气凝胶载体可扩展灭菌生物活性食品方向博士职位

This position forms part of the FAroGels research program on food-grade, bio-based, and biodegradable aerogels and their application in sustainable food systems. The selected candidate will be employed by University of Santiago de Compostela (USC) and will be required to enroll as a PhD student at USC, in accordance with the relevant admission and enrolment requirements. The doctoral project will focus on Scalable Sterilization of Aerogel Carriers for Bioactive Food. • DC10 addresses a major bottleneck for translating FAroGels materials into real food and nutraceutical applications: sterilising or controlling the microbial load of aerogels without damaging their structure or functionality. Conventional methods (autoclaving, dry heat, irradiation) often collapse pores, degrade bioactives or alter surface chemistry. • The project will focus on design sterilisation workflows tailored to biopolymer aerogels, exploring low-temperature, solvent-assisted, gas-phase and controlled-humidity routes that ensure microbiological safety while preserving morphology, porosity and functional performance. • The PhD candidate will investigate the sterilisation-structure-function relationships that will support integration of aerogels into safe, industry-ready systems, ensuring structural stability, bioactivity retention and microbiological safety benchmarks under relevant storage conditions. The sterilization protocols will be developed, optimized and validated for food- and nutraceutical-grade aerogels based on the results obtained using different analytical methods, including microbial kill assays, NMR/FTIR analysis, porosity and mechanical stability tests, and bioactive-retention studies. • The research will contribute to provide the final step needed to bring FAroGels materials (bioactive, sensory systems, packaging solutions) to market by ensuring that they can be sterilised at scale without losing performance and that its implementation within industry-ready workflow guidelines enabling safe integration is feasible. • The position will involve laboratory-based research, data analysis, scientific communication and close collaboration with other FAroGels Doctoral Candidates, supervisors and partner organizations.

Requirements / required education level / degree: Master Degree or equivalent

Requirements / required education level / discipline: Pharmacological sciences

Requirements / skills: • Educational Background : Master’s degree (or equivalent) in relevant fields, e.g., pharmaceutical sciences, chemistry, materials science, food science and technology, chemical engineering, biochemistry or biotechnology. • Skills : Strong laboratory and analytical skills in biomedical technology and/or microbiology. • Languages : Proficiency in English (written and spoken) is required. • Strong motivation to pursue doctoral research in an international and interdisciplinary environment. • Ability to work independently while contributing effectively to collaborative research activities. • Good organization, communication and problem-solving skills. • Willingness to travel for planned secondments, network meetings and training activities. • Commitment to responsible research conduct, inclusion, collegiality and professional development.

Research experience / main research field: Pharmacological sciences

Research experience / years of research experience: None

Additional information / benefits: This position is funded by the FAroGels MSCA Doctoral Network (HORIZON-MSCA-2025-DN-01-01, Grant Agreement No. 101312450). The salary is based on the following monthly MSCA allowances: • Living allowance: EUR 4,010, adjusted by the country correction coefficient of the country of the recruiting organisation to ensure equal treatment and comparable purchasing power for all researchers. • Mobility allowance: EUR 710, contributing to mobility-related costs such as relocation and travel. • Family allowance (if applicable): EUR 660, paid for the months in which the Doctoral Candidate has a family during the project, including where family obligations arise after recruitment. ‘Family’ means persons linked to the researcher by marriage (or a relationship with equivalent status recognised by the legislation of the country where it was formalised) or dependent children actually being maintained by the researcher. The allowance is paid in accordance with the rules of the recruiting organisation, and supporting documents may be requested.

Additional information / eligibility criteria: Applicants of any nationality are welcome to apply. At the date of recruitment, applicants must meet the following MSCA Doctoral Network requirements: • Doctoral candidate status: Applicants must not already hold a doctoral degree. Applicants who have successfully defended their doctoral thesis but have not yet been formally awarded the doctoral degree are not eligible. • Mobility rule: Applicants must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Spain for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before the recruitment date. Compulsory national service, short stays such as holidays, and time spent as part of a procedure for obtaining refugee status under the Geneva Convention or EU temporary protection are not taken into account. Compliance is verified before the start of employment, on the basis of the candidate’s passport and, where necessary, other documents. • PhD enrolment: Doctoral Candidates must be enrolled in a doctoral programme leading to the award of a doctoral degree in at least one EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country. For this position, this is the doctoral programme at USC; applicants must therefore meet its admission requirements. • Institution-specific requirements: https://www.usc.gal/en/admision/doutoramento • Visa and residence permit: a visa or residence/work permit is not required at the application stage and is not a selection criterion. Where needed, it will be arranged after selection and before the start of employment, with the support of the recruiting organisation. Candidates from non-EU countries are equally welcome to apply.

Additional information / selection process: FAroGels follows an open, transparent and merit-based recruitment process in line with the European Charter for Researchers: • Eligibility check by the FAroGels Project Manager. • Evaluation of the eligible applications by an Interview Committee (primary supervisor, co-supervisor(s) and a representative of a non-academic partner) with a standardised scoring matrix; the three to five best-ranked candidates are shortlisted. • Online interview with the shortlisted candidates. • Approval of the selection by the FAroGels Supervisory Board, after which an offer is made.

All applicants are informed of the outcome and receive feedback on request.

Additional information / comment: Application Documents Please submit the following documents: • A detailed curriculum vitae, including education, research experience, technical skills and relevant achievements. • A motivation letter explaining your interest in this specific DC position, your relevant background and your suitability for the project. • Copies of Bachelor’s and Master’s diplomas and academic transcripts, or evidence that the relevant degree will be completed before the recruitment date. • Contact details for two referees and reference letters, according to the requirements of USC. • Proof of English-language proficiency, if required by the PhD awarding institution. • Incomplete applications may not be considered.

How to Apply Applications for this position must be submitted through both of the following channels: • Candidates are invited to submit their applications through a direct e-mail to the DC10 supervisor. The application should include the documentation specified in the vacancy announcement, and candidates will be contacted by the supervisor for the subsequent stages of the selection process.

The AerogelsLab research group recruitment channels, including the group webpage and LinkedIn, will be used. The vacancy will also be advertised through the EURAXESS Jobs Portal and the FAroGels communication channels. The final recruitment and appointment will be carried out in accordance with the institutional procedures of the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC) and the applicable MSCA Doctoral Network requirements. • FAroGels online application form – in addition, please complete the application form at https://farogels.eu/apply/ and upload the same documents there.

Indicative timeline • Application deadline: 09 December 2026, 23:59 (CET) • Interviews: January 2027 • Evaluation: January 2027 • Selection outcome: January 2027 • Expected start of employment: March 2027

Please note: Applicants should ensure that all required documents are submitted before the stated deadline. Please note that a separate PhD admission and/or enrolment procedure may apply at USC.

Additional information / info website: https://farogels.eu/

Additional information / info website: https://farogels.eu/open-positions/

Work location / nr job positions: 1

Work location / job organisation institute: University of Santiago de Compostela

Work location / job country: Spain

Work location / job state province: A Coruña

Work location / job city: Santiago de Compotela

Work location / job postal code: 15782

Work location / job street: Campus Vida s/n

Hiring contact / organisation institute: UNIVERSIDADE DE SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA

Hiring contact / organisation institute type: Public Research Institution

Hiring contact / division faculty: Vicerrectorado de Investigación e Ciencia Aberta

Hiring contact / country: Spain

Hiring contact / city: Santiago de Compostela

Hiring contact / state province: Galicia

Hiring contact / postal code: 15782

Hiring contact / street: Campus Vida S/N

Hiring contact / e mail: recursoshumanos.investigacion@usc.es

Hiring contact / website: http://www.usc.es

Application / how to apply: website

Application / application website: https://farogels.eu/apply/

EU funding / framework programme: Horizon Europe - MSCA

EU funding / cofund nr job position: 1

EU funding / sesam agreement number: 101312450

Research field / main research field: Pharmacological sciences

Research field / main research field: Chemistry

Researcher profile: First Stage Researcher (R1)

Positions: PhD Positions

Contract: Temporary

Job status: Full-time

Application deadline (as exported; timezone unverified): 2026-12-08T23:00:00