UIDB/00667/2020 - COMPETITION FOR GRANTING 1 RESEARCH SCHOLARSHIP (BIM)

A tender is open for the attribution of one Research Scholarship within the scope of the R&D Unit in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering (UNIDEMI), UIDB/00667/2020, funded by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P. /MCTES, under the following conditions:

1. Work Plan:

• Preliminary tests to define the mechanical and physical requirements. Preliminary tests will be carried out by integrating the physical variables for the desired FGM and coloured materials in the manufacturing process. Hence, different types of radiation and environmental gases will be tested together with different ceramic materials, such as zirconia (PSZ 3Y, 4Y and 5Y), alumina, lithium disilicate and glass ceramic, with different binders and oxides.
• Mechanical design and manufacturing of a highly customised 3D printer. A 3D printer will be designed, assembled, and tested. The binders and the inoculants to be used will be furnished through microflow generators. The compound mixture will be subjected to infrared and ultraviolet radiation and protected environments (nitrogen, argon, etc.), so that the colouring can be achieved in the final material. Stepper motors and linear guides are foreseen to be used in the experimental apparatus so that precise microflow rates of materials could be furnished and mixed.
• Production of prosthetic tooth material to be tested. Some batches of specimens will be obtained and processed before being characterized by mechanical testing. The surface finish will be improved through mechanical polishing. After that, several postprocessing techniques are purposed to produce highly compact and dense specimens with enhanced mechanical properties. These postprocessing techniques will be carried out either through cold hydrostatic pressure before sintering, direct sintering using a sintering furnace and a microwave oven at atmospheric pressure.
• Mechanical and physical characterisation of the 3D printed prosthetic material. The team will carry out axial compression tests to determine relevant compressive mechanical properties, such as the Young's Modulus, yield and compressive strength tests, respectively. Internal defects and heterogeneities will be assessed. Colour will be measured with spectrophotometers (bench and portable).  

2. Workplace:

The work will be carried out in the facilities of the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering of the Faculty of Science and Technology, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, under the scientific supervision of Professor Dr Rui Fernando Martins and the scientific co-supervision of Professor Dr Telmo Gomes Santos and Professor Dr João Carlos Roque, the contracting entity being NOVA.id.FCT – FCT's Association for Innovation and Development.

3. Fellowship duration: The fellowship will last for 6 months, starting on February 2022. The fellowship contract may eventually be renewed within the term of the project for up to 4 months.

4. Application deadline and form of application submission:

The call is open from the 6th of December 2021 to the 14th of January 2022.

Documentation to be provided when applying Applications must be formalized, obligatorily, by sending the following documents:

Form of submission of applications: Applications should be sent by email to Professor Dr Rui Fernando Martins: [email protected] , to Professor Dr Telmo Gomes Santos [email protected] and to Professor Dr João Carlos Roque [email protected]

Documentation to be provided upon contracting: Proof of enrollment in a course that does not lead to an academic degree or in the doctoral program in Mechanical Engineering.

5. Applicable legislation and regulations::

Law No. 40/2004, of August 18, amended and republished by Decree-Law No. 202/2012 of August 27 (Statute of the Scientific Research Fellow) and amended by Decree-Law No. 233/2012 of October 29, by Law No. 12 /2013 of 29 January, by Decree-Law No. 89/2013, of 9 July and Decree-Law No. 123/2019, of 28 August; Regulation of Research Grants of NOVA.id.FCT – Association for Innovation and Development of FCT; Regulation of Research Grants of the Foundation for Science and Technology, I.P. in force (https://www.fct.pt/apoios/bolsas/regulamento.phtml.pt );