![University of Southampton](https://media.trabajo.org/img/noimg.jpg)
PhD Studentship: Bioaugmentation to Enhance Biological Phosphorus Removal from Wastewater
3 months ago
Supervisory Team: Yongqiang Liu
Project description
Phosphorus is an indispensable element for sustaining life, yet it is finite and non-renewable. While phosphorus is used primarily in fertilizers, much of it ends up in municipal wastewater through runoff and blackwater, causing eutrophication and exerting significant pressure on ecosystems. Thus, it is crucial to remove phosphorus from municipal wastewater before its discharge into nature. Furthermore, it is estimated that the phosphorus content in sewage could potentially replace up to 50% of the chemical phosphorus fertilizers in agriculture. Therefore, recovering phosphorus from municipal wastewater is vital for establishing a closed-loop phosphorus recycling system within a circular economy, addressing phosphorus depletion and emission challenges for sustainable development.
Currently, most wastewater treatment plants rely on chemical precipitation to reduce phosphorus levels in municipal wastewater to meet phosphorus discharge consent, which limits phosphorus recovery because phosphorus becomes fixed in precipitates and hard to recover. Conversely, biological phosphorus removal not only eliminates the need for chemicals, but also enables phosphorus recovery feasible and easy by releasing ortho-phosphate into the liquid in the subsequent sludge digestion process. Unfortunately, the unstable and suboptimal performance of biological phosphorus removal hinders its widespread adoption, especially when compared to chemical phosphorus precipitation methods. Various process configurations for enhancing biological phosphorus removal have been developed, yet none have fundamentally addressed the performance and stability issues.
In this project, you will investigate the key phosphorus and nitrogen removal bacteria in bioreactors treating municipal wastewater and their interaction for nutrient and carbon removal. Building on this knowledge, you will develop an effective bioaugmentation approach to manipulate microbial community to enhance biological nutrient removal performance and improve nutrient removal stability. In the project, you will be trained to set up and operate bioreactors for wastewater treatment, do analysis of both sludge and water by using various analytical instruments, and conduct bioinformatic analysis.
Candidates with degrees in environmental engineering, bioengineering, chemical engineering, civil engineering, microbiology, or related fields are preferred. However, applicants with other relevant engineering or science backgrounds and a strong interest in wastewater treatment and resource recovery are also encouraged to apply. You will be part of the Water and Environmental Engineering Group in the School of Engineering, and collaborate with an industrial partner if needed.
Entry Requirements
A very good undergraduate degree (at least a UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent).
Closing date: 31 August 2024. Applications will be considered in the order that they are received, the position will be considered filled when a suitable candidate has been identified.
Funding: Funding for tuition fees and a living stipend are available on a competitive basis. Funding will be awarded on a rolling basis, so apply early for the best opportunity to be considered.
How To Apply
Apply online: Search for a Postgraduate Programme of Study (soton.ac.uk). Select programme type (Research), 2024/25, Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences, next page select “PhD Engineering & Environment (Full time)”. In Section 2 of the application form you should insert the name of the supervisor Yongqiang Liu
Applications should include:
Research Proposal
Curriculum Vitae
Two reference letters
Degree Transcripts/Certificates to date
For further information please contact: feps-pgr-apply@soton.ac.uk
Funding for tuition fees and a living stipend are available on a competitive basis. Funding will be awarded on a rolling basis, so apply early for the best opportunity to be considered.
-
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Yongqiang Liu Project Description:Emerging micropollutants, encompassing a spectrum from pharmaceutical residues and personal care products to industrial chemicals, have been found in water sources worldwide. Their health effects and environmental impact are evident. As these pollutants persist and accumulate, addressing the multifaceted...
-
PhD Studentship: Challenging Deepfake Voices
2 months ago
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeProject title: Challenging Deepfake Voices Supervisory Team: Dr. Jennifer Williams (primary), Prof Richard Guest (secondary)Project description:Fake and synthetic media are becoming a well-known issue in society, from AI regulation and AI safety to protecting democracy from election interference. This exciting PhD project investigates two technical aspects...
-
PhD Studentship: Bubbles for Breaking Biofilms
1 month ago
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Nicholas Evans, Jeremy Webb, Janos Kanczler, Eleanor Stride, Dario Carugo (University of Oxford)PhD Supervisor: Nicholas EvansProject description:Bone disease has a cost to the UK economy of £5 billion/year. Surgeons attempt to repair bones and joints by conducting invasive surgery, including for example the implantation of prosthetics....
-
PhD Studentship: Challenging Deepfake Voices
3 months ago
Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeProject title: Challenging Deepfake Voices Supervisory Team: Dr. Jennifer Williams (primary), Prof Richard Guest (secondary) Project description: Fake and synthetic media are becoming a well-known issue in society, from AI regulation and AI safety to protecting democracy from election interference. This exciting PhD project investigates two technical...
-
PhD Studentship: Bubbles for Breaking Biofilms
1 month ago
Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Nicholas Evans, Jeremy Webb, Janos Kanczler, Eleanor Stride, Dario Carugo (University of Oxford) PhD Supervisor: Nicholas Evans Project description: Bone disease has a cost to the UK economy of £5 billion/year. Surgeons attempt to repair bones and joints by conducting invasive surgery, including for example the implantation of prosthetics....
-
PhD Studentship: Disrupting Oral Biofilm Formation
3 months ago
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Dr Seung Lee (School of Chemistry), Prof. Jeremy Webb (School of Biological Sciences and National Biofilms Innovation Centre), Prof. Paul Stoodley (University of Southampton), Dr Rob Howlin (Haleon, industry), Dr David Bradshaw and Dr Ricarda Hawkins (Haleon, industry) Project Description:A fully-funded 4 year National Biofilms Innovation...
-
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timePhD Supervisor: Dr Seung Lee Supervisory Team: Dr Seung Lee (School of Chemistry), Prof. Jeremy Webb (School of Biological Sciences and national Biofilms Innovation Centre), Prof. Paul Stoodley (University of Southampton and Ohio State University)Project description:A fully-funded 4 year PhD studentship (Institute for Life Sciences studentship) for research...
-
Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timePhD Supervisor: Dr Seung Lee Supervisory Team: Dr Seung Lee (School of Chemistry), Prof. Jeremy Webb (School of Biological Sciences and national Biofilms Innovation Centre), Prof. Paul Stoodley (University of Southampton and Ohio State University) Project description: A fully-funded 4 year PhD studentship (Institute for Life Sciences studentship) for...
-
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Claire Clarkin, Nicholas Fuggle, Jemma Kerns (University of Lancaster),Project description:Funding for this project is offered by the Centre for Doctoral Training in Complex Integrated Systems for Defence & Security (CISDnS), which will recruit motivated and inquisitive candidates across the themes of Digital, Physical and Biological...
-
PhD Studentship: Disrupting Oral Biofilm Formation
3 months ago
Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Dr Seung Lee (School of Chemistry), Prof. Jeremy Webb (School of Biological Sciences and National Biofilms Innovation Centre), Prof. Paul Stoodley (University of Southampton), Dr Rob Howlin (Haleon, industry), Dr David Bradshaw and Dr Ricarda Hawkins (Haleon, industry) Project Description: A fully-funded 4 year National Biofilms...
-
Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Claire Clarkin, Nicholas Fuggle, Jemma Kerns (University of Lancaster), Project description: Funding for this project is offered by the Centre for Doctoral Training in Complex Integrated Systems for Defence & Security (CISDnS), which will recruit motivated and inquisitive candidates across the themes of Digital, Physical and Biological...
-
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeProject title: Correlative imaging for fracture prediction in the military Supervisory Team: Claire Clarkin, Nicholas Fuggle, Jemma Kerns (University of Lancaster),Project description:Funding for this project is offered by the Centre for Doctoral Training in Complex Integrated Systems for Defence & Security (CISDnS), which will recruit motivated and...
-
PhD Studentship
1 month ago
Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory team: Charlie Ryan Project description: Electric propulsion (EP) continues to revolutionise space travel. Their intrinsic higher exhaust velocity enables new spacecraft missions, including large orbital changes for example enabling the redeployment of satellites over Ukraine for improved communication following the Russian invasion. The vast...
-
PhD Studentship: Microbial Hydroponics
2 months ago
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Yannis Ieropoulos, Yue Zhang, Paul Kemp Project DescriptionMi-Hy is a circular Hydroponic-Bioelectrical System BES) for urban agriculture that biologically integrates Carbon (C) & Nitrogen (N) metabolism (C&N) in plants to optimise their transformation (to animal feed) & valorisation. The project is part of an EU EIC Pathfinder Challenges...
-
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Philippa ReedPhD Supervisor: Philippa ReedProject description:Ti fan blades contain complex two phase microstructures that exhibit quite strong textures (where grains show significant alignment). This can affect the process of initiation (via slip band formation) and how these slip bands interact to produce crack propagation. Different Ti...
-
Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Philippa Reed PhD Supervisor: Philippa Reed Project description: Ti fan blades contain complex two phase microstructures that exhibit quite strong textures (where grains show significant alignment). This can affect the process of initiation (via slip band formation) and how these slip bands interact to produce crack propagation. Different...
-
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Philippa ReedPhD Supervisor: Philippa ReedProject description:Cold spray is a repair process that can be considered an additive repair process, whereby metal powder particles are impacted at high speed in a carrier gas, at relatively low temperatures, so the repaired surface layer is formed by extreme deformation rather than melting and...
-
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeProject title: Application of Linear-Scaling Quantum Mechanics Methods to Hydrogen Transport Through Complex MaterialsSupervisory Team: Chris-Kriton Skylaris (80%) Jeremy Frey (20%)Project description:Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations are typically limited to tens of atoms due to the steep increase of the computational effort with the number of...
-
Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeProject title: Application of Linear-Scaling Quantum Mechanics Methods to Hydrogen Transport Through Complex Materials Supervisory Team: Chris-Kriton Skylaris (80%) Jeremy Frey (20%) Project description: Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations are typically limited to tens of atoms due to the steep increase of the computational effort with the number of...
-
Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom University of Southampton Full timeSupervisory Team: Ekaterina Komendantskaya, Erisa Karafili Project description: Having robust methods and tools for ensuring safety and security of smart systems is a key to their future development and deployment. The long-term objective of this project is to ensure the security of the AI (neural network) components embedded in smart systems against...