The Materials and Surface Engineering section in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Technical University of Denmark is seeking a candidate for a PhD in the field of “Biomass Corrosion Management”.

Biomass firing plays an important role in the Danish energy strategy to replace fossil fuels in heat and power production. The PhD position is part of a ForskEL funded project with collaboration between DTU and the major Danish plant owner DONG Energy. The PhD includes both fundamental and applied research as well as collaboration with DONG Energy. The PhD position is for a 3 year period expected to start from 1st August 2015.

Description of the broader project:

The ForskEL project aims to improve the fundamental understanding of selective corrosion of superheater steels and model alloys, which will enable:

• Increased understanding of selective corrosion mechanisms and the influence of alloying elements and phase transformations occurring over time.
• Facilitate materials selection by understanding why different 18Cr steels with differences in alloying elements and precipitation behavior can behave widely different when exposed to the same environment.
• Use and develop kinetic models of microstructure changes (precipitation behavior) to assess the risk for accelerated corrosion during long-term operation
• Develop empirical or semi-empirical models of the total corrosion as a function of fuel, material and exposure temperature 
• Improvement of lifetime prediction models in biomass firing plants  

The PhD position:

The PhD position will focus on the improvement of the fundamental understanding of the influence of materials composition and microstructure on high temperature corrosion. The materials assessed will be the currently used TP347H, other candidate lean austenitic steels as well as model alloys and more highly alloyed steels. The materials will be tested in both as delivered and in aged conditions in order to understand changes in corrosion behaviour as a result of precipitation reactions. Modelling tools will be used intensively to support and interpret experimental results as well as to develop models for materials selection and lifetime prediction. 

Application

To apply, please read the full job advertisement at www.career.dtu.dk.

DTU Mechanical Engineering covers the fundamental engineering disciplines within Solid mechanics, Fluid mechanics, Coastal and Maritime Engineering, Energy systems and energy conversion, Materials and Surface Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Engineering design and Product development. The department has a scientific staff of about 100 persons, 110 PhD students and a technical/administrative support staff of about 85 persons. 

DTU is a technical university providing internationally leading research, education, innovation and public service. Our staff of 5,700 advance science and technology to create innovative solutions that meet the demands of society; and our 10,000 students are being educated to address the technological challenges of the future. DTU is an independent academic university collaborating globally with business, industry, government, and public agencies.