Hydrogen is becoming one of the key energy carriers for the future to deal with the challenge of climate change and achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, also because it can help to compensate for the intermittency of renewable energy resources, while it can be sustainably produced from e.g. solar and wind power through the electrolysis of water. Large-scale usage of H2, however, will necessitate its storage at massive scales.

As part of the Sustainable Hydrogen Integrated Propulsion Drives (SH2IPDRIVE) consortium , the two PhD students working at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) will conduct research into various types of experimental hydrogen carriers in collaboration with a number of SME companies. This creates hydrogen storage solutions with a much greater volumetric energy density and potentially fewer safety risks than by using hydrogen at high pressure or low temperature. The prospects for hydrogen carriers are promising, but the technology is far from mature; the activities in this work package must therefore also be regarded as highly innovative in an international context. Specifically, the focus is on Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carriers (LOHCs) and various types of borohydrides (BH); the most promising solution is worked out in detail and validated on a laboratory scale and in test setups.

The partners within the SH2IPDRIVE consortium are:

Future Proof Shipping B.V. | Technische Universiteit Delft | Nedstack Fuel Cell Technology B.V. | Maritiem Research Instituut Nederland MARIN | Koedood Dieselservice B.V. | Scheepvaartonderneming Van Dam | Holland Shipyards B.V. | Nederlandse Organisatie voor toegepast-natuurwetenschappelijk onderzoek TNO |Bosch Rexroth B.V. | Cryovat Internationaal B.V. | H2Storage B.V. | H2 Circular Fuel B.V. | H2FUEL | Royal Roos B.V. | Solid Hydrogen B.V. | Universiteit van Amsterdam | Voyex B.V. | Encontech B.V. | Technische Universiteit Eindhoven | Universiteit Twente | Rivermaas B.V.| IHC Holland B.V. | Royal Dutch Shell | Concordia Damen Shipbuilding B.V.| Defensie Materieel Organisatie.

What are you going to do

• You will be  active in the fundamental research of our sustainable, circular organic and inorganic hydrogen carriers, publishing in high level international journals, presenting at leading conferences and supervising BSc and MSc students.
• you will interact with companies of the SH2IPDRIVE consortium and to convert their questions to new research questions and answers.

You will/tasks:

• design and synthesize novel circular hydrogen carriers;
• test their full propensity as functional hydrogen carriers (H2 release and uptake) incl. recyclability;
• test the developed hydrogen carriers in large scale case studies in collaboration with several industries;
• publish and present the findings in scientific journals and international conferences.

Your experience and profile:

• a MSc in Molecular Chemistry;
• a strong scientific expertise in physical organic chemistry;
• demonstrated experience in synthesis (ideally using hydrogenation chemistry, homogeneous catalysis and glovebox techniques), spectroscopy, electrochemistry and computational chemistry;
• the ability and willingness to acquire all skills needed for molecular hydrogen carrier chemistry;
• you are able to show enthusiasm and scientific rigor that meets the requirements of the project.
• good communication skills in oral and written English;
• take initiative and has good time management skills;
• interest in collaborating with students and colleagues within and outside the institute.

What do we require of you

Your experience and profile:

• a MSc in Molecular Chemistry;
• a strong scientific expertise in physical organic chemistry;
• demonstrated experience in synthesis (ideally using hydrogenation chemistry, homogeneous catalysis and glovebox techniques), spectroscopy, electrochemistry and computational chemistry;
• the ability and willingness to acquire all skills needed for molecular hydrogen carrier chemistry;
• you are able to show enthusiasm and scientific rigor that meets the requirements of the project.
• good communication skills in oral and written English;
• take initiative and has good time management skills;
• interest in collaborating with students and colleagues within and outside the institute.

A temporary contract for 38 hours per week, preferably starting February 2022, for the duration of four years (the initial contract will be for a period of 18 months and after satisfactory evaluation it will be extended to a total duration of four years). This should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). We will draft an educational plan that includes attendance of courses and (international) meetings. We also expect you to assist in teaching undergraduates and Masters students.

Based on a full-time contract (38 hours per week) the gross monthly salary will range from €2,434 in the first year to €3,111 (scale P) in the last year. This is exclusive 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus. A favourable tax agreement, the ‘30% ruling’, may apply to non-Dutch applicants. The Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities is applicable.

The UvA offers excellent possibilities for further professional development and education.

What else do we offer

• A function in which initiative is strongly valued.
• An enthusiastic team that welcomes new members.
• An inspiring academic and international environment in the heart of Amsterdam.

University of Amsterdam

With over 6,000 employees, 30,000 students and a budget of more than 600 million euros, the University of Amsterdam (UvA) is an intellectual hub within the Netherlands. Teaching and research at the UvA are conducted within seven faculties: Humanities, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Economics and Business, Law, Science, Medicine and Dentistry. Housed on four city campuses in or near the heart of Amsterdam, where disciplines come together and interact, the faculties have close links with thousands of researchers and hundreds of institutions at home and abroad.  

The UvA’s students and employees are independent thinkers, competent rebels who dare to question dogmas and aren’t satisfied with easy answers and standard solutions. To work at the UvA is to work in an independent, creative, innovative and international climate characterised by an open atmosphere and a genuine engagement with the city of Amsterdam and society.

Faculty of Science - Van't Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences

The Van 't Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences (HIMS) is one of eight institutes of the University of Amsterdam (UvA) Faculty of Science. HIMS performs internationally recognized chemistry and molecular research, curiosity driven as well as application driven. This is done in close cooperation with the chemical, flavour & food, medical and high-tech industries. Research is organised into four themes: Synthesis & Catalysis, Analytical Chemistry, Computational Chemistry and Molecular Photonics.

The Synthetic Organic Chemistry (SOC) group is part of the Sustainable Chemistry research theme. As part of SOC and sustainable chemistry, the Slootweg group focuses on developing sustainable, circular chemistry, ideally suited to realize a circular economy. The mission of Slootweg group is to educate students at the intersection of fundamental physical organic chemistry, main-group chemistry, and circular chemistry.