NOTICE OF THE OPENING OF AN INTERNATIONAL CALL FOR THE RECRUITMENT OF ONE PHD RESEARCHER 

Ana Cristina Moreira Freire, Full Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto, hereby advertises the opening of a 10-working-day international call for recruitment of one PhD researcher within Project 16006- CATCH, financed by Innovation and Digital Transition Program (COMPETE 2030) - Financed by the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) and co-financed by the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT).

1.Main research field: Chemistry

Sub research field: Inorganic chemistry

2. Admission requirement: Application can be submitted by any nationals, foreigners and stateless people who meet the following conditions cumulatively: hold a PhD degree in the above-mentioned scientific area (inorganic chemistry), with mandatory experience of at least three years in concentration and beneficiation of char and ferrospheres, in their thermal and chemical transformation, and their application as supporting or catalysing agents.

If the candidate holds a doctorate awarded by a foreign higher education institution, it must comply with the provisions established in the Decree-Law no. 66/2018. All the formalities established in the Decree-Law must be met until the hiring.

Failure to comply with these requirements determines the preliminary rejection of the application.

Preferred requirements:

- H-index equal to or greater than 15.

- Total number of scientific publications indexed in SCOPUS greater than 30.

- Have teaching experience in higher education.

- Have experience in supervising internships and master's degrees.

3. Job description: 

As a PhD Researcher, you will be responsible for carrying out research and development activities and all other scientific and technical activities within the scope of the missions of the respective Organic Unit and of U.Porto regularly [Article 7(2) of Regulation 487/2020 of 22 May] and you will contribute by carrying out the duties described below to the objectives set out in the programme contract for the project as mentioned above. 

You will therefore:

1 - Participate in the development and execution of the research project, by carrying out the scientific and technical activities inherent to it, in the following tasks: Task 2.1 Sampling;  Task 2.2 Material characterization; Task 2.3 Char concentration; Task 2.4 Char transformation; Task 3.1 Electrochemical characterization of electrocatalysis; Task 3.2 Custom-designed membranes; Task 3.4 Cell construction and ORR testing in continuous mode; Task 4.1 Dissemination; Task 4.2 Reporting.

The objective of this work is to recover char and ferrospheres from coal fly ash and apply them to green energy sources. Thus, the activities to be developed have the following objectives:

a) Develop an efficient integrated beneficiation process based on different char properties (e.g., particle size, density, electrical conductivity and magnetization) and on the differences in physical properties between char, aluminosilicate morphotypes and ferrospheres. For this purpose, the researcher must use gravimetric separation, impaction, sieving, electrostatic and magnetic methods;

b) Calculate the degree of purity and recovery of char, as well as concentrates and graphitized char concentrates, and ferrospheres. These must be calculated using petrographic, chemical and mineralogical characterization of the waste and the beneficiated material. To this end, the researcher must use analytical techniques such as: immediate analysis, TOC and carbon forms, XRF, XRD, Raman spectroscopy, petrographic analysis by reflected light microscopy, TEM and SEM-EDS;

c) Modification of char by thermal means, doping with heteroatoms and chemical treatment. Includes char demineralization and catalytic and microwave graphitization;

d) Preparation of material recovery calculations, and characterization of the thermally modified material and ferrospheres;

e) Conducting electrocatalysis and electrochemical characterization experiments, and electrocatalytic ORR studies with materials collected from ash;

f) Development of membranes specially designed for materials collected from ash;

g) Monitoring the construction and evaluation of cell performance and ORR in continuous mode with materials collected from ash;

h) Support for operational and functional tasks of the project such as: support for the coordination and management of acquisitions, preparation of reports in English, participation in the meetings of the CATCH project and other international meetings, assist the IR in the supervision and training of undergraduate and postgraduate students, and in the dissemination and transfer of results.

2 - Collaborate in teaching and participate in the institution's training programmes [Possibility of teaching service at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto. (Up to four teaching hours per week, on an annual average by Article 12, nº 3 of Regulation nº 487/2020 of Research, Science and Technology Personnel of the University of Porto)].

4.Legal Framework: 

Decree-Law Nº, 57/2016 of 29th August, amended by Law no. 57/2017 of 19th July, establishing the Regulation of Scientific Employment (Regime Jurídico do Emprego Científico); 

Regulatory Law no. 11-A/2017 of 29th December; 

The Labour Code in the current version of Law no. 7/2009 of 12th February;

Regulation No. 487/2020 of the Research, Science and Technology Staff of the University of Oporto, published in the 2nd series of Diário da República no. 100/2020 on May 22, 2020;

5. The place of work: The tasks will be developed in the Department of Geosciences, Environment and Spatial Planning of the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto.

6. Duration of work permanent contract: This employment contract is scheduled to begin in October 2025 and will continue only for the period necessary to carry out the duties defined, on an exclusive dedication basis, the foreseeable duration of which is 22 months, never exceeding the maximum limit of six years.

7.Remuneration: € 2.351,53 by paragraph a) of paragraph 1 of article 15 of Law No. 57/2017, of 19 July and with the first remuneration position of the initial level provided for in article 2 of the Regulatory Decree n. 11-A / 2017, of 29 December, corresponding to level 33 of the single remuneration table updated by DL 10-B / 2020.

8. Methods of selection and definition of their weights/evolution criteria: According to Article 5 of the RJEC, selection will be based on the evaluation of the candidates’ scientific and academic career.

Grading system: 

The Assessment of the Scientific and Curriculum Path (APCC) will be based on the Curriculum vitae presented by the candidate(s).

The evaluation of the scientific and curricular path (APCC) will be made taking into account the appropriate profile for the activity to be developed, with a focus on relevance, quality and suitability for the activities to be performed. In particular, the elements of the last five years of activity with greater relevance for this competition will be taken into account according to the specific criteria listed below:

- Proven experience in characterization, separation and processing of char and ferrospheres

obtained from coal fly ash;

- Proven experience in thermal and chemical modification of char and ferrospheres;

- Proven experience in catalytic application of char and ferrospheres;

- Publications in the project area;

- Participation in R&D projects;

- Clarity, objectivity and alignment of motivation with the objectives of the CATCH project.

Note: These criteria will be evaluated based on the information described in the detailed Curriculum vitae and other documents presented in the application. The Curriculum vitae must be structured taking into account the sequence of the criteria mentioned above.

The period of five years referred to in the previous paragraph may be increased by the jury, at the request of the candidate and/or when justified by the suspension of scientific activity for reasons of social protection, namely due to parental leave, prolonged serious illness and/or other situations of unavailability of legally protected work.

Based on the criteria defined above, the quantitative assessment of the candidates' profile will be carried out taking into account the following requirements that substantiate them and their respective weighting:

1. CV quality - Weight: 65%
2. Previous experience in research and/or innovation projects - Weight: 30%
3. Cover letter - Weight: 5%

The final classification will be presented on a scale of 0-100 points, based on the criteria mentioned above and their respective weighting, with the following formula:

APCC= A*65%+B*30%+C*5%

The evaluation process may include an interview/presentation/demonstration session of the 3 best positioned candidates to be selected by the jury, which is exclusively intended to clarify aspects related to the results of your investigation.

In this case, the final classification (CF) after the interview will have the following weighting: 90% of the previous classification; 10% of the interview rating (E), with the following formula:

CF = APCC*90% + E*10%

9. Evaluation Methodology 

9.1. After the admission of the applicants, and before starting the voting for their final ranking in the evaluation of their scientific and curricular background, each member of the Board presents a written document, to be attached to the meeting minutes, with the list of the applicants in descending order of merit, duly substantiated, considering the criteria and parameters of this tender notice. 

9.2. The seriation methodology is indicated in article 29º of the Regulation No. 487/2020. 

9.3. If an absolute majority of votes is not reached after the voting explained in the previous number, or in case of a tie, the Chair's vote will be used for the final ranking. 

9.4. Each member of the Board must respect, in the various voting rounds, the order he or she presented in the document referred to in paragraph 9.1.

Minutes of the meetings of the jury are drawn up, containing a summary of what has taken place in the meetings, as well as the votes cast by each of the members and their reasons, which may be contained in autonomous documents attached to the minutes, being signed by all members of the Jury present.

Only candidates with a rating of 70 points or higher, by the majority of selection panel members, are eligible for hiring.

The Board's final decision is approved by the head of the institution responsible for opening the tender notice. The final decision on hiring is the responsibility of the top manager of the hiring entity.

10. Composition of the Selection Committee:

President: Principal Investigator Bruno Renato Valério Valentim, FCUP

1st member: Assistant Professor Helena Isabel Costa Ribeiro, FCUP

2nd member: Investigator Diana Mónica de Mesquita Sousa Fernandes, REQUIMTE

1st substitute member: Investigator Andreia Filipa Ribeiro de Oliveira Peixoto, REQUIMTE

11.Results notifications: 

The Human Resources Unit of the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto will notify candidates of the decisions made throughout the tender procedure. All candidates will be notified of the final decision of the Selection Committee. Notifications are sent by email, under the terms of articles 112(1)(c) and 113(5) of the CPA. 

Lists of admitted and excluded candidates, as well as the final ranking lists, will be published and advertised on the webpage of this call at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto, and all candidates will be notified by under the terms of the Code of Administrative Procedure.

12.Submission of applications: The applications must be exclusively submitted through the web page of this opening https://sigarra.up.pt/fcup/pt/CNT_CAND_GERAL.CONCURSOS_LIST  nº534, within 10 working days after publication in DR, at the attention of the Selection Committee, and include the following documents:

1. Application (available in this opening SIGARRA, signed and current date);
2. Certificate or PhD diploma;
3. Detailed Curriculum vitae;
4. Brief description of the most relevant scientific activities for the last 5 years;
5. Cover letter;
6. Other documents deemed important by the candidate for the evaluation.

All candidates who improperly submit their applications or fail to fulfil the requirements established in this call are excluded from admission. In case of doubt, the Selection Committee is entitled to request any candidate to present further documentation to support their statements. False statements provided by candidates are punishable by law.

The documents referred to in paragraphs a) to e) are mandatory.

Candidates who incorrectly formalize their candidacy are excluded from admission to the competition.

13.Final Decision: Under the terms of article 121 of the Code of Administrative Procedure, after being notified, the candidates have 10 working days to pronounce. Within a maximum period of 90 days from the deadline for the submission of applications, the final decisions of the jury are given.

14.The present insolvency proceeding is exclusively intended to fill the vacancies indicated, and may be terminated until the homologation of the final ordering list of the candidates and expiring with the respective occupation of the jobs on offer.

15.Non-discrimination and equal access policy: FCUP actively promotes a policy of non-discrimination and equal access, so that no candidate can be privileged, beneficiary, disadvantaged or private of any right or exemption from any duty owing, in particular, to ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, family status, economic situation, education, social origin or condition, genetic heritage, reduced working capacity, disability, chronic illness, nationality, ethnic origin or race, territory of origin, language, religion, political or ideological beliefs and trade union membership.

Under the terms of D.L. No. 29/2001, of February 3rd, the disabled candidate has preference in equal classification, which prevails over any other legal preference. Candidates must declare their respective degree of incapacity, the type of disability, and the means of communication/expression to be used in the selection process, under the terms of the aforementioned diploma.

The application is open from 07/07/2025 to 18/07/2025.