PhD student position in chemistry
with a focus on NMR Spectroscopy
in environmental science
Announced by the Department of Chemistry, Biological Chemistry, in
collaboration with Department of Forest Ecology and Management, SLU.
The Department of Chemistry at Umeå University today has approximately 200
members and offers a stimulating environment with a commitment to excellence
in teaching and research, and provides a valuable service to society. The
department offers degrees at B.Sc., M.Sc. and Ph.D. levels, and our
graduate- and postgraduate students are attractive for employment in both
academic institutions and industry. The Department of Chemistry now
announces.
The project is oriented towards the development and application of NMR based
methods aimed to understand the environmental behavior of organic P released
from the terrestrial environment and its microbial availability. The soil P
cycle is a key issue both for climate-related effects on high-latitude
ecosystems and in combating P-restriction in food/forestry production,
especially in tropical third world countries.
This study is a part of an interdisciplinary project between Chemistry,
Medical Biophysics, Ecology and Soil Science with focus on: Molecular
understanding of phosphorous dynamics in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.
The project includes NMR-based analysis of soil samples, characterization
and identification of various organic phosphorous species, embedded in an
interdisciplinary view on microbial activity and complex processes in the
environment. Your task - in close collaboration with ecology and soil
scientists - will be to:
Develop biologically meaningful new methods in organic P specification in
agricultural and forest soils as well as fresh water systems based on solid
state/solution 31P NMR techniques.
Sample preparation for solid-state / solution NMR, NMR measurements and data
analysis on a range of biological samples.
Analysis of the speciation of organic P from terrestrial and aquatic
ecosystems.
Improve the understanding of the coupling between P availability in relation
to P fixation, i.e. determine which biophysico-chemical processes govern P
availability (adsorption versus release processes).
Estimate the contribution of different organic P species in terrestrial and
aquatic ecosystems and how these relate to plant and microbial growth.
The recruitment procedure will follow the Higher Education Ordinance
(“Högskoleförordningen” Chapters 5 and 7). Prerequisites include either
i)240 ECTS credits (swe. Högskolepoäng) of higher education studies of which
60 should be on an advanced level (Master level) with focus on chemistry, or
ii) 120 Swedish (old) credits (swe. Poäng; corresponding to 180 ECTS
credits) of higher education studies if they were taken before July 1, 2007
or equivalent competence.
Advanced course(s) or other experience in NMR and/or Ecology, soil science
and statistics are of advantage, as well as evidence of proficiency in
written and oral communication in English.
The application should contain a CV, including academic grades and relevant
documentation, and a personal letter of one A4 sheet describing yourself and
your reasons for applying to this position.
For more information, contact Prof. Gerhard Gröbner, phone +46-(0)90-786 63
46, e-mail: gerhard.grobner@chem.umu.se. or Dr. Ulrik Ilstedt, phone +
46-(0)90-786 83 90, e-mail: ulrik.ilstedt@sek.slu.se
Union information is available from SACO, +46-(0)90-786 53 65, SEKO,
+46-(0)90-786 52 96 and ST, +46-(0)90-786 54 31.
Your complete application, marked with reference number 313-317-09, should
be sent to jobb@umu.se or to the Registrar, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå,
Sweden to arrive April 30, 2009 at the latest.
We look forward receiving your application!
Gerhard Gröbner
Biophysical Chemistry
Umeå University
90187 Umeå
0046-907866346
