PhD position on polymer brush coatings for electro-chemical processes.

Water is indispensable to modern society. It is used in our homes, in food production, and throughout the chemical and processing industries. However, many industrial water-based processes rely on chemical additives such as cleaning agents, acids, bases, antiscalants, rinse aids, and other processing chemicals. While effective, these substances ultimately should not enter wastewater streams, making treatment more complex, energy intensive, and costly.

Therefore, we propose a different solution. Rather than removing these chemicals after use, a more sustainable strategy is to redesign industrial processes so that fewer, or ideally no, chemical processing aids are required in the first place.

To tackle this challenge, researchers from five universities, University of Twente (coordinator), TU Delft, Wageningen University & Research, the University of Groningen, and the University of Copenhagen, will join forces with industrial partners including Nobian and Avebe. Together, we aim to develop innovative technologies that enable cleaner and more sustainable industrial water use.

As a PhD candidate, you will develop novel nanometer-thin polymer coatings, known as polymer brushes, that can control surface interactions and prevent fouling in electrochemical systems. You will design, synthesize, and characterize sustainable and durable polymer brush coatings with tailored functionalities, such as antifouling behavior and selective molecular interactions.

You will then integrate these coatings into table-top test setups for electrochemical separation and cleaning-in-place processes and investigate how they improve process efficiency while reducing or eliminating the need for chemical additives. Through this work, you will contribute to the development of next-generation water treatment technologies that support a more sustainable and circular industry.