PhD fellow to study CO2 drawdown in coastal marine systems

Department: Department of Biology
Regime Full-time

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The Research Group on GeoBiology within the Faculty of Sciences is looking for a full-time (100%)

PhD fellow to study CO2  drawdown in coastal marine systems (4 years)

Tackling the climate crisis is one of the largest challenges to society of the 21st  century. To meet the targets of the Paris agreement and limit global warming, active removal of CO2  from the atmosphere is urgently needed. Ocean alkalinisation aims to speed up the natural process of mineral weathering and provides a promising technology for CO2  drawdown. Application in coastal areas has the advantage that it counteracts ocean acidification, does not interfere with terrestrial land use, and can be directly integrated into existing coastal management programs with existing technology.

The selected candidate will join the research group of Prof. Filip Meysman. The team is at the international forefront of research into CO2  drawdown in coastal marine systems via enhanced mineral weathering, combining state-of-the-art methods in geochemistry and microbiology. See www.coastal-carbon.eu  for more information about our research.

Position

At UAntwerpen we operate an internationally unique mesocosm facility, which enables to study the biogeochemistry of enhanced weathering in coastal environments (CEW) under controlled conditions (www.coastal-carbon.eu ). We have a job opening for a PhD fellow (4 years) to study the carbon cycle in this international mesocosm facility and contribute to the development of CEW as a nature-based negative-emission technology. The goal is to characterize the biogeochemistry of marine sediments with and without mineral addition, determine the mineral dissolution rate, investigate pore saturation effects and assess the CO2  sequestration rate. This PhD project is embedded within a larger research project, which runs in collaboration with the university of Ghent (Dept. Geology), the Flemish Institute for the Sea (VLIZ) and the company Carbon Time (www.carbon-time.com ).

• You are highly motivated to conduct research within an international and interdisciplinary team of researchers, and thus build a professional network and academic career;
• You will perform fundamental research within the domain of marine biogeochemistry, contributing to nature-based solutions for the climate challenge; 
• You have experience and skills to conduct experiments rigorously and independently (flux measurements, pore water sampling, and geochemical analysis of the solute and solid phases in marine sediments)
• You are willing to participate in field work (e.g. research campaigns to Iceland, Norway) 
• You will publish your research results in high-level scientific journals and you love to present your results at national and international venues;

Profile and qualifications

We are looking for a flexible and creative person, who is highly motivated to tackle new and complex biological questions.

• You hold a MSc in Geochemistry, Marine Chemistry, Bio-engineering, or a related discipline in the Natural Sciences, and have a strong interest in cross-disciplinary research;
• You are creative, possess excellent organisational skills and have a cooperative attitude;
• You can demonstrate excellent study results. Persons with a master thesis project related to sediment biogeochemistry are particularly encouraged to apply.
• You are an excellent team-player, and enthusiastic to learn new technologies and work in an interdisciplinary team;
• Strong communication skills in English are essential. You have excellent skills in scientific writing in English.

We offer

• a dynamic, vibrant and stimulating work environment at UAntwerpen;
• A doctoral scholarship for a period of one year. Following a positive evaluation, the scholarship will be renewed for another three-year period.
• a gross monthly salary is calculated according to the scholarships  on the pay scales for Contract Research staff category (Dutch: Bijzonder Academisch Personeel, BAP).
• an enjoyable working environment within the green space of Campus Drie Eiken (UAntwerpen). Find out more about working at the University of Antwerp here .

Want to apply?

• You can apply for this vacancy through the University of Antwerp’s online job application platform  up to and including 15 January 2023 (by midnight Brussels time). Click on 'apply', complete the online application form  and don’t forget to include the following document(s) in English: (1) a motivation letter (max. 2 pages), (2) an up-to-date academic CV with contact details of two referees and an abstract of your thesis.
• We will perform a pre-selection on CV and we will invite selected candidates for an interview. The selection committee will review the applications as soon as possible after the application deadline. The planned start date is 01 March 2023 or as soon as possible thereafter.
• If you have questions about the online application form, please check the frequently asked questions  or email [email protected] . If you have questions about the job itself, please contact Prof. dr. ir. Filip Meysman, [email protected] .

The University of Antwerp received the European Commission’s HR Excellence in Research Award  for its HR policy. We are a sustainable, family-friendly organisation which invests in its employees’ growth. We encourage diversity  and attach great importance to an inclusive working environment and equal opportunities, regardless of gender identity, disability, race, ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation or age. We encourage people from diverse backgrounds and with diverse characteristics to apply.