Department of Inorganic Chemical Technology and Environment Engineering announces a competition for a post-doc position in the frame of the OPUS 28/LAP project entitled “Investigating the mechanisms and efficiency of green hydrogen formation as a by-product of the photoreduction of carbon dioxide in the aqueous and gas phases” (acronym: PhotoH2), under the supervision of dr hab. inż. Ewelina Kusiak-Nejman, prof. ZUT.
JOB/POSITION DESCRIPTION
Position: Post-doc
Disciplines: Field of engineering and technical sciences, Discipline: Chemical Engineering
Remuneration arrangements: Employment contract, full-time
Number of positions: 1
Start date: 1 October 2026
Period of employment: 24 months
Expected gross remuneration: approx. 9,700 PLN monthly
Organization: Department of Inorganic Chemical Technology and Environment Engineering, Faculty of Chemical Technology and Engineering, West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin
Principal Investigator: dr hab. inż. Ewelina Kusiak-Nejman, prof. ZUT
NCN call type: OPUS – ST
Project title: Project NCN OPUS 28/LAP no. UMO-2024/55/I/ST8/01898 entitled “Investigating the mechanisms and efficiency of green hydrogen formation as a by-product of the photoreduction of carbon dioxide in the aqueous and gas phases” (acronym: PhotoH2)
Brief project description:
The PhotoH2 project concept goes a step further, and it was planned to determine the feasibility of using photocatalytic water splitting as a side reaction of the carbon dioxide photoreduction process. The project’s premise is to generate hydrogen while reducing carbon dioxide emissions, a major source of air pollution.
The project will be executed by research groups from the West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin and VSB – Technical University of Ostrava, Czech Republic. The Polish research group works on hydrogen generation in the gas phase. In contrast, the Czech research team has well-established knowledge and extensive experience in hydrogen production and the photoreduction of carbon dioxide in the water phase.
Significant studies are planned to be conducted in the gas phase, containing water vapour and carbon dioxide, in the presence of modified titania photocatalysts co-deposited via reactive DC magnetron sputtering. This will involve the simultaneous co-deposition of three different metal ions in an inert or oxidising atmosphere, supported by high-temperature heating of the sample carrier to obtain the photoactive anatase form of titania.
The photocatalysts will be deposited on solid supports, including glass fibre cloth, microporous uniform activated carbon fibre felts and solid powder carbon spheres, at the West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin.
REQUIRED DOCUMENTS
- Curriculum vitae,
- motivation letter explaining the Candidate’s interest in the position and describing research experience,
- a copy of the document confirming the award of a doctoral degree,
- scans of documents confirming work placements, scientific training, fellowships or apprenticeships,
- a list of publications, including the number of citations, h-index and ORCID number,
- a list of conference presentations, both oral and poster,
- information on research projects,
- a list of inventions and patents,
- a list of awards,
- other documents confirming qualifications and scientific achievements,
- a statement that, if employed, the West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin will be the employee’s primary place of work,
- consent to the processing of personal data for the purposes necessary to carry out the recruitment process, in accordance with the Act of 10 May 2018 on the protection of personal data and Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016.
In accordance with NCN requirements, only a person who obtained a doctoral degree no earlier than 12 years prior to the year of employment on the project may be appointed. This period may be extended by the duration of any long-term, over 90 days, documented sick pay or rehabilitation benefits received during that period due to incapacity for work. In addition to this period, the number of months spent on leave related to the care and upbringing of children, granted in accordance with the provisions of the Labour Code, may be added. In the case of women, 18 months may be added for each child born or adopted, if this method of calculating breaks in the academic career is more favourable.
In accordance with the requirements of the National Science Centre, only a person who has obtained a doctoral degree at an institution other than the West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin or has completed at least a 10-month, continuous and documented postdoctoral fellowship at an institution other than the one implementing the project and in a country other than the one in which the doctoral degree was obtained may be appointed.
If the PhD diploma was not granted by a Polish university, the Candidate should verify whether recognition of the diploma is required. More information is available on the NAWA website. The recognition of the diploma, if applicable, must be attached to the application for the post-doc position.
The document will only be accepted if the doctoral thesis has been submitted and sent for review.
REQUIRED PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
- a doctoral degree in chemical technology, chemistry, materials engineering or a related discipline, obtained less than 12 years before the date of signing the employment contract, or an official document from the home university confirming the proposed date of the doctoral defence, signed by the supervisor and the dean of the faculty or president of the institution,
- advanced knowledge of the principles of inert and reactive DC magnetron sputtering,
- advanced knowledge of the principles of basic instrumental methods, including FTIR and DRIFT, Raman spectroscopy, UV-Vis/DRS, low-temperature N2 adsorption/desorption, CO2 adsorption/desorption, fluorescence measurements, wettability and contact angle measurements using various methods and atomic force microscopy,
- advanced knowledge of the fundamentals of gas adsorption processes on solid surfaces and the fundamentals of photocatalytic oxidation and reduction processes using semiconductors,
- advanced knowledge of the fundamentals of gas chromatography and infrared detection of inorganic gases,
- the ability to work with scientific articles and search for scientific information,
- very good knowledge of basic data-processing programs, mainly MS Word, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint, Teams, OriginPro, Statistica and ImageJ,
- advanced proficiency in English.
SCOPE OF WORK
1. Scientific activities
- preparation and modification of TiO2,
- optimisation of the synthesis method for obtaining modified TiO2,
- independent characterisation of the tested composites using basic and advanced instrumental methods, including FTIR and DRIFT, Raman spectroscopy, UV-Vis/DRS, low-temperature N2 adsorption/desorption, CO2 adsorption/desorption tests, particle-size and zeta-potential measurements, fluorescence measurements to estimate hydroxyl radical formation, contact-angle and wettability measurements, and elemental composition analysis for carbon, nitrogen and sulphur content using LECO CN 628 and S 628 elemental analysers,
- cooperation in designing systems for studying sorption and photocatalytic properties and implementing the units under the supervision of the Principal Investigator,
- preparation of samples for sorption and photocatalytic activity tests, performance of analyses, correct interpretation of the results, and operation of reactors and a gas chromatograph,
- detailed interpretation of the results obtained,
- preparation of patent applications and scientific papers,
- active participation in scientific conferences, mainly through oral presentations and the presentation of research results in poster form.
2. Activities promoting the project
- preparation and active participation in activities organised for young people to introduce the problem of carbon dioxide air pollution, the advantages of hydrogen technologies and new methods of obtaining environmentally friendly hydrogen in the context of the project concept.
3. Administrative work
- compiling research results and preparing research findings in accordance with publication requirements,
- preparing results in the form of reports organised according to the project’s Data Management requirements, including raw data files.
APPLICATION SUBMISSION DEADLINE
24 July 2026, 15:00 CET
APPLICATION PROCEDURE AND CONTACT
Method of submission: e-mail
E-mail address for submissions: ekusiak@zut.edu.pl
Please use the following e-mail subject line: Post-doc – OPUS 28/LAP.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
- The Selection Committee reserves the right to interview selected candidates. Candidates will be informed by e-mail by 28 July 2026 about the venue and time of the interview.
- One person will be recommended for appointment.
- Competition documents must be prepared in English.
- Any enquiries regarding the competition should be addressed to dr hab. inż. Ewelina Kusiak-Nejman, prof. ZUT, by e-mail: ekusiak@zut.edu.pl.
