Next-generation low-carbon cement wasteforms for safe disposal of radioactive waste

University of Sheffield; United Kingdom; On-site; GBP 15,000 - 20,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of Sheffield is offering a PhD position focusing on the development of low-carbon cement wasteforms for nuclear waste encapsulation. Candidates will join a multidisciplinary team, gain industrial experience through a secondment at Sellafield Ltd, and participate in comprehensive training aligned with decarbonization goals.

Qualifications

• Minimum upper second class honours degree in relevant subject.
• International English proficiency if applicable.

Responsibilities

• Research and develop low-carbon cement wasteforms.
• Conduct in-situ characterization and performance testing.
• Collaborate with industry partners and attend training.

Skills

Research Skills

Analytical Skills

Problem Solving

Education

Upper second class honours degree in chemical engineering, chemistry, bioscience or a related technical subject

IELTS average of 6.5 or above (if applicable)

Job description

Saturn_Nuclear_CDT

Nuclear power provides 20% of UK energy demand, and is central to UK Energy Security and Net Zero policies, however, it also generates significant amounts of radioactive waste. Legacy, current, and planned UK nuclear facilities will generate 450,000 m³ of radioactive waste by the end of the century - enough to fill Wembley Stadium. Most of this radioactive waste needs conditioning by encapsulating it in cement to prevent release to theenvironment.

Blended cements incorporating calcined clays (LC3 encapsulants) are considered the next major step for bulk cementsupply within the cement industry along their roadmap towards ‘Net Zero’ and therefore highly likely to become part ofthe nuclear industries toolbox for waste encapsulation.

However, chemical differences between Portland-limestone calcined clay cement (LC3) encapsulants and Portlandcement (PC) encapsulants, and variability in powder physical/chemical characteristics, lead to different physical andchemical characteristics and physical properties, due to extensive differences between aqueous and solid-statechemistry in each case. Little is known about which raw materials are most suitable, and there is little information onwhat parameters are critical to reliable application.

This PhD examines fluid-particle and particle-particle interactions in LC3 encapsulants produced from a suite of high and low-grade precursor powders, benchmarked against common PC-based encapsulants. It adopts a new in-situ characterisation approach (including surface-specific techniques, spectroscopic and microstructural characterisation)to investigate mechanisms and kinetics of fluid-particle and particle-particle interactions, and effects on performance.

We will study and reveal the fundamental processes controlling dispersion, fluidisation and reaction of these cements, anddesign, produce and test novel encapsulant formulations with enhanced performance.

This will allow us to develop next-generation low-carbon cement wasteforms for safe disposal of radioactive waste that will help to protect the wellbeing of society and the environment, and enable clean nuclear energy production.

Based in the School of Chemical, Materials, and Biological Engineering, the successful candidate will be joining a team of multidisciplinary researchers at The University of Sheffield to develop research and innovation for decarbonisation. The successful applicant will join theSustainable Materials at Sheffieldresearch team. They will also benefit from industrial supervision bySellafield Ltd, and be part of a comprehensive doctoral training programme in this area at The University of Sheffield, led by the primary supervisor Dr Brant Walkley, in collaboration with Sellafield Ltd. and National Nuclear Laboratory, and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, that comprises >20 current PhDs in encapsulant/wasteform development across the Faculty of Engineering.

The PhD researcher will also have the opportunity to undertake a 3 to 6-month secondment in with Sellafield Ltd at their R&D site for cement research. During this industrial secondment, the PhD researcher will evaluate research findings to date as relevant to Sellafield Ltd.’s cement-focused business needs.

Eligibility:

Applicants should have a minimum of an upper second class honours degree in chemical engineering, chemistry, bioscience or a related technical subject. If English is not your first language then you must have an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) average of 6.5 or above with at least 6.0 in each component, or equivalent. Please see this link for further information: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/postgraduate/phd/apply/english-language.

How to apply:

Please complete the enquiry form to express your interest.

We strongly recommend you contact the project supervisor after completing the form to speak to them about your suitability and interest for the project: [e-mail]

If your qualifications meet our standard entry requirements, the CDT Admissions Team will send your enquiry form and CV to the named project supervisor.

Our application process can also be found on our website: Apply | EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Skills And Training Underpinning a Renaissance in Nuclear | The University of Manchester. If you have any questions, please contact [e-mail]