MSCA-postdoctoral fellowship call 2022: Bio-based smart coatings for better energy efficiency

Description of the host institution and research group

Are you a doctoral or post-doctoral researcher thinking about your next career move? KU Leuven – Europe’s most innovative university (Reuters) - allows you to work in a first-class research environment. KU Leuven is one of the top universities (42nd ) in the world according to the 2022 “Times Higher Education ” ranking and ranked 7th (1st in Europe) in the 2019 “World’s Most Innovative Universities ” ranking by Reuters.

The research group interfacial and surface engineering research (iR) led by Prof. Veerle Vandeginste is based in the beautiful city of Bruges (west Belgium). Our focus is on the development of new sustainable materials with advanced or smart properties for various applications (coatings, green energy, carbon utilization, electronics, wearables, etc.). The motivation behind our research is driven by the challenge of global warming and finite resources. Prof. Vandeginste has been an independent research fellow at Imperial College London (one of the top 10 universities in the world) and later an assistant/associate professor of chemistry at the University of Nottingham, UK (with multimillion project funding from European Commission, UK research councils and industry).

MSCA postdoctoral fellowship

Postdoctoral Fellowship (PFs) is the new initiative of Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (formerly individual fellowship) from the European Commission. The objective of PFs is to support researchers’ careers and foster excellence in research. The Postdoctoral Fellowships action targets researchers holding a PhD who wish to carry out their research activities abroad, acquire new skills and develop their careers. PFs help researchers gain experience in other countries, disciplines and non-academic sectors.

There are 2 subtypes: European Postdoctoral Fellowships (12 to 24 months of duration in Europe); and Global Postdoctoral Fellowships (12 to 24 months outside Europe –outgoing phase- plus 12 months in Europe - returning stage). The fellowship can be extended by up to 6 months placement at a company.

Eligibility criteria

At the deadline for the submission of the final application to MSCA (expected to be in September 2022), researchers:

• Shall be in possession of a doctoral degree, applicants who have successfully defended their doctoral thesis but who have not yet formally been awarded the doctoral degree will also be considered eligible to apply

• Must not have resided or carried out their main activities in Belgium for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to the above-mentioned deadline.

• For European Postdoctoral Fellowships, candidates with any nationality are eligible. For Global Postdoctoral Fellowship, candidates must be nationals or long-term residents of the EU Member States or Horizon Europe Associated Countries

• Must have a maximum of eight years experience in research, from the date of the award of their PhD degree, years of experience outside research and career breaks will not count towards the above maximum, nor will years of experience in research in third countries, for nationals or long-term residents of EU Member States or Horizon Europe Associated Countries who wish to reintegrate to Europe

• Highly motivated and excellent research track record through publications in the relevant field

• Must be fluent in English (both written and spoken)

Project description

Bio-based smart coatings are of great interest in a diverse range of applications such as packaging, paints, clothing, wearables, batteries. The evolution towards more environmentally-friendly systems has led a change, for example in the paint industry, to water-based systems to decrease the use of volatile organic compounds. However, a challenge in those systems is that they are prone to bacterial and fungal growth. Therefore, smart bio-based anti-bacterial solutions are required. Moreover, smart coatings are used in applications for improved energy efficiency, such as thermochromic coatings which can dynamically regulate thermal efficiency in buildings, anti-icing coatings on planes or anti-fouling coatings on ships which can help maintain a smooth surface and optimal energy-efficient transport conditions. Furthermore, self-healing coatings have increased the lifetime and durability of coatings, for example self-healing coatings on battery components have improved the performance and lifetime of a variety of batteries. In this project, we want to explore the possibility of bio-based smart multifunctional coatings for beter energy efficiency in building, transport or wearable applications. Nevertheless, we welcome any original idea for developing bio-based smart coatings with multifunctional properties.

Benefits

EU supports for the recruited researcher in the form of

• A living allowance
• A mobility allowance
• If applicable, family, long-term leave and special needs allowances
• Research, training and networking activities
• Management and indirect costs
• Gross salary of about € 60,000 (depending on family status)

KU Leuven supports the recruited researcher with

• Personalised support in research proposal writing and application
• State of the art research infrastructure

How to apply

Are you interested in tackling one or more challenges mentioned in the project description, please send your application to Prof. Veerle Vandeginste ([email protected] ), including your CV, letter of motivation and a short research proposal (max. 3 pages) before 23 May 2022. Please write “MSCA-PF application” as the subject of the email. The deadline for the MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowship application is expected to be in September 2022.