PhD Studentship - Process Industries: Net Zero: Development of Sustainable Manufacturing Processes for Confectionery Products

Award summary

100% fees (UK home only), a minimum tax-free annual living allowance of £20,780 (2025/26 UKRI rate), and a research training support grant of £20,000. 

Overview

The PINZ CDT will train the next generation of process and chemical engineers, and chemists, to develop the new processes, process technologies and green chemistries required for the process industries’ transition to Net Zero.  

Climate change is one of society’s greatest challenges. As the world’s largest food and beverage company, Nestlé has pledged its commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and achieving net zero emissions from their global manufacturing processes by 2050.  

Working with Nestlé Research and Development Centre, the objective is to develop an alternative method to cook confectionery products, replacing the current steam-based cooking process with an electrified energy source that does not rely on fossil fuels.  

The successful candidate will utilize their expertise in thermal properties of materials and heat transfer to explore and evaluate potential solutions. The project will involve researching and assessing state-of-the-art technologies, determining their technical feasibility, and identifying how they can be leveraged to formulate a sustainable cooking solution. 

• Reviewing existing steam-based cooking processes and identifying their environmental impact. 
• Investigating alternative energy sources for cooking confectionery products, considering their sustainability and compatibility with Nestle's manufacturing requirements. 
• Conducting experiments and simulations to evaluate the thermal properties and heat transfer characteristics of materials relevant to the cooking process. 
• Assessing the technical feasibility and scalability of potential solutions. 
• Developing a comprehensive proposal for a sustainable cooking method, including design considerations, energy efficiency analysis, and potential implementation strategies. 

Number of awards: 1

Start date: 15th September 2025

Award duration: 4 Years

Sponsor: EPSRC

Supervisors

Dr Richard Law 

Prof Adam Harvey  

Eligibility criteria

A minimum 2:1 hons degree in Chemical Engineering or related Engineering discipline, or equivalent industrial experience. A solid background in the analysis of thermal and fluids systems is important for this project. Enthusiasm for research, the ability to think and work independently, excellent analytical skills and strong verbal and written communication skills are also essential requirements.

This studentship is available to Home students only.

How to apply

You must apply through the University’s Apply to Newcastle Portal. Once registered select ‘Create a Postgraduate Application’.

 Use ‘Course Search’ to identify your programme of study:

• Search for the ‘Course Title’ using the programme code: 8856F
• Leave the 'Research Area' field blank
• Select ‘PhD in Process Industries; Net Zero (PINZ’) as the programme of study

You will then need to provide the following information in the ‘Further Details’ section:

• A ‘Personal Statement’ (this is a mandatory field) - upload a document or write a statement directly in to the application form
• The studentship code PINZ02-25 in the ‘Studentship/Partnership Reference’ field
• ‘Research Proposal’ - when prompted for how you are providing your research proposal –select ‘Write Proposal’. You should then type in the title of the research project from this advert. You do not need to upload a research proposal.

You must submit one application per studentship, you cannot apply for multiple studentships on one application.

Contact details: pinz.cdt@ncl.ac.uk

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