Research Associate in Prospective Material Flow Analysis for new sustainable materials and chemicals (FMR)

About the role

This is an exciting opportunity for a skilled and motivated researcher, with an interest in working at the interface of industrial ecology, chemistry and chemical engineering. 

This project aims to understand how the innovative chemical manufacturing technologies being developed within the SCHEMA HUB could scale up to affect UK emissions and environmental impacts, and under what conditions they will lead to the most significant reductions in impacts. This will provide important insight to help to set targets for science/technology development (e.g. what level of energy consumption needs to be reached, to be on track to achieve desired emissions reduction at the larger national scale?), and inform national understanding of whether current developments are likely to be enough to reach decarbonisation goals, or whether broader changes in polymer use and Circular Economy measures are necessary.

The project will involve:

UK-scale Material Flow Analysis for chemical and polymer production and consumption;Modelling of new chemistry/processes/routes being studied within SCHEMA and how they affect the MFA system in uncertain future scenarios; andWorking closely with a parallel SCHEMA project at Bath on Prospective Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), explore the effect of new processes on future environmental impacts.

This position is offered full time, fixed term for 24 months from April 2025. Part time working and/or some degree of flexible working may be possible and if interested in applying on this basis you should make this clear on your application form.

About you

Our ideal candidate will have:

A PhD in a relevant subject areaKnowledge of chemistry, chemical engineering and/or polymers (or, perhaps you have instead a strong ability for interdisciplinary collaboration with researchers in chemistry and chemical engineering, and a willingness to learn).Expertise in quantitative systems/process modelling, such as Material Flow Analysis or Life Cycle Assessment, or experience in other relevant modelling / data analysis projects and a proven ability to learn and apply new modelling approaches.Good organisational and presentation skills.The ability to work well in an interdisciplinary environment.

In our group, we work with Python, version control, and similar tools for developing and sharing research code and models. If you like working in this way, that's great, but also many are new to this and we'll support you to learn as appropriate.

A lower grade offer may be made (Grade 6) with comparable reduction in responsibilities and amendment in job title to Research Assistant, if a suitable applicant cannot be found to fill the Grade 7 position. Applicants will need to be within six months of their course completion date and will be promoted to Research Associate once their PhD has been awarded. 

Further information

Please ensure you submit your application via our website. Please note that during initial shortlisting, the panel can only see your application form and your answers to the shortlisting questions; they cannot see your attachments (e.g. your CV).

For informal questions about the role, please contact Dr Rick Lupton (rcl38@bath.ac.uk).

As a researcher in SCHEMA you will benefit from interactions with a large number of colleagues in chemistry, engineering, material science, computation, and systems analysis at the Universities of Bath, Cambridge, Cardiff, Liverpool, Oxford and York as well as exposure to a network of >20 industrial partners. We are a friendly, sociable research group, and we celebrate a mix of cultures and the creative-thinking that comes from a neuro-diverse, gender-balanced and LGBTQ+ -inclusive team.

As a member of Research Staff at the University of Bath, you will be encouraged to take a minimum of 10 days professional development pro rata per year.

What we can offer you:

We consider ourselves to be a university where difference is celebrated, respected and encouraged. We have an excellent international reputation with staff from over 60 different nations and have made a positive commitment towards gender equality and intersectionality receiving a Silver Athena SWAN award. We truly believe that diversity of experience, perspectives, and backgrounds will lead to a better environment for our employees and students, so we encourage applications from all genders, backgrounds, and communities, particularly from under-represented groups, and value the positive impact that will have on the university. We are committed to maintaining a safe and secure environment for our students, staff, and community by reinforcing our Safer Recruitment commitment.

We are very proud to be an autism friendly university and are an accredited Disability Confident Leader; committed to building disability confidence and supporting disabled staff.

Free counselling services through Health AssuredCycle to work schemeElectric vehicle salary sacrifice schemeStaff discount at Team Bath gymStaff discounts on postgraduate tuition feesStaff discount on language coursesGenerous employer contributory pension schemesGenerous annual leave allowance with an additional 5 discretionary days so that you can enjoy a positive work life balanceA wide range of personal and professional development opportunities including Apprenticeships, LinkedIn Learning and moreFree entry to the Holburne Museum in BathLocal discounts and moreA family-friendly workplace An excellent reward package that recognises the talents of our diverse workforceRelocation allowanceVisa reimbursement and Interest-Free Loan to help with the cost of some immigration expenses

We are committed to continually expanding our benefits to better support you and enhance your experience with us. Find out more about our benefits.

Find out from our staff what makes the University of Bath a great place to work. Follow us @UniofBath and @UniofBathJobs on X for more information.

Closing Date: 02 May 2025

Department: Education & Research

Salary: £37,999 to £45,163