PhD positions within an entrepreneurial doctoral programme on Clean Water, Sustainable Energy and Resources - EMPOWER

Wetsus, European centre of excellence for sustainable water technology is a facilitating intermediary for trendsetting know-how development. Wetsus creates a unique environment and strategic cooperation for development of profitable and sustainable state of the art water treatment technology.

EMPOWER (Entrepreneurial Multidisciplinary Scientists Forging Pathways Onto Clean Water, Sustainable Energy and Resources) is a doctoral programme co-funded by the European Commission through a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action (MSCA). The objective of EMPOWER is to create a highly demanded type of professional in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), with the skillset to operate between academic chairs, established knowledge-intensive companies, start-ups, public authorities and the general public, to develop and realise solutions for the challenges of the 21^st century in the field of water. Therefore, the EMPOWER programme is offering 14 PhD positions integrated with business oriented training, which is fundamental to prepare the selected Early Stage Researchers (ESRs) for their future entrepreneurship-research career.

Wetsus is the main beneficiary and project coordinator of the EMPOWER programme. The research projects will be conducted together with three university partners Wageningen University (WUR), University of Groningen (RUG), and University of Twente (UT).

Overall, the doctoral training programme consists of four main, interconnected parts, which are dedicated to developing different skills: research, multidisciplinary expertise, entrepreneurship and personal development. In particular, Early Stage Researchers (ESRs) enrolling in EMPOWER are asked to integrate their PhD path with an integrated businessoriented training (MBA), which allows for a dual degree. This dual training is fundamental to prepare STEM PhD students for careers in entrepreneurship. The MBA comprises a business secondment, related to the research project of the ESR, at one industry/company.

Who?

The candidate must fulfil the following mandatory criteria according the early-stage and mobility MSCA criteria:

• Hold an MSc degree in the discipline associated with the research topic.
• The candidate’s full-time equivalent research experience must be less than four years, measured from the date when the candidate obtained the degree entitling them to start a PhD study.
• The candidate may not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the Netherlands for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately before the deadline of the call.
• The candidate must not hold a previous PhD degree.

Moreover, other criteria for the candidates are:

• During their academic path, the candidates have shown research excellence either through high grades and/or an outstanding thesis.
• Being able to work in a multidisciplinary team in an international environment, and also to work independently.
• Have excellent English communication skills, both verbally and in scientific writing.
• Suitability for scientific entrepreneurship and to potentially develop business-related skills.

PhD positions:

• PhD project 1:  Optimisation of manure processing: towards more sustainable application of manure-based fertilizers.
• PhD project 2: Stable polyelectrolyte multilayer based membranes for water treatment under harsh conditionsStable polyelectrolyte multilayer based membranes for water treatment under harsh conditions
• PhD project 3: Enhancing the local water cycle via evaporation for a sustainable water supply
• PhD project 4: Sensing strategies for real-time, early warning monitoring of biofilm formation parameters in drinking water distribution systems
• PhD project 5: Beyond chlorine: alternative sustainable compounds to remove biofilms in drinking water environments
• PhD project 6: High recovery and chemical-free desalination using advanced electrodialysis schemes
• PhD project 7: Energy-efficient electrochemical phosphate recovery (EPR) – optimisation and upscaling
• PhD project 8: Towards a circular sulphur economy
• PhD project 9: Production of PHA from municipal primary sludge VFAs in support of upscaling of PHA production from municipal surplus activated sludge
• PhD project 10: Steering protein functionality by smart dehydration
• PhD project 11: Untapping the energetic potential of grey water: microbiological safety and downstream re-utilization routes
• PhD project 12: Optics-based distributed sensing for the management of groundwater quality
• PhD project 13: Inline electronic leak detection in water distribution systems
• PhD project 14: EPS-based solutions to increase soil structure and resilience to drought

You may also want to check the webinar that presented the programme and the Guide for Applicants for the call.

more information here

Deadline: 29 October 2021.