Postdoctoral Research Fellow/Research Officer - School of Mechanical and Mining Engineering, Faculty of EAIT

• School or Mechanical and Mining Engineering, Faculty of EAIT 

• Join a university ranked in the world’s top 50

• Research on developing new titanium alloys through additive manufacturing

• Full-time (100%), Fixed term position for up to 12 months 

• Visa sponsorship is not available

• Advertisement closes on Monday, 29 April 2024 – job reference R-36628

• Based at our picturesque and Vibrant St Lucia Campus

About UQ

As part of the UQ community, you will have the opportunity to work alongside the brightest minds, who have joined us from all over the world, and within an environment where interdisciplinary collaborations are encouraged.

At the core of our teaching remains our students, and their experience with us sets a foundation for success far beyond graduation. UQ has made a commitment to making education opportunities available for all Queenslanders, regardless of personal, financial, or geographical barriers.

As part of our commitment to excellence in research and professional practice in academic contexts, we are proud to provide our staff with access to world-class facilities and equipment, grant writing support, greater research funding opportunities, and other forms of staff support and development.

About This Opportunity 

The Postdoctoral Research Fellow / Research Officer will carry out research that seeks to develop new titanium alloys through additive manufacturing with enhanced machinability characteristics.

The role will encompass designing and processing new titanium compositions via in situ wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM), characterising the new alloys (e.g., microscopy, properties) and then evaluating the machining characteristics of the new alloys on CNC milling and/or turning facilities.

In this role the successful applicant will be expected to work as part of a team and contribute to the supervision of students as well as service and engagement roles and activities.

Key responsibilities will include: 

Research

• Design new titanium alloys with chemical additives (termed ‘free machining additives’) that enhance the machinability of existing commercial titanium alloys without adversely compromising the integrity of the alloy for industrial applications.  

• Exploit localised solidification techniques (particularly WAAM) to locally introduce the free machining additives into the melt pool of a commercial titanium feedstock to create the new alloys and then use advanced characterisation tools to evaluate the microstructure and mechanical properties of the new alloys.

• Perform and coordinate machining trials (CNC Milling and/or turning), collect and analyse key data (cutting force, tool wear, swarf morphology etc.) to evaluate the machinability of the new alloys compared to existing commercial titanium alloys. Machining trials may involve leading and directing workshop technicians (machinists). 

• Document research findings and/or publish scholarly papers in high-quality refereed international journals, books, and conference proceedings.

• Assist other researchers in performing experiments and provide training.

• Participate in applications for competitive research funding to support projects and activities and work with colleagues in the development of joint research projects and applications for competitive research funding support.

Supervision and Researcher Development

• Contribute to the effective supervision of Honours and Higher Degree by Research students (as appropriate).

• Demonstrates personal effectiveness in supervision and the management of researcher development.

• Effective lead and develop supervisee performance and conduct by providing feedback, coaching, and professional development.

• As appropriate, manage research support staff effectively throughout the employee lifecycle in accordance with University policy and procedures.

• Working to promptly resolve conflict and grievances when they arise in accordance with University policy and procedures.

• Contribute to coursework teaching if required. [Note:  contribution to teaching is encouraged for those who are interested as part of their career planning].

Citizenship and Service

• Demonstrate citizenship behaviours that align to the UQ values.

• Shows leadership of self through collaboration and active participation in priority activities for the unit.

• Perform a range of administrative functions in the laboratory and/or research group as needed, including an ability and willingness to serve as a laboratory manager if required.

• Contribute to the development of a positive safety culture in the School.

• Demonstrate citizenship behaviours that align to the UQ values.

• Show leadership of self through collaboration and active participation in priority activities for the unit.

• Provide support to other academic positions and unit operations as needed during other team members absence.

• Any other duties as reasonably directed by your supervisor.

This is a research focused position. Further information can be found by viewing UQ’s Criteria for Academic Performance .

This is a full-time (100%), fixed-term position for up to 12 months at an Academic level A. The full-time equivalent base salary will be in the range $77,324.85 - $102,945.12, plus a generous super allowance of up to 17%. The total FTE package will be up to $90,470.08 - $120,445.79 annually. As this role is covered by an Enterprise Agreement, you will also receive regular remuneration increases – at least once a year.

The greater benefits of joining the UQ community are broad:  from being part of a Group of Eight university, to recognition of prior service with other Australian universities, up to 26 weeks of paid parental leave, 17.5% annual leave loading and genuine career progression opportunities via the academic promotions process.

About You  

• PhD (or PhD submitted) in the field of materials engineering

• Demonstrated competence (evidenced by publications in reputed refereed journals) in:

  o    Titanium metallurgy, alloy design/development and solidification science.

  o    Metallurgical characterisation methods including advanced microscopy techniques and evaluating physical behaviour and microstructures of metal alloys (such as titanium).

  o    Additive manufacturing and experience in developing in situ alloying techniques is highly desirable.

• Ability and willingness to:

  o    Participate in applications for external research funding support.

  o    Publish in high quality outlets.

  o    Supervise honours and/or Higher Degree by Research (HDR) students.

  o    Participate in coursework teaching activities.

  o    Promote and adhere to a positive safety culture including assuming the role of a laboratory manager if required.

• Demonstrated:

  o    High level of drive and enthusiasm.

  o    High level of interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills.

  o    Commitment to UQ’s values . 

In addition, the following mandatory requirements apply:

• Work Rights: You must have unrestricted work rights in Australia for the duration of this appointment to apply. Visa sponsorship is not available for this appointment. 

• Background Checks: All final applicants for this position may be asked to consent to a qualification verification and/or criminal record check. Please note that people with criminal records are not automatically barred from applying for this position. Each application will be considered on its merits. 

Questions? 

For more information about this opportunity, please contact Dr Michael Bermingham . For application queries, please contact [email protected] stating the job reference number (below) in the subject line.
 

All applicants must upload the following documents in order for your application to be considered:

• Resume

• Cover letter

• Responses to the ‘About You’ section

Other Information 

At UQ we know that our greatest strengths come from our diverse mix of colleagues, this is reflected in our ongoing commitment to creating an environment focused on equity, diversity and inclusion .  We ensure that we are always attracting, retaining and promoting colleagues who are representative of the diversity in the broader community, whether that be gender identity , LGBTQIA+ , cultural and/or linguistic , Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples , or people with a disability . Accessibility requirements and/or adjustments can be directed to [email protected] .

If you are a current employee (including casual staff and HDR scholars) or hold an unpaid/affiliate appointment, please login to your staff Workday account and visit the internal careers board to apply for this opportunity. Please do NOT apply via the external job board.

Applications close on Monday, 29 April 2024 at 11.00pm AEST (R-36628).