PhD Position DNS of Electrochemical Bubbles - Bubble Detachment in Micro-Structured Electrodes

Challenge: Design new electrodes to improve hydrogen production.

Change: Use Direct Numerical Simulations of bubbles detachment.

Impact: Advance our knowledge of bubble detachment dynamics.

Job description
In the transition to a green economy, hydrogen is called to play a central role to decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors. To this aim, water electrolysis is the key technology enabling the conversion of (green) electricity into hydrogen. However, this pivotal process still suffers from low efficiencies due to the sub-optimal bubble release from the electrodes, which block the reaction sites. Our long term vision is to design advanced electrode geometries that optimize bubble release. In this project we want to develop new numerical techniques to simulate bubble detachment from gas-evolving electrodes in order to advance our understanding of how fluid mechanics, mass, heat and charge transfer impact the overall process performance.

You will work with Dr. Nicolas Valle within the faculty of Mechanical Engineering.

You primary task will be to develop and implement new numerical methods for bubble detachment dynamics on top of an existing, parallel, hybrid (CPU/GPU), computational physics code. The physical phenomena include dynamic contact angle, mass transport, phase change and chemical kinetics. You will get support from the Dutch supercomputer centre for the computational aspects.

With these methods, you will perform high fidelity simulations of single bubble detachment. After validation, you will perform flow topology analysis to characterize the influence of the physical parameters into this process and to assess the impact of bubble detachment in electrode performance.

Finally, you will extend the analysis to patterned geometries. Starting from simplified cases, you will perform an a priory assessment of the most promising patterns for gas-evolving electrodes.

Job requirements
We are looking for talented candidate who is passionate about developing numerical methods for fluid mechanics and wants to go beyond a user of CFD.

Requirements:

• MSc in Mechanical/Aerospace/Maritime/Chemical Engineering, Physics, Applied Mathematics, or a related discipline.
• A bottom-up approach to research.
• Proven* track record in numerical methods.
• Proven* track record in fluid mechanics.
• Proven* programming skills in C/C++/Fortran.

In addition, the ideal candidate should have:

• Experience* in Finite Volume or Finite Difference methods is a plus.
• Experience* in VoF, Level Set, Phase Field or similar methods is a plus.
• Experience* in parallel computing (MPI/OpenMP/CUDA) is a plus.
• Please indicate in your motivation letter how you fulfil these requirements or, if not, how do you plan to cover those.

TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)
Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

Faculty Mechanical Engineering
From chip to ship. From machine to human being. From idea to solution. Driven by a deep-rooted desire to understand our environment and discover its underlying mechanisms, research and education at the ME faculty focusses on fundamental understanding, design, production including application and product improvement, materials, processes and (mechanical) systems.

ME is a dynamic and innovative faculty with high-tech lab facilities and international reach. It’s a large faculty but also versatile, so we can often make unique connections by combining different disciplines. This is reflected in ME’s outstanding, state-of-the-art education, which trains students to become responsible and socially engaged engineers and scientists. We translate our knowledge and insights into solutions to societal issues, contributing to a sustainable society and to the development of prosperity and well-being. That is what unites us in pioneering research, inspiring education and (inter)national cooperation.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. Do you want to experience working at our faculty? These videos will introduce you to some of our researchers and their work.

Conditions of employment
Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1,5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2,5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from € 2872 per month in the first year to € 3670 in the fourth year. As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills.

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

For international applicants, TU Delft has the Coming to Delft Service. This service provides information for new international employees to help you prepare the relocation and to settle in the Netherlands. The Coming to Delft Service offers a Dual Career Programme for partners and they organise events to expand your (social) network.

Additional information
For more information about this vacancy, please contact Nicolas Valle (n.vallemarchante@tudelft.nl).

Application procedure
Are you interested in this vacancy? Please apply no later than 5 January 2025 via the application button and upload:

• Your CV and a 1 page motivation letter explaining how your interest align with the project, and how your previous experience covers the requirements of the position, and in which aspects you would like to develop yourself.
• Please refer to courses, student (or personal) projects, work experience, or any others, to prove your record on the aforementioned requirements.

You can address your application to Dr. Nicolas Valle.

For more information about the application procedure, please contact Anita van Vianen (recruitment-me@tudelft.nl).

Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure that the candidate is able to communicate and interact well, participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, and write scientific articles and a final thesis. For more details please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements.

Please note:

• TU Delft obeys by the Dutch law and its Knowledge Security Policy. As such a security clearance may be in place.
• You can apply online. We will not process applications sent by email and/or post.
• A pre-employment screening can be part of the selection procedure.
• A knowledge security check will be part of the selection procedure (for details page 45: national knowledge security guidelines).
• Please do not contact us for unsolicited services.

40 hours per week

Mekelweg 5