A highly motivated researcher with skills in organic and polymer synthesis is required. The CRESTIMB project is funded by Horizon Europe-DAFM under the Forestvalue2 programme. This project aims to develop an innovative timber system suitable for multistorey buildings with open spaces. The proposed system will include moment-resisting softwood or hardwood glue-laminated timber frames, innovative beam-to-column connections, and dowel cross-laminated floor panels. To ensure an increased service life and the possibility of reuse, the long-term behaviour of the system components will be investigated with an advanced numerical model, including the rheology of wood under variable indoor climates. This multidisciplinary project brings together a consortium of partners involving academic and research institutes and industrial partners from 6 European countries.

This current project at TCD mainly focuses on developing lignin-based adhesives by functionalising the commercial and in-house extracted/modified lignin’s. The functionalised resins will be mostly explored for adhesive applications for making medium-density fibre boards and bonding the soft and hardwood laminates. Also, this project involves developing film-based adhesives using thermoplastic biodegradable polymers to bond the wood laminates as an alternative to conventional phenolic-based adhesives. Functionalisation and characterisation of lignin-based polymers is the key to developing lignin network polymers suitable for adhesive applications.

Standard Duties and Responsibilities of the Post

The post holder will be responsible for developing and formulating the lignin-based adhesives based on functionalised lignin’s. This project required working knowledge of modification and characterisation of lignin polymers along with characterisation of polymers via FTIR, Raman, NMR, rheology, tensile testing, DMA, DSC, TGA, XRD, SEM, and other analytical tools. He/she will be expected to run the research programme day-to-day under the direction of Prof. Ramesh Babu.

The core tasks are as follows:

1. Synthesis of monomers, polymer synthesis, polymer functionalisation
2. Lignin functionalities and modification chemistry to create networks.
3. Has a strong background in the functionalisation and characterisation of lignin-based compounds and polymers  
4. Scaling up lab-scale procedure for pilot scale.
5. Life cycle analysis (LCA) of the developed processes.
6. Writing papers for peer-reviewed publications and giving presentations on the research conducted.
7. Willing to travel to partner sites to scale and demonstrate technologies.
8. Helping with the day-to-day running of the research group, training and supervising the students, procuring orders, and managing the laboratories.

Funding Information

Horizon Europe-DAFM

Person Specification

Qualifications

The experienced candidate must have a   PhD in a relevant field such as chemistry,  polymer science and engineering, Chemical Engineering,  Materials science, and/or equivalent industrial experience in polymer synthesis and characterisation.

Appointment will be made on points 1 of the IUA post-doctorate researcher Level 1 salary scale PD1 at points 1-3 (based on experience)  in line with Government Pay Policy [€45,847 to €48,412 per annum], appointment will be made no higher than point 3.

Application Procedure

Applicants should submit a full Curriculum Vitae quoting PD-CRESTIMB, including the names and contact details of 2 referees (including email addresses), to babup@tcd.ie on or before 25^th November 2024