Research Grant | project NMR4CO2, ref 865974, from CICECO - Aveiro Institute of Materials Aveiro

Research Grant | project NMR4CO2, ref 865974, from CICECO - Aveiro Institute of Materials
Aveiro
Aveiro, Aveiro District, Portugal

Organisation/Company University of Aveiro Department CICECO - Aveiro Institute of Materials Research Field Chemistry Engineering » Materials engineering Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions Master Positions Country Portugal Application Deadline 21 May 2025 - 23:59 (Europe/Lisbon) Type of Contract Not Applicable Job Status Not Applicable Hours Per Week 35 Offer Starting Date 1 Jun 2025 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Horizon 2020 Reference Number 865974 Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

A tender is hereby opened for the award of 1 (one) Research Grant (RG) under the European Research Council Grant “Unveiling CO2chemisorption mechanisms in solid adsorbents via
- enhanced ex(in)-situ NMR” , financed by Horizon 2020 – research and innovation action of the European Union , from CICECO – Aveiro Institute of Materials under the following conditions:

1. Scientific Area: Chemistry, Materials Science, or related areas

2. Financing Source: European research Council – Grant agreement N. º 865974

3. Admission Requirements:

1) Students enrolled in doctorate

We are looking for candidates with
- initiative and commitment to work both independently and as part of a multidisciplinary team. Candidates should possess an excellent academic record at both undergraduate and graduate levels (minimum grade of 15 out of 20). Good oral and written communication skills are required.

Previous experience operating
- state NMR spectrometers is mandatory.

The proof of enrolment must be made available until the contract is awarded, and the candidate may attach a declaration of honor to confirm that they meet the requirements for enrolment in an integrated master's degree, master's or doctoral program or in a course that does not confer an academic degree.

If the qualification has been conferred by a foreign higher education institution it must be recognized by a Portuguese higher education institution, under the terms of the provisions of article 25 of Decree-Law no. 66/2018, of August 16th, which approves the legal regime of recognition of academic degrees and diplomas of Higher Education, attributed by foreign higher education institutions, and of paragraph e) of no. 2 of article 4 of Decree-Law no. 60/2018, of August 3rd, and any formalities established therein must be fulfilled by the date of the hiring act .

4. Eligibility: Applicants are eligible if they comply with paragraph a) of no. 1 of article 2, of the Research Fellow Statute in the wording given by Decree-Law no. 123/2019, of August 28th, and also the provisions of article 9 of the Scientific Research Grant Regulations of the University of Aveiro.

5. Work plan:

This project aims to investigate the
- scale intermolecular interactions at
- solid interfaces in CO₂-loaded porous materials
- state. To overcome sensitivity limitations, the incorporation of stable radicalsinto the porous framwaorks (mainly
- based materials) will be performed to enable
DNP-NMR. The study will provide unprecedented insights into CO₂ adsorption mechanisms by correlating
- scale phenomena with macroscopic properties.

Task 1. Design and synthesis of
- based materials with embedded nitroxide radicals. Structural characterization using
XRD, BET, TEM, and EPRto confirm radical incorporation and pore structure.

Task 2. Conduct¹³C, ¹⁵N, and ²⁹Si
- NMRon CO₂-loaded functionalized silica to probe adsorption sites. Optimize
DNP-NMR conditionsfor
- embedded materials, comparing with conventional wet impregnation methods. Performvariable-temperature NMRto study CO₂ dynamics in confinement.

Task 3. Quantify CO₂ adsorption isotherms and correlate with NMR-derived interaction strengths. Model intermolecular interactions using
DFT calculationsto support NMR findings. Compare different silica architectures (e. g. , pore size, functional groups) to optimize CO₂ capture efficiency.

This interdisciplinary approach bridgesorganic chemistry, materials science, and advanced spectroscopy, offering a novel perspective on
- solid interactions.

6. Applicable legislation and regulations: Research Fellow Statute, as amended by Decree-Law No. 123/2019, of August 28th; Scientific Research Grant Regulation of the University of Aveiro, Regulation No. 292/2020, published in Diário da República No. 61, Series II, of March 26th; Decree-Law No. 66/2018, of August 16th (Legal regime of recognition of academic degrees and diplomas of higher education awarded by foreign higher education institutions).

7. Workplace: The work will be carried out at CICECO – Aveiro Institute of Materials, Chemistry Department of the University of Aveiro, under the scientific supervision of Doctor Luís Mafra and
- supervised by Doctor Ildefonso Marin and Doctor Mariana Sardo.

8. Duration of the grant: The grant duration will be 12 months, starting in June of 2025, and may be renewed for additional, up to the maximum limit of approved funding. Under no circumstances shall it exceed the limits defined in nos. 5 and 6 of article 9, of Regulation no. 292/2020, of February 28th, published in Diário da República, no. 61, Series II, of March 26th (Scientific Research Grant Regulation of the University of Aveiro).

9. Amount of monthly maintenance allowance: The amount of the grant corresponds to €1309, 64 , according to the table of values of monthly maintenance allowances, set out in Appendix III of the Scientific Research Grant Regulation of the University of Aveiro , subject to any updates that may occur and are applicable. The fellow may also be reimbursed for the amount corresponding to the Voluntary Social Security, in case of adherence to this plan. Full payment of Ph
D tuition fees is also provided.

10. Selection methods: The selection methods are the following: i) assessment of grades during the undergraduate and graduate studies (40-60%); ii) relevance and quality of previous experience/work of interest for this project (20-40%); iii) the three candidates with better classification will be invited to an interview in case the Jury considers it necessary (0-20%). All eligible candidates will be ordered consecutively in terms of relative merit, calculated from the selection method. Only candidates with a relative merit equal or higher than 16 (out of 20) will be considered for selection. The jury reserves the right to not fill the position in case no candidate meets all the admission requirements. All candidates will be informed about the results by email.

11. Composition of the Selection Jury: The Jury responsible for the evaluation process is composed by: Dr. Luís Mafra (Chair), Dra. Mariana Sardo and Dr. Ildefonso Marín.

12. Deadline for applications and how to submit applications: The call is open from 7th to 21st may 2025and only applications submitted within the deadline will be admitted.

Applications must be formalized by sending a letter of application mentioning the contacts of two or three references, accompanied by the following documents: i) detailed and updated Curriculum Vitae; ii) Academic degree certificate(s); iii) declaration of honor , iv) other documents the candidate considers relevant for the application. They shall also indicate the
- mail address to which by such indication they accept to be notified for all purposes within this procedure.

13. Form of publication/notification of results: The results of the evaluation shall be made public no later than 60 working days after the closing date for submission of applications and shall be notified to the applicants. The candidates are informed, in a prior hearing, under the terms established in the Code of Administrative Procedure, of the probable meaning of the final decision, and may, within 10 working days of this notification, express their opinion on this decision. The final results may be appealed to the Rector, to be submitted within 10 working days from the respective notification.

14. Tender duration: The final ranking list of candidates will be valid until March 31st, 2025, for the purpose of constituting a reserve list for selection.