PhD student in "fermentation of biorefinery streams" at Chalmers University of Technology


We are looking for a highly motivated PhD student to be integrated into the group of Industrial Biotechnology, at the department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, division of Life Sciences. Research on microorganisms and enzymes performed by the Industrial Biotechnology group aims at actively contributing to the creation of the sustainable energy and chemical industry of the future. One of the important concepts for the achievement of this goal is the biorefinery, in which value-added products, chemicals, fuels and power are obtained by fractionation and conversion of biomass. More information about our activities at Industrial Biotechnology can be found at Official Website.

Job description
The collaborative project in which the work of the PhD student will be included aims at developing robust bioprocessing steps for the production of materials and energy from biomass. As part of such project, the PhD student will concentrate on the fermentation of different biorefinery streams, generated by innovative biomass treatments. The initial, primary task of the project will be the production of second-generation ethanol by fermentation with Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Fermentability of the substrates generated by the other project partners will be investigated, as well as maximum ethanol productivity and yield. Since lignocellulosic material can be a very challenging substrate for the fermenting microorganism, the impact of different substrates on yeast metabolism will be investigated. Possibly, once the crucial traits necessary for highly productive fermentation will be identified, superior improved strains, tailored for the fermentation of various biorefinery streams, will be generated.

The project can start shortly after the selection procedure will be completed.
The position is limited to maximum 5 years, which corresponds to four years of full-time research studies together with teaching in the undergraduate or Masters curricula at Chalmers.

Required qualifications
The candidate should have a M.Sc. in biotechnology, bioengineering or a corresponding curriculum. Experience of performing fermentation studies with yeast in bioreactors is advantageous. A PhD student in our group is expected to work relatively independently, have the ability to plan and organize his/her own work, to be able to work in close collaboration with other group members and partners in research and to be able to communicate scientific results, both orally and in written form in English.

Application procedure
The application shall be written in English and include the following items:

  1. An application of a maximum of one A4 page containing your specific qualifications for the position
  2. Attested copies of education certificates, including grade reports and other documents
  3. Curriculum Vitae
  4. Letters of recommendation and name of reference persons (optional)

The application shall be sent electronically as pdf or zipped documents.Please use the button at the foot of the page to reach the application form. If any material is not available electronically or cannot be transferred to pdf format, the material can be sent as a hard copy to Registrar. The applicants name and the reference number (2011/35) must be written on the first page of the application.

Address:
Registrar
Chalmers University of Technology
SE-412 96 Göteborg
Sweden

Further information
For further information, you are welcome to contact Professor Lisbeth Olsson,lisbeth.olsson@chalmers.se, Phone: +46 31 772 3805.

Reference number : 2011/35 Application deadline : March, 21st 2011

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