Studentships

The candidate will be working on an exciting project on a novel fuel concept for the future low-carbon transport in the Centre for Advanced Powertrain and Fuels at Brunel University of London. The project will investigate the fundamentals of nanobubbles in liquid fuels and their applications in combustion engines. Molecular Dynamics (MD) and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations will be employed to provide insights on the microscopic behaviour of nanobubbles in liquid fuels and their subsequent impact on fuel injection and combustion process at engine relevant conditions. The successful applicant will become a member of a large research group working on the project, which includes experimental and modelling studies and will work in close collaboration with other members of the team and external research partners. The candidate will attend regular project meetings to report the research progress and is expected to contribute in preparation of journal papers and conference proceedings.  Experience in Molecular Dynamics (MD) and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations will be an advantage.  You should be highly motivated, able to work independently as well as in a team, collaborate with others and have effective communication skills.  For informal queries, please contact Prof Xinyan Wang: xinyan.wang@brunel.ac.uk.

Applications are invited for one full-time PhD studentship within the Mechanical Engineering Department funded by the EPSRC doctoral training programme. The PhD studentship is for a period of 42 Months effective 1 October 2026. The successful applicant will receive an annual stipend (bursary) of £22780 plus payment of their full-time Home fees. Cardiovascular diseases remain a major global health concern, and many patients depend on multiple daily medications. However, traditional tablet manufacturing offers limited flexibility to tailor treatments or combine drugs efficiently. This PhD project aims to overcome these challenges by developing sustainable, point-of-care 3D printing of personalised cardiovascular polypills, with the goal of simplifying treatment and improving patient adherence. This project is a collaboration between Brunel University London’s Engineering Department and Kingston University’s School of Pharmacy, bringing together expertise in pharmaceutical science, digital design, and materials and manufacturing engineering. You will join a supportive, interdisciplinary research community at the forefront of healthcare innovation, sustainability, and advanced manufacturing. Using cutting-edge pharmaceutical printing technologies, you will fabricate and evaluate 3D-printed polypills designed to improve treatment adherence and therapeutic outcomes. Training opportunities within this project include advanced manufacturing techniques such as 3D printing, bioink development, dissolution testing, and advanced materials and drug-release characterisation, as well as high-impact communication skills. These experiences will prepare you for careers across academia, the pharmaceutical industry, or the healthcare sector. This interdisciplinary project is ideal for candidates from pharmacy, chemical engineering, biomedical sciences, materials science, or related disciplines, particularly those interested in personalised medicine, green pharmaceutical innovation, and advanced manufacturing. If you are passionate about driving innovation in healthcare and contributing to sustainable, patient-centred solutions, this project offers a unique opportunity to make a meaningful impact while developing cutting-edge skills at the forefront of pharmaceutical science and advanced manufacturing. Please contact Dr Bin Zhang at bin.zhang@brunel.ac.uk for an informal discussion about the studentship.

Applications are invited for one full-time EPSRC Industrial CASE (ICASE) PhD studentship for the project “Best practices for minimising dross formation during melting of scrap aluminium”. BCAST is a specialist research centre in metallurgy with a focus on processing metallic materials for lightweighting applications. The project is in collaboration with Constellium, a global leading manufacturer of high-quality, technically advanced aluminium products and systems. Successful applicants will receive an annual stipend (bursary) starting from approximately £23,000 plus payment of their full-time home tuition fees for a period of up to 48 months (4 years). In the aluminium recycling industry, dross formation represents a substantial material loss, with up to 5-10% of the charge potentially lost as dross. Dross primarily consists of aluminium oxides, impurities, and trapped metal, forming due to reactions between molten aluminium and atmospheric oxygen. Various factors contribute to excessive dross formation, including scrap condition, furnace type, melting cycle parameters, heating sources, and furnace atmosphere. Effective control of dross formation can improve metal recovery, reduce environmental impact, and lower production costs. Different scrap sources, such as end-of-life products, machining scrap, and production returns, present varying levels of contamination and oxide coatings, which can lead to inconsistencies in dross formation. By studying surface characteristics of scrap from various sources and implementing controlled preheat and environment, we can significantly reduce the oxidation of molten aluminium and minimise dross formation. This studentship outlines a comprehensive study aimed at establishing best practices to minimise dross formation during the remelting of aluminium scrap sourced from various stages of the recycling process. Emphasis will be placed on optimising preheat treatments, melting cycle parameters, and furnace atmosphere control, alongside introducing specific elements/flux that inhibit oxide growth. The project will be part of the activities of the Constellium University Technology Centre (UTC) established with BCAST. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to interact with researchers in BCAST and with Constellium’s industrial research engineers. An industrial supervisor of the project will be appointed by Constellium. This close collaboration provides a strong foundation for a future career, whether in industry or academia. Please contact Prof. Hari Babu Nadendla for an informal discussion about the project.

This research proposes the development of a sustainable, integrated system for the remediation and recycling of wastewater discharged from condenser economizers. The project addresses the critical challenge of managing "acidic load" and chemical pollutants inherently present in the industrial condensate generated during heat recovery processes within industrial heat exchangers. By integrating advanced water-recycling technologies directly into the heat-waste recovery cycle, the project aims to extract acidic pollutants at the source, removing microbial pollution, transforming a hazardous byproduct into a high-quality, reusable resource with an inline process solution. This integrated solution will facilitate optimization of industrial energy consumption, and provide a scalable, future-ready methodology for closed-loop resource recovery system. The study will conduct a rigorous evaluation of long-term operational performance, providing essential insights into the chemical and microbial efficiency, economic viability, and environmental safety of the proposed system.

Applications are invited for one full-time EPSRC Industrial CASE (ICASE) PhD studentship for the project “Development of natural-ageing-resistant, heat-treatable lean aluminium alloys for automotive applications” The Brunel Centre for Advanced Solidification Technology (BCAST) is a specialist research centre in metallurgy with a focus on the processing of metallic materials for lightweighting applications. See www.brunel.ac.uk/bcast for more information. The project is sponsored by Constellium, a leading global manufacturer of high-quality, technically advanced aluminium products and systems. Successful applicants will receive an annual stipend (bursary) starting from approximately £23,000 plus payment of their full-time home tuition fees for a period of up to 48 months (4 years). Lean automotive aluminium with a lower concentration of alloying elements offers moderate strength and relatively high productivity compared to its highly alloyed counterparts. However, automotive aluminium alloys are susceptible to natural ageing at room temperature, resulting in the formation of clusters from a supersaturated solid solution produced after fast quenching from solution heat treatment. This leads to increased hardness, which affects both formability and the subsequent precipitation hardening process. In addition, promoting a circular economy in the aluminium industry by increasing recyclability and using more recycled aluminium is essential for saving resources, reducing waste and creating a more sustainable future. This project will focus on understanding the effects of vacancy-trapping element addition and quench rate sensitivity of lean Al-Mg-Si-based alloys with varying level of recycled content on the natural ageing response at room temperature and precipitation hardening behaviour during artificial ageing treatment, with the aim of developing lean recyclable Al-Si-Mg-based alloys that are resistant to natural ageing, tolerant of slower quenching rates, and capable of offering high productivity and moderate mechanical properties for automotive applications. The project will be part of the activities of the Constellium University Technology Centre (UTC) established with BCAST. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to interact with researchers in BCAST and with Constellium’s industrial research engineers. An industrial supervisor of the project will be appointed by Constellium. This close collaboration provides a strong foundation for a future career, whether in industry or academia. Please contact Prof. Isaac Chang at Isaac.Chang@brunel.ac.uk for an informal discussion about the project.

Over 15,000 different per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are currently estimated to exist. Globally, over 1,000 PFAS from 382 different sub-classes have been detected in the environment, which is still likely a major underestimate, given the size of this chemical class. For humans, these chemicals have already been linked to several health issues but the risk for environmental health remains poorly understood. Importantly, the C-F bond chemistry confers significant and molecule-specific recalcitrance to natural degradation, as well as concerning potentials for accumulation and toxicity in aquatic organisms. For one substance alone, perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), over 90% of all waterbodies tested in the UK have exceeded the environmental quality standard (EQS) of 0.65 ng/L. However, EQS only exist for PFOS which is defined for inland surface waters, other surface waters and biota. Currently, no EQS exists in the UK for groundwater, soil, sediment or for any of the other PFAS. For public water supply, the Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) has set a guidance limit of 0.1 µg/L (10 ng/L) for 48 PFAS in drinking water, which water companies in England, including Affinity Water, are required to meet. Furthermore, the DWI has issued actions to water companies which have made detections of PFAS in raw water and set out a tier-based approach for impacted sources. This includes utilising catchment management source, pathway and receptor investigations for all impacted sources and the need to investigate future viability for catchment remediation, in combination with enhanced treatment solutions. The source and fate of PFAS in the environment stems from widespread usage across multiple sectors which include products such as firefighting foams, metal plating, medicines, pesticides, textiles, automotive parts, solar panels, paints among many others. Given the widespread usage of these substances, source apportionment is complex particularly given the unique properties of PFAS which enable them to be persistent and mobile across different environmental compartments. The behaviour varies greatly for individual PFAS with some long-chain substances readily binding to solid matrices such as soil and sediment and other short-chain substances being mobile in water (i.e. surface water, groundwater). Subsequently, this behaviour leads to exposure of PFAS from air, water and soil representing a diverse risk in the environment for both public and animal health. Significant knowledge gaps concerning the fate of PFAS have been identified which stem, in part, from limited monitoring in environmental compartments and the transformation of PFAS, that may also convert into other PFAS, further complicating monitoring and remediation efforts. To address these knowledge gaps, it is critical that monitoring in the field targets for both known and unknown PFAS to identify priority substances. Moreover, investigating how PFAS undergo degradation and/or transformation is important to better interpret monitoring data and understand potential sources of measured PFAS across catchments. The aim of this project will be to determine the occurrence and transformation of PFAS in surface water and groundwater impacting the environment and drinking water supplies.

We offer a fully funded 3-year PhD position for UK home students in the Biosciences Department (CHMLS). The project will be based in a cell biology research laboratory that investigates fundamental aspects of nuclear organisation in the context of Nuclear Pore Complex Biology. The studentship is jointly funded by CHMLS and the Academy of Medical Sciences and is open only to UK candidates or those with settlement status. The position covers Home tuition fees and provides a London-rate stipend (currently estimated at £22,780 per year) for up to 36 months. Interested candidates are invited to apply by 12h noon (UK time) on Monday 23rd February 2026. Interviews will be held on 26th/27th February. The start date is 1st April 2026. Overview The PhD project will explore one nuclear envelope structure, the nuclear pore complex, and how it contributes to its functions and can be influenced during infection. Using a combination of imaging and molecular approaches, the student will study how changes to the nuclear transport machinery affect its structure and function, with relevance to viral nuclear entry. The project provides interdisciplinary training and opportunities to collaborate with researchers at other UK institutions, and a student interested in advanced imaging techniques and nuclear pore complex biology.  For informal discussions, please contact Dr Ines Castro at ines.castro@brunel.ac.uk.

Applications are invited for one full-time EPSRC Industrial CASE (ICASE) PhD studentship for the project “Understanding crush behaviour of recycled 6xxx Aluminium alloys subjected to different thermomechanical treatments” The Brunel Centre for Advanced Solidification Technology (BCAST) is a specialist research centre in metallurgy with a focus on the processing of metallic materials for lightweighting applications. See www.brunel.ac.uk/bcast for more information. The project is sponsored by Constellium, a leading global manufacturer of high-quality, technically advanced aluminium products and systems. Successful applicants will receive an annual stipend (bursary) starting from approximately £23,000 plus payment of their full-time home tuition fees for a period of up to 48 months (4 years). The net-zero and sustainability targets, as well as export cost, mean that there is an increased need to rely on a new class of alloys with higher recycle content that must be developed for both high-strength and crash-resistant alloys. Due to the differences in minor impurity additions in the recycled alloys compared with the alloys based on primary alloys, there is a need to develop new, and modify the current thermo-mechanical process used to strengthen the current generation of crush alloys. The programme will use different thermomechanical processing paths, including heat treatment and more complex paths, including deformation and ageing and other non-conventional paths to provide the best combination of crush performance and strength along with energy absorption properties from the new generation of high-recycle-content crush alloys. The main objective of the project is to understand the deformation behaviour of the high-recycle-content crush alloys and the role of tramp elements in controlling the final property profiles. The understanding developed here will provide pathways to exploit the alloy composition and thermomechanical treatments to optimise the property profiles of the next generation crush alloys and allow the full exploitation of the various tramp elements found in the recycled alloys to maximise the property profiles. The project will be part of the activities of the Constellium University Technology Centre (UTC) established with BCAST. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to interact with researchers in BCAST and with Constellium’s industrial research engineers. An industrial supervisor of the project will be appointed by Constellium. This close collaboration provides a strong foundation for a future career, whether in industry or academia. Please contact Dr Chamini Mendis at Chamini.Mendis@brunel.ac.uk for an informal discussion about the project.