and resource conservation are of utmost importance, innovative solutions to tackle environmental challenges have become essential. Seawater bicarbonates and nitrates are aimed to be converted into widely used chemicals for agriculture, such as urea, and other valuable carbon and nitrogen feedstocks. ICONIC (Integrated conversion of Nitrate and Carbonate streams) aims at exploring new electrochemical reactions, an integrated and scalable prototype will be developed.

Catalysts based on non-critical raw materials will be designed, and new reaction mechanisms for nitrate and carbonate activation and coupling will be explored, to sustainably produce urea and high-value chemicals. Direct co-electrolysis of CO2 and nitrates from seawater is aimed to be achieved, a process that has never been reported to date. Moreover, it will be implemented on-site and powered by renewable energy sources. Advanced computational models and precise assemblies of high-performance electrodes will be deployed, demonstrating a scalable lab prototype suitable for the integrated remediation of polluted seawater into urea.

This postdoc will investigate the economic and environmental implications of the different C/N products from electrochemical conversion through the lens of process design, techno-economic assessment and life cycle assessment. We will do a market analysis for the various products.

We are looking for a candidate that meets the following criteria:

• PhD degree in a relevant field (preferably in Chemical Engineering or a related discipline).
• Creative, open-minded and proactive.
• Excellent experimental and analytical skills.
• Good team player.
• Good English communication and writing skills.

Preferred qualifications:

• Prior experience in process systems engineering
• Prior experience in process design life cycle assessment
• Prior experience in modelling electrochemical conversions

Fixed-term contract: 18 months.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities. The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

For international applicants, TU Delft has the Coming to Delft Service. This service provides information for new international employees to help you prepare the relocation and to settle in the Netherlands. The Coming to Delft Service offers a Dual Career Programme for partners and they organise events to expand your (social) network.

Delft University of Technology

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

Faculty Applied Sciences

With more than 1,100 employees, including 150 pioneering principal investigators, as well as a population of about 3,600 passionate students, the Faculty of Applied Sciences is an inspiring scientific ecosystem. Focusing on key enabling technologies, such as quantum- and nanotechnology, photonics, biotechnology, synthetic biology and materials for energy storage and conversion, our faculty aims to provide solutions to important problems of the 21st century. To that end, we educate innovative students in broad Bachelor's and specialist Master's programmes with a strong research component. Our scientists conduct ground-breaking fundamental and applied research in the fields of Life and Health Science & Technology, Nanoscience, Chemical Engineering, Radiation Science & Technology, and Engineering Physics. We are also training the next generation of high school teachers.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Applied Sciences.