Find a Job

A PhD position is available at The Norwegian College of Fishery Science (NCFS), Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and Economics (BFE) in close collaboration with SINTEF Industry (Oslo) and SINTEF Ocean (Trondheim). The position is affiliated with the research group Harvest.

The PhD position is within marine biodegradation of polymers used for materials used aquaculture and fisheries.

The position is for a period of four years. The nominal length of the PhD programme is three years. The fourth year is distributed as 25 % each year and will consist of teaching and other duties. The objective of the position is to complete research training to the level of a doctoral degree. Admission to the PhD programme is a prerequisite for employment, and the programme period starts on commencement of the position.

The workplace is at UiT in Tromsø, although the candidate is expected to spend a proportion of their time at SINTEF Industry in Oslo and partly in Trondheim at SINTEF Ocean. The position also provides for part of the work to be done abroad to study biodegradation.You must be able to start in the position within a reasonable time after receiving the offer.

The position’s field of research

The Norwegian College of Fishery Science (NCFS) undertakes research and research-based teaching of high national and international quality in an interdisciplinary environment. Research activities are provisionally organized into the groups of Living Marine Resources, Food science, Fish Health, Marine Drug Discovery, Marine Resource Management and Development, Environmental and Resource Economics.

The position is a part of our participation in the center for research-based innovation: SFI Dsolve - Biodegradable plastics for marine applications which includes SINTEF Industry and SINTEF Ocean as well as several other research and industry partners. The candidate shall collaborate with industrial partners in the SFI.

The main supervisors for the candidate will be from the research group Harvest at the UiT as well as with a co-supervisor from SINTEF Industry and other research partners. SINTEF Industry and SINTEF Ocean are in possession of facilities for polymers and composites research covering polymer characterization, weathering experiments and mechanical tests, including labs for the investigation of biodegradation in natural sea water and marine sediments.

The project

The PhD project is within the SFI Dsolve financed by the Research Council of Norway. This is a multi-disciplinary project concentrated around the development and introduction of biodegradable plastics in fisheries and aquaculture. The PhD project associated with the PhD position aims to understand the degradation processes (e. g. via photodegradation, microbial degradation, temperature) of polymers (e. g., PBS, PBAT, PBSAT, PBSA, Bio-PES) which are used for biodegradable fibres, twines, nets and ropes. The research work of the candidate shall contribute to develop new models and knowledge on degradation mechanisms of biodegradable polymers under ambient environmental conditions in comparison to standard non degradable polymers which are used for conventional fibres and various types of ropes.

Furthermore, it is intended to assess the extent to which the degradation of polymers has an influence on the mechanical properties (e. g. tensile strength and abrasion) of the polymers used. The characterisation of material composition, molecular structure and their relationship to material properties will be central to the work.

The candidate will work interdisciplinary with chemists, physicist, marine biologists, specialists on economy, management and life cycle analyses (LCA), and with several stakeholders in the

project. The position shall focus on challenges within aquaculture (fish farming equipment) or fisheries.