Research Associate in Developing Thermomechanophores for Mechanical Recycling of Polymers

Job reference: SAE-027792
Salary: £36,924-£45,163 per annum, depending on relevant experience
Faculty/Organisational unit: Science and Engineering
Location: Oxford Road
Employment type: Fixed Term
Division/Team: Department of Materials
Hours per week: Full time (1 FTE)
Closing date (DD/MM/YYYY): 17/02/2025
Contract duration: 24 months
School/Directorate: School of Natural Sciences

The Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub works at the interface between the Sustainable Futures research platform at the University of Manchester and the Henry Royce Institute, the UK’s national lab for advanced materials. The Hub supports innovation in sustainable plastics and multi-materials, with a particular emphasis on tackling industrially relevant research questions. The team is necessarily interdisciplinary, with polymer scientists working with economists, social scientists and life-cycle experts to co-create robust solutions to managing plastic from creation to end-of-life.

We are recruiting an enthusiastic and collaborative post-doctoral research associate to join our team to work on a disruptive new project developing thermos-mechanically responsive polymer additives for mechanical recycling. Although it is one of the most sustainable solutions for end-of-life processing of plastics, mechanical recycling can suffer the drawback of producing recyclate with inferior mechanical, optical and thermal properties when compared to virgin plastic. This role will involve developing novel synthetic routes to embed thermally sensitive mechanophores into commodity polymers to investigate and improve the degradation induced during mechanical recycling. Understanding and controlling such degradation processes will be key to improving the quality of mechanically recycled products.

You should have, or be working towards, a PhD or equivalent in either polymer chemistry, engineering, processing, or a closely related field. Understanding, either academic or experiential, in polymer chemistry is essential, ideally in one or more of synthesis, processing (extrusion) or sustainability. You should be capable of working under your own initiative, collaborating with others, and possess excellent communication and organisational skills. Our School and our Hub are committed to Athena SWAN principles to promote women in science and to broader equality, diversity and inclusion efforts. The University of Manchester values a diverse workforce and welcomes applications from all sections of the community.

The project is a new collaboration between Dr Niamh Fox and Prof. Mike Shaver, with this role complementing an incoming PhD student to further strengthen the project. Mike is Director of both the Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub and the Sustainable Futures research platform while Niamh leads research focused on the scalability of polymer mechanochemistry into real-world processes. Our space supports diverse research impact in polymer synthesis, functional materials, degradable multi-materials, chemical and mechanical recycling and waste management to deliver holistic solutions to retain plastics in their highest value condition and realise social, economic and environmental sustainability.

Enquiries about the vacancy, shortlisting and interviews:

Name: Prof. Michael Shaver - Director of Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub

Email: michael.shaver@manchester.ac.uk

Name: Dr. Niamh Fox - Lecturer in Polymer Chemistry

Email: niamh.fox@manchester.ac.uk

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