Closing date: Friday, April 12, 2024
Stipend: c. £20,000 (in line with the UCL rate) + UK/Overseas fees
Duration of Studentship: 3 years fees and 3.5 years stipend
Start date: June 2024
Vacancy information
The Department of Chemical Engineering at University College London (UCL) is seeking an enthusiastic graduate student to work on the development of computational methods to study nucleation, crystal growth and polymorph selection within the context of the ERC Consolidator Project ht-MATTER - High Throughput Modelling of Molecular Crystals out of Equilibrium. The appointment is for 3.5 years. The candidate is expected to carry out research pertaining to the doctoral project, present her/his work in local and international meetings, as well as taking part in the academic activities of the Molecular Modelling and Engineering (MME) Group and of the Chemical Engineering Department.
Studentship description
Molecular crystals (MCs) are found in many everyday products, from food to pharmaceuticals, hiding in plain sight characteristics that make them ideal materials for cutting-edge technological applications. Like construction bricks, MCs’ building blocks can reversibly self-assemble into a plurality of structures, thus distinguishing the chemical properties of building blocks from the physical and mechanical material properties. These characteristics open up endless possibilities in material design, with applications in pharmaceutical manufacturing, separations, catalysis, and organic electronics. Tailoring the composition of the liquid phase in which MCs assemble holds the key to designing processes able to yield materials with desired properties. However, current approaches at MCs computational design are centred on predicting the thermodynamic stability of bulk phases. This paradigm had remained essentially unchanged since its inception more than two decades ago, leaving material and process design practices to empiricism. By neglecting the role of assembly kinetics, current computational crystal structure prediction methods cannot identify attainable MC structures and the ideal conditions (i.e. solvent, composition, temperature) to obtain them.
This studentship is focussed on the application and development of state-of-the art computational methods to investigate out-of-equilibrium, kinetics-dominated processes such as nucleation, growth and polymorph selection in molecular systems.
The aim of the project is to enable a systematic introduction of non-equilibrium effects into computational discovery workflows of relevance in the pharmaceutical and fine chemistry industries.
The work will build on recent developments in computational polymorph prediction and nucleation modelling that benefit from synergies between statistical mechanics, machine learning and computational chemistry, and will develop in the context of ht-MATTER (High-throughput modelling of Molecular crystals out-of-equilibrium), a broader ERC/UKRI funded project.
Person specification
The candidate will have or is expected to soon obtain an excellent first degree in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Physics, Computational Science or an associated discipline. Prior research experience, together with the ability to analyse, develop and solve open-ended research problems is essential. Desirable qualifications include knowledge in physical chemistry, molecular simulation techniques, programming, and UNIX-based operative systems.
Eligibility
The post is open to UK, EU and overseas students.
Applications should be submitted through: https://evision.ucl.ac.uk/urd/sits.urd/run/siw_ipp_lgn.login?process=siw_ipp_app&code1=RRDCENSING01&code2=0035
Please nominate Prof. Matteo Salvalaglio as supervisor and include a statement of interest.
For informal inquiries please contact Prof. Matteo Salvalaglio at: [email protected]
For further information on the MPhil/PhD course as well as the recruitment and selection process, please click on the link below:
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/chemical-engineering/study/mphilphd
Similar Positions
-
Research Excellence Ph D Studentship Royal Docks School Of Business And Law Salary: The Studentship (Fee Waiver) Is For A Period Of 3 Years (Full Time Enrolment) And Will Include An Annual Tuition Fee Waiver Of £16,100 (International Students), And £6,020 (Home Students) Per Year* For 3 Years. Closing Date: 25/05/2024 Reference: Phd003 24 , University of East London, United Kingdom, about 17 hours ago
Location: University Square Salary: The studentship (fee waiver) is for a period of 3 years (full-time enrolment) and will include an annual tuition fee waiver of £16,100 (international students),...
-
Research Excellence Ph D Studentship Salary: An Annual Stipend Of £21,237, Along With A Tuition Fee Waiver And A Training Bursary Of £2,000 Closing Date: 01/05/2024 Reference: Phd002 24 , University of East London, United Kingdom, about 17 hours ago
Location: Docklands Campus Salary: An annual stipend of £21,237, along with a tuition fee waiver and a training bursary of £2,000 Post Type: Full Time Closing Date: Wednesday 01 May 2024 Reference...
-
Ukri Doctoral Studentships Officer (Maternity Cover), King's College London, United Kingdom, 7 days ago
Job id: 087669. Salary: £37,332 - £42,099 per annum, including London Weighting Allowance. Posted: 11 April 2024. Closing date: 21 April 2024. Business unit: Research Management & Innovation. Dep...
-
Bloomsbury Colleges Studentship , University College London, United Kingdom, 10 days ago
Ref NumberB16-01442Professional ExpertiseResearch and Research SupportDepartmentSchool of Education (B16)LocationLondonWorking PatternFull timeSalary£34,605–£39,980Contract TypeFixed-termWorking T...
-
School Of Education And Communities (Educom) Research Excellence Ph D Studentship Salary: An Annual Stipend Of £21,237, Along With A Tuition Fee Waiver And A Training Bursary Of £2,000 Closing Date: 02/05/2024 Reference: Phd001 24 , University of East London, United Kingdom, about 17 hours ago
Location: Stratford Campus Salary: An annual stipend of £21,237, along with a tuition fee waiver and a training bursary of £2,000 Post Type: Full Time Closing Date: Thursday 02 May 2024 Reference:...
-
Ahrc Collaborative Doctoral Partnership (Cdp) Ph D Studentship 'The Provenance Of Asian Collections (Pac)' , University College London, United Kingdom, about 7 hours ago
Ref NumberB03-02014Professional ExpertiseResearch and Research SupportDepartmentUCL SLASH (B03)LocationLondonWorking PatternFull timeSalarySee advert textContract TypePermanentWorking TypeHybridAv...