Several industrial areas are striving to become hubs for circularity by promoting industrial symbioses to prevent or reduce waste streams, prioritizing resource efficiency, and maximizing renewable energy use. This PhD project will focus on optimizing the utilization and exchange of resources within a hub for circularity, while accounting for the costs of technology and infrastructure to implement industrial symbioses. The aim is to reduce waste, carbon emissions, and the consumption of resources by optimizing the resource flows and logistics and by maximizing the synergy effects of industrial processes (e.g., utilization of by-products, waste water, carbon capture, production and use of hydrogen).
The successful applicant will join the Industrial Engineering and Business Information Systems (IEBIS) section of the High-tech Business & Entrepreneurship Department (HBE) at the Faculty of Behavioural Management and Social Sciences (BMS).
Background
Despite the ongoing efforts of the European Union policies, heavily industrialized clusters are lagging in the implementation of Industrial Symbiosis (IS) to transit to more resource- and energy-efficient setups. To advance IS implementation, a promising future research direction is Hubs for Circularity (H4C). H4C provide spaces where diverse actors, such as businesses, governments, researchers, and civil society, collaborate to accelerate the net-zero Circular Economy (CE) transition. UT acquired the large-scale Horizon Europe project entitled "Sustainable Circular Economy Transition: from Industrial Symbiosis to Hubs for Circularity: IS2H4C”. IS2H4C will deliver a systemic approach to sustainable CE transition, helping to materialise Sustainable Development Goals.
Our focus? Resource efficiency, IS matchmaking, Life Cycle Assessment, renewable energy, waste prevention, and innovative circular technologies, through an integrated approach combing physical and digital H4C. Ensuring community and government support, sustainable business and financial models, and respect for our planet is paramount.
Our vision? Make IS2H4C the blueprint for Europe's sustainable future and promote H4C as a reference sustainable regional development model. We're starting in four H4C pilot sites across the Netherlands, Spain, Germany, and Türkiye, collaborating with 35 partners from nine European countries.
Join us! UT is hiring six PhD students for IS2H4C, each with unique roles and qualifications. Be part of an interdisciplinary team shaping the future of CE and IS2H4C while advancing your research.
Key takeaways
During the project, the PhD candidate will perform research on the following tasks:
- Investigate the flows and logistics processes of different resources (e.g. materials, products, water, energy) by the participants in a hub for circularity;
- Develop models and algorithms to optimize resource flows within the hub to reduce costs and increase environmental sustainability;
- Include concepts of industrial symbiosis in the optimization to unlock collaboration between stakeholders and foster circularity;
- Assess the economic viability of new industrial symbioses by accounting for the investment costs of required technology and infrastructure;
- Model the factors of uncertainty (e.g., resource prices, demand, and production amount) using scenarios, forecasts, or stochastic processes.
- Incorporate uncertainty into the decision-making models by developing stochastic optimization approaches such as stochastic programming and reinforcement learning.
Information and application
“Due to the urgency for an early start, we aim to fill in this position as soon as possible and we will start conducting interviews with short listed candidates starting from 23 November 2023; however, the application deadline is extended to 14 December 2023. Interested candidates can still apply until 14 December 2023.”
Are you interested to be part of our team? Please submit your application latest 14 December 2023 and include:
- A cover letter (maximum 2 pages A4), emphasizing your specific interest, qualifications, and motivations to apply for this position;
- A Curriculum Vitae, including a list of all courses attended and grades obtained, and, if applicable, a list of publications and references;
- An IELTS-test, Internet TOEFL test (TOEFL-iBT), or a Cambridge CAE-C (CPE). Applicants with a non-Dutch qualification and who have not had secondary and tertiary education in English can only be admitted with an IELTS-test showing a total band score of at least 6.5, Internet TOEFL test (TOEFL-iBT) showing a score of at least 90, or a Cambridge CAE-C (CPE).
Please ensure that your application is submitted by the deadline. Do not make submissions via e-mail as they will not be considered.
Additional information can be acquired via email from Dr. Alessio Trivella (a.trivella@utwente.nl) with a cc to Daniela Guericke (d.guericke@utwente.nl) and Devrim Yazan (d.m.yazan@utwente.nl).
About the department
The HBE cluster is dedicated to encouraging a supportive and inclusive working culture. Our aim is that all job applicants are given equal opportunities. When we select candidates for employment, it will be on the basis of their competence and ability. To support the workforce diversity, we are open to offer flexible working conditions on an individual basis to support work-life balance, that may include contract of employment, working hours and location, or child care arrangements.
The High Business Entrepreneurship corporate video can be watched via this link.
About the organisation
The Faculty of Behavioral, Management and Social sciences (BMS) aims to play a key role in understanding, jointly developing and evaluating innovations in society. Technological developments are the engine of innovation. As a technical university that puts people first, we tailor them to human needs and behavior and use social engineering to integrate them into society. We also ensure adequate governance at public and private level, and robust, inclusive and fair organizational structures. We do this by developing, sharing and applying high-quality knowledge in Psychology, Business Administration, Public Administration, Communication Sciences, Philosophy, Educational Sciences and Health Sciences. Our research and education in these disciplines revolves around tackling and solving societal challenges. The research programs of BMS are closely linked to the research of the UT institutes Mesa+ Institute for Nanotechnology, TechMed Center and Digital Society Institute.
As an employer, the Faculty of BMS offers work that matters. We equip you to create new possibilities for yourself and for our society. With us, you will become part of a leading technical university with increasing, positive social impact. We offer an open, inclusive and entrepreneurial atmosphere, in which we encourage you to make healthy choices, for example through our flexible, adaptable benefits.
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