Application deadline: 15th January 2025 (17:00 UK time)
This PhD opportunity will be in the Gutierrez Lab research group at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, Scotland.
All applications must include a CV and the names and contact details of 2-3 referees.
About the project:
Based on a 2016 House of Commons report, there are ~300,000 contaminated sites in the UK with an economic value >£1 billion. Meanwhile, progress on remediation technologies has lacked momentum. This project proposes an innovative systematic approach that will marry specific physicochemical properties of biochar with selected bacterial species for enhancing the bioremediation of soils contaminated with persistent priority pollutants, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The project is expected to result in a significant technological step forward in this field of soil pollution remediation because it will lead to producing new microbe-biochar composite materials (MBCs) that are tailor-made for the targeted and enhanced bioremediation of polluted soils. Specifically, the project represents the first synthesis approach taken to evaluate a range of waste feedstock source materials to match-make biochar with microbes for soil pollution remediation, with state-of-the-art techniques used to characterise the biochar materials to identify which are best suited for the colonisation of specific bioremediation microbes. The project will investigate the interaction of microbes with biochar and explore the mechanisms involved in attachment and biofilm formation. This work endeavours to take a scientific leap in demonstrating biochar as a cheap and effective, carbon negative matrix to marry with microbes for tailored and enhanced bioremediation of contaminated land, and which may form the basis of sustainable business opportunities in the UK, Europe and elsewhere on land reclamation. The successful applicant will join the Environmental Biotechnology Innovation Centre (EBIC: https://ebicentre.co.uk), which is a £13M project involving 10 UK institutions working on developing novel engineering and synthetic biology methods for environmental bioremediation, resource recovery and waste recycling.
Funding Notes
This is a James-Watt studentship which is open to only students of the United Kingdom. Stipend and fees are all covered by this studentship.
For informal enquiries, you can email Professor Tony Gutierrez: tony.gutierrez@hw.ac.uk
All applicants must have or expect to have a 1st Class MSc or equivalent degree by Summer 2025, or at the very least a 1st Class Honours degree. Selection will be based on academic excellence and research potential, and all short-listed applicants will be interviewed (in person or via Teams).
Closing Date: 15th January 2025 (17:00 UK time). The successful applicant must be available to start this PhD in either May/June or September/October 2025.
How to Apply
When applying through the Heriot-Watt on-line system, please ensure you provide the following information:
(a) In ‘Study Option’, you will need to select ‘Edinburgh’ and ‘Postgraduate Research’. ‘Programme’ presents you with a drop-down menu. Choose Bio-engineering and Bio-sciences PhD for study option
(b) In ‘Research Project Information’, you will be provided with a free text box for details of your research project. Enter the title of the project for which you are applying and also enter the supervisor’s name, who is Professor Tony Gutierrez.
This information will greatly assist us in tracking your application.
For questions about the application process, please contact pgr.eps@hw.ac.uk