The School of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) provides a vibrant and nurturing environment for staff and students to carry out inter-disciplinary research in key areas such as Computational Materials Science, Characterisation Materials Science, Defence Composite Materials, Functional Composite Materials, Energy, Nanomaterials, Low Dimensional Materials, Biomaterials Materials, Biological Materials, Bioinspired Materials and Sustainable Materials.

For more details, please view https://www.ntu.edu.sg/mse/research.

We are looking for a Research Fellow to join a project funded by Singapore Food Agency (SFA) under Singapore Food Story (SFS) R&D Programme 2.0, focusing on the development of sustainable growing media for urban farming applications. The RF will join a multidisciplinary research team in efforts to develop a sustainable growing media that can deliver nutrients under control in soil- and hydroponics- based cultures. The role will focus on contributing to the design, fabrication, and characterization of this novel growing media, with an emphasis on understanding structure-property relationships and their impact on agricultural performance.

Key Responsibilities:

• Conduct thorough literature reviews and generate periodic updates

• Synthesize, functionalize, and characterize porous materials (e.g. SEM, XRD, DLS, FTIR, TGA/DSC, MTS, ICP-MS, etc.)

• Carry out assays and analysis to understand degradation and nutrient release kinetics of the platform

• Correlate material properties, nutrients release with plant growth performance through measurement of seed germination, seedling development, crop yields and nutritional profile of the plants

• Develop scale-up strategies and collaborate with local/overseas farms and industry partners for large scale trials and industrial production

• Supervise junior research staff, undergraduate and graduate student projects

• Manage logistical issues and laboratory inventory

• Coordinate collaborative work within multidisciplinary team and external collaborators

• Generate periodic progress report as required by funding agency

• Report and manuscript writing

Job Requirements:

• PhD in Materials Science, Chemical Engineering, Biomaterials or related fields

• Experience in biomaterials, recycling of biomass, functionalization, and characterization preferred (e.g. SEM, XRD, DLS, FTIR, TGA/DSC, ICP-MS, etc.)

• A strong track record of research ability and demonstrated contribution to research (e.g., research publications, grant applications, patents) required

• Experience in agriculture research preferred

• Experience in hydrogels, aerogels, or porous materials preferred

• Good communication and writing skills

• Good coordination/project management skills

• Able to plan and execute experiments with minimal supervision

• Able to take initiative to improve processes and troubleshoot problems

• Able to organize well and adhere to deadlines

We regret to inform that only shortlisted candidates will be notified.