PhD Studentship: Sustainable aviation fuel thermochemical modelling

University of Nottingham; Nottingham; On-site; GBP 22,000 - 26,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of Nottingham invites applications for a PhD studentship in Sustainable aviation fuel thermochemical modelling, undertaken in partnership with Airbus. The project will explore heat transfer, thermochemistry, and modelling approaches across conditions relevant to fuel systems.

You will use computational, analytical, and potentially experimental validation to study fuel chemistry and physical properties, with opportunities for industrial data and collaborations within aerospace.

Qualifications

• High 2:1 or 1st class honours in a relevant field.
• Experience or knowledge in heat transfer is essential.
• Experience in CFD, chemistry, ML, or computational heat transfer is advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Undertake PhD research using computational, analytical, and possibly experimental validation.
• Collaborate within Airbus partnership to advance SAF modelling.

Skills

Heat transfer

Teamwork

Rigorous research

Computational methods

Education

2:1 or 1st class honours in chemical/mechanical/aerospace engineering or related degree

Job description

Area

Mechanical Materials & Manuf Eng

Location

UK Other

Closing Date

Tuesday 05 January 2027

Reference

ENG422

Sustainable aviation fuel thermochemical modelling

Applications are invited to undertake a PhD programme, in partnership with Airbus, to address key challenges in ensuring adoption of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) by understanding the thermophysical and thermochemical behaviour across conditions typical of fuel systems. This research will remove barriers to the adoption of SAF, both for current and future fuels.

Project Overview

The research programme will use a mixture of computational, analytical, and machine learning approaches to model the heat transfer to fuels and their physical and chemical behaviour including changes in chemistry and physical properties. The interaction between fuel chemistry and physical behaviour will be investigated. If appropriate, experimental analysis to provide validation data will be acquired as part of the PhD, although where possible validation data will be taken from industrial and openly available literature. You will gain experience in computational, analytical, and experimental approaches across mechanical and chemical engineering applied in an aerospace industry context.

Candidate Requirements

We are looking for an enthusiastic and self-motivated person with a rigorous approach to research.

• You should have or be expected to gain a high 2:1, preferably a 1st class honours degree in chemical, mechanical or aerospace engineering or a chemistry or computer science related degree
• A good knowledge and/or experience in heat transfer is essential, as is the ability to work well in a team
• Prior experience in the areas of computational fluid dynamics, chemistry, machine learning, or computational heat transfer will be an advantage.

Eligibility and funding

Due to funding restrictions this studentship is only available to UK (home fees) citizens.

The PhD studentship will cover fees and tax-free stipend of £24,000 p.a. for four years.