PhD Student (f/m/d) Development of environmentally friendly flotation, NORM decontamination and faster pre-concentration using clean energy processes and hydrometallurgy in Dresden

With cutting-edge research in the fields of ENERGY, HEALTH and MATTER, around 1,500 employees from more than 70 nations at Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) are committed to mastering the great challenges facing society today.

Your tasks

• Development of environmentally friendly flotation strategies by designing and testing sustainable flotation processes for REE containing minerals in laboratory scale




• Investigating mineral processing strategies for early-stage NORM decontamination and handling of polymetallic ores in close collaboration with the partners




• Researching and developing high temperature pre-concentration methods for REE ores utilizing clean-energy based plasma techniques




• Presentation of results at national and international conferences and project meetings




• Follow-up with collaboration partners, thorough and robust scientific reporting, progress, and publications preparations for contributions in project REEHydroMin under BMFTR FONA EGA Roh cluster and beyond




• Follow-up with a systematic PhD and credit collection plan and project milestone plan

Your profile

• Completed university studies (Master/Diploma) in the field of Chemistry, Metallurgy, Chemical Engineering or related field




• Understanding of flotation principles and other mineral processing methods in liberation and separation




• Experience or knowledge in safe handling, preparation, and analysis of ore samples containing naturally occurring heavy elements




• Familiarity with high-temperature redox processes and plasma technologies




• Knowledge or experience on instrument-based chemical analysis for trace and major elements (such as XRF, XRD, ICP-OES, ICP-MS, SEM, MLA)




• Knowledge or experience of hydrometallurgical processing is advantageous




• Trained in safe experimental laboratory practices and sample preparation




• Great teamwork skills with the ability to collaborate with international partners




• Flexible, hardworking and multitasking with a good academic track record




• Ability to combine multidisciplinary data into scientific conclusions




• Excellent writing and spoken English (good German language skills would be an advantage)




• Excellent ability in scientific writing and presentation in English

Our offer

• A vibrant research community in an open, diverse and international work environment




• Scientific excellence and extensive professional networking opportunities




• A structured PhD program with a comprehensive range of continuing education and networking opportunities - more information about the PhD program at the HZDR can be found here




• Salary and social benefits in accordance with the collective agreement for the public sector (TVöD-Bund) including 30 days of paid holiday leave, company pension scheme (VBL)




• Depending on the personal qualifications, the candidate may be classified in salary group 13 according to TVöD-Bund




• We support a good work-life balance with the possibility of part-time employment, mobile working and flexible working hours




• Numerous company health management offerings




• Employee discounts with well-known providers via the platform Corporate Benefits




• An employer subsidy for the \"Deutschland-Ticket Jobticket\"