Assistant professor in Chemical Engineering – with focus on Biorefineries

Lund University is recruiting an assistant Professor in Chemical Engineering – with focus on Biorefineries.

The Department of Chemical Engineering has a long tradition of research in biomass fractionation and separation processes. A driving force behind the research in this area is the aim to replace fossil sources in the production of fuels and materials. The BUL position will be part of the biorefinery group and/or the membrane group depending on the profile of the proposed candidate, and the department views cross-group collaborations both within and outside the department positively.

The purpose of the recruitment is to strengthen the department's work in biomass fractionation, either for fresh biomass such as wood or straw, or as biomass components in industrial by-products.

Within the department, there are competencies in separation processes, reaction engineering, modeling, and water purification. The faculty consists of approximately 15 individuals complemented by several postdoctoral researchers and around 25 doctoral students. To support research, the department has 2 research engineers and 2 administrators.

Chemical Engineering conducts applied and fundamental research in several areas that aim to meet the goals of Agenda 2030 in one or more ways. A significant part of these goals is related to energy and material production. To enable a transition from fossil to bio-based resources, systems for biomass conversion and fractionation at various levels must be available.

Much of the department's applied research at TRL 4-6 is related to the scaling up of various processes. This research is conducted within the framework of Lund University Pre-Pilot Plant, which consolidates large-scale laboratory infrastructure at the departments of Chemical Engineering, Food and Drug, and Biotechnology.

For the position of assistant professor, we seek a candidate who can complement and further develop the department's research in the sustainable utilization of biomass. Different competencies can complement the ongoing research, either by working on the refinement of biomass or biomass components into products that can replace materials or fuels from fossil sources, or by developing processes and methods to make components in biomass or industrial by-products available for further refinement.

Teaching at the undergraduate, advanced, and research levels is a cornerstone of Chemical Engineering's activities. As part of the position, teaching at the undergraduate level is included in one of the students' more extensive laboratory courses, where they are expected to develop their ability to plan and execute a larger laboratory project safely and accurately.

Since a large proportion of the department's teaching takes place at the undergraduate level where the teaching language is Swedish, it will be assumed that the proposed candidate also actively works to achieve a level of Swedish proficiency that allows them to teach in Swedish within a few years.

Finally, humanity is constantly changing, and over time, different research questions will be important to solve. Right now, the most important questions in chemical engineering are food, energy, and clean water, but this can change incredibly quickly. Our recruitment of an assistant professor is a long-term commitment from the department, and over the course of a research career, many things can happen that require reassessment and evaluation of research direction. We therefore assume that candidates for the position have the readiness, willingness, and ability to change the research focus over time to meet society's needs.

Subject

Chemical Engineering – with focus on Biorefineries

Subject description

The subject encompasses one of the following areas:

Chemical processing of biomass or components extracted from biomass using conventional or new process pathways.

Making biomass components available with properties that allow for further processing of the extracted components into various products within a biorefinery concept. Specific to this research direction is, therefore, deep knowledge of various characterization methods for biomass and biomass components to evaluate the properties of the different fractions.

Work duties

Employment as an assistant professor is a tenure track position, which aims for the holder to develop their independence as a researcher and educator. The work duties mainly involve research and teaching. The position includes the opportunity to undertake five weeks of training in teaching and learning in higher education. 

Work duties include:

• Research within the subject area.
• Teaching in the first, second and third cycles of studies.
• Supervision of degree projects and doctoral students.
• Actively seeking external research funding.
• Collaboration with industry and wider society.
• Administration related to the work duties listed above.

Qualification requirements 

Qualification requirements for employment as an assistant professor are fulfilled by someone who has been awarded a doctorate or has the corresponding research competence. 

Primary consideration should be given to someone who has been awarded a doctorate or achieved the equivalent competence within five years of the deadline for application for employment as an assistant professor. However, someone who has been awarded a doctorate or achieved the equivalent expertise at an earlier date may also be considered if there are special grounds. Special grounds are sick leave, parental leave or other similar circumstances.

Assessment criteria

For appointment to assistant professor, the following shall form the assessment criteria:

• A good ability to develop and carry out high quality research.
• Teaching ability. 

Additional requirements

• Very good oral and written proficiency in English.
• Strong laboratory experience and documented ability to teach in a laboratory environment.
• As part of their application, the applicant should submit a research plan describing the research intended to be conducted during the employment, and how the applicant's scientific background can contribute to the development of the subject of Chemical Engineering at Lund. The quality of the research plan will be a significant part of the application assessment. The research plan should also describe the type of research infrastructure at Lund University and/or at facilities with open application procedures that are deemed critical for the implementation of the plan.
• Collaborative skills, initiative and the ability to solve work tasks independently, as well as a demonstrated interest in leadership.

Other qualifications

Significant documented research experience (e.g. from postdoc or doctoral studies) from another university/institute or relevant experience from industry/public sector.
Previous documented research in biomass conversion, e.g., biofuel research, pulp and paper technology research, etc.
Previous documented research in the separation of biomass components, e.g., lignin, hemicellulose, and extractives.
Experience in the analysis of biomass and biomass components, e.g., FT-IR, HPLC, NMR, GC, as well as various scattering techniques for structural determination.
 

The extent to which the applicant, through their experience and skills, may complement and strengthen ongoing research, undergraduate education, departmental innovation, and how they can contribute to the future development of the department will also be taken into consideration.

Terms of employment

This is a full-time, fixed-term employment of 6 years. The employment is regulated in accordance with Chapter 4 Section 12a§ HEA. The purpose of the appointment is for the teacher to be given the opportunity to develop research autonomy and acquire the scholarly and teaching qualifications required for eligibility for appointment as a senior lecturer.

We offer 

Lund University is a public authority which means that employees get particular benefits, generous annual leave and an advantageous occupational pension scheme.  Read more on the University website about being a Lund University employee: https://www.lunduniversity.lu.se/about-university/work-lund-university. 

Instructions on how to apply

Applications shall be written in English. Please draw up the application in accordance with LTH’s Academic qualifications portfolio – see link below. Upload the application as PDF-files in the recruitment system. Read more:

http://www.lth.se/english/working-at-lth/to-apply-for-academic-positions-at-lth/

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Promotion to Senior Lecturer in Chemical Engineering – with focus on Biorefineries

During the period of employment, an assistant professor can apply for promotion to a permanent position as Senior Lecturer if he or she has the required qualifications listed below, and is deemed suitable. An assistant professor can only apply for promotion once.

Qualification requirements

Appointment to senior lecturer requires that the applicant has: 

• A PhD or corresponding research competence or professional expertise considered important with regard to the subject matter of the post and the work duties it will involve.
• Demonstrated teaching expertise. 
• Completed five weeks of training in higher education teaching and learning, or acquired equivalent knowledge by other means. 

Assessment criteria

The assessment criteria specify the aspects to be considered, and the level to be achieved, for the assessment criteria to be deemed fulfilled. The following assessment criteria must be fulfilled for appointment to senior lecturer:

• A good national and international standing as a researcher. The requirement for international experience shall be assessed with consideration to the character and traditions of the subject.
• Good teaching ability, including a good ability to conduct, develop and lead teaching and other educational activities on different levels and using a variety of teaching methods.
• An ability to supervise doctoral students to achieve a PhD.
• An ability to collaborate with wider society and communicate his or her activities.
• A general ability to lead and develop activities.

Additional requirements

• Good ability to collaborate, independence and drive.
• Sufficient knowledge of Swedish to carry out administrative and educational tasks that require an understanding of Swedish.
• Progression in research and teaching expertise.
• Demonstrated ability to attract external research funding in competition.