Rienk Eelkema

PhD opportunity in biobased polymer–nanoclay composites for sustainable building materials at Delft University of Technology , within the Department of Chemical Engineering and the BIO-Skin consortium (Bio-Inspired Outer Surfaces to Kool, Insulate and Nurture), led by TU Delft. The project focuses on developing circular, biobased, and biophilic building components using polymer matrices derived from waste-based, biodegradable materials produced by Calayda and Recell. Research will examine the stability, composition, and properties of these biobased polymers and then incorporate them into nanoclay structures to create sustainable composite materials with tailored properties for building applications. Students will work with a range of analytical and spectroscopic techniques, including NMR , GPC/SEC , rheology , and thermal analysis , to characterise the polymers and understand structure–property relationships. The work will be carried out mostly in the Department of Chemical Engineering at TU Delft, with selected aspects in collaboration with partners inside and outside the department and university. This is a fully funded 4-year PhD position under the supervision of Dr. Tessel Bouwens , Prof. Stephen Picken , and Prof. Rienk Eelkema . Applications are open now and should be submitted via the provided application link. For more information, contact Dr. Tessel Bouwens at t.bouwens@tudelft.nl .