Applicants are invited for a PhD fellowship/scholarship at Graduate School of Technical Sciences, Aarhus University, Denmark, within the Biological and Chemical Engineering programme. The position is available from 01 August 2026 or later. You can submit your application via the link under 'how to apply'.

Title:
Aluminum-catalyzed electrochemical ammonia synthesis

Research area and project description:
We are seeking applicants for a 3-year PhD studies in electrochemical ammonia synthesis to join us at P2CHEM group, working within aluminium-mediated electrochemical ammonia synthesis in anhydrous solvents, as a part of the larger project in a collaboration with professor Quingfeng Li group at DTU Energy. The research is about utilizing aluminium as a mediator in ammonia synthesis to improve the energy efficiency of the electrochemical process.

This is hands on project where most of the work is performed in the lab. We will electrodeposit aluminium in anhydrous and inert atmosphere at temperatures up to 90 ^oC. The main challenge will be to find a way to prevent forming/break aluminium oxide layer, to be able to expose pure aluminium to nitrogen and facilitate the ammonia synthesis, at an optimal proton-donor concentration.

The group has experience in working in anhydrous, inert atmospheres and has established high-pressure setup for this project, as well as procedures for highly reliable ammonia quantification.

 Some specific tasks during the projects are:

• Benchmark the applicant/setup on Li-mediated ammonia synthesis in inert atmosphere
• Aluminium-mediated ammonia synthesis development
• Dissemination activities, here conference attendance, writing articles and teaching
• Taking mandatory PhD courses
• Meetings with DTU Energy team

For technical reasons, you must upload a project description. Please simply copy the project description above and upload it as a PDF in the application.

Qualifications and specific competences:
Applicants should hold a master’s degree in chemical engineering/chemistry or similar education that teach candidates to work safely in chemistry lab.

We seek detail-oriented applicants that can work in a team. The ideal applicant is not afraid of proposing own ideas to help us solve the challenges we meet. We are searching for a proactive person that can help us solve the challenge. The applicants will join the team where we take pride in the high-quality work we deliver, while we help each other grow.

You must demonstrate fluency in English, orally and in written.

The applicants must provide contact details to your master thesis supervisor.

It is an advantage if the candidates can document or make a convincing case in the job application of for example:

• Teaching experience
• Publication experience, here it needs to be clear your contribution in the article.
• Management skills, here in particular time management, as the position sometimes involves multitasking (experiments, writing, teaching, taking courses)

Place of employment and place of work:
The place of employment is Aarhus University, and the place of work is Department of Biological and Chemical Engineering, Aabogade 40, 8200 Aarhus N., Denmark. 

Contacts:
Applicants seeking further information regarding the PhD position are invited to contact:

• Associate Professor Emil Drazevic, e-mail: edrazevic@eng.au.dk (main supervisor)

For information about application requirements and mandatory attachments, please see our application guide. If answers cannot be found there, please contact:

• admission.gradschool.tech@au.dk

How to apply:
Please follow this link to submit your application.

Application deadline is 06 May 2026 at 23:59 CEST.
Preferred starting date is 01 August 2026.

Please note:

• Only documents received prior to the application deadline will be evaluated. Thus, documents sent after deadline will not be taken into account.
• The programme committee may request further information or invite the applicant to attend an interview.
• Shortlisting will be used, which means that the evaluation committee only will evaluate the most relevant applications.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants. All interested candidates are encouraged to apply, regardless of their personal background. Salary and terms of employment are in accordance with applicable collective agreement.