Nanostructured thermal insulators

Position: PhD candidate, Doctoral School of Nanotechnology, University of Trieste

Start date: November 1st, 2017

End date: October 31st, 2020

Application: applications normally open in May and close around the beginning of June, please check the Doctoral School Homepage of the University of Trieste in May 2017.

Project description: The PhD candidate will work on the defintion, fabrication, and testing of a novel nanostructured thermal insulator. The material will be designed according to the guidelines of environmental sustainability, and will be obtained starting from the reuse of normally scarcely recyclable materials such as fiberglass, carbon fiber-based composites, etc. The PhD candidate will have to learn and use a broad variety of fabrication techniques ranging from colloidal nanostructures to polymer foams, and a range of characterization techniques such as DSC-TGA, mechanical testing, FTIR and Raman spectroscopy. An eco-audit of the product will also be conducted.

Ideal candidates should hold a MS or equivalent in materials science and/or engineering, chemistry, physics. However, all suitable profiles will be considered.