One temporary Early Stage Researcher, offered within the Horizon MSCA-Doctoral Network (DN) project CaviPRO

Applications are invited from suitably qualified candidates for a position as an Early Stage Researcher (ESR) under the supervision of members of the CaviPRO Consortium located at the University of Limerick, Ireland. CaviPRO is an international research and training project that is funded by the Horizon 2020 research and innovation program of the European Commission. The ESR position is an MSCA DN-funded PhD position available from 1^st September 2026 to the contract end date.

Job Information

Offer Description

The CaviPRO Project

Hydrodynamic cavitation (HC) is known for causing damage to machines, pipelines, and equipment due to the formation and implosion of tiny gas bubbles and local temperature hotspots. Controlling and utilizing these harsh micro-conditions has the potential to revolutionize process unit operations such as mixing, reactions, emulsions, and particle formation for the benefit of the European process industries and global industrial community. Systematic understanding of the physicochemical phenomena occurring in HC and the design of HC reactors and scale-up are missing. Now it is time to guide the research further towards game-changing implementations that utilize HC and orchestrate them in large systems that are ready for industrial deployment. Therefore, we propose the ITN project CaviPRO, which aims (a) to push the current scientific boundaries and explore entirely new directions of fundamental research on controlled cavitation that is linked to state-of-the-art additive manufacturing, advanced process control and machine learning; and (b) to educate and mentor 10 curious and capable doctoral candidates to form a critical mass of fully skilled young professionals acting as multipliers to develop technologies across Europe. The CaviPRO consortium brings together leading experts from Ireland, Germany, France, Italy, Slovenia, and Switzerland to create new knowledge and innovations for harnessing hydrodynamic cavitation, resulting in rapid economic growth and leadership in this field. The network is built on synergies and complementarities between leading scientists, world-class institutions, different disciplines, and the incorporation of several industries as drivers – ranging from start-ups to SMEs to global players – from all over Europe. In the medium- to long-term, we have the joint vision to create new and sustainable education structures with strong involvement from key stakeholders. The approach blends research, manufacturing, and customer-driven process design in an innovative way with short times to market, high efficiency, and low costs.

Position Offered

A temporary Early-Stage Researcher position is offered, which will start on 1^st September 2026. Note that the MSCA-DN mobility clause applies; the applicant may not have spent 12 months or more in the past 3 years in Italy. Candidates should not already hold a doctoral degree. Candidates must be eligible to work according to their host country’s regulations (for instance, visa requirements) and to work in other European countries for secondments and meetings.

Research topic: Hydrodynamic cavitation and related hybrid technologies for pollutant removal from wastewater

Host: UNITO

Main Supervisor: Professor Giancarlo Cravotto

Duration: 17 months, starting 1 September 2026

Profile: A candidate with a Master's degree in chemistry or pharmaceutical chemistry and technology. Proficiency in chemical processing, water treatment, cavitational treatments, and experiments is a plus.

Description: Advancing HC and related hybrid technologies, such as ozone-strong water (OSW), HC and electrical discharge plasma, HC vortex, and ultrasound, are forward-looking technologies for the removal of persistent pollutants in water. These technologies boost hydroxyl radical formation with excellent oxidation power. In the case of HC combined with electrical discharge plasma, strong pyrolytic effects are observed. However, most of these protocols suffer from an empirical approach, in particular for OSW, where the adaptation of pH and ozone concentration during the cavitation process is crucial for stable ozone dissolution and pollutant removal efficiency. Moreover, the characterization of generated transformation products is critical for the evaluation of treated water quality. This research project aims to enhance hydroxyl radical yield and advanced oxidation processes by a factor of 2 and to realize high degradation rates of pollutants like drugs and pesticides. The key objectives are: 1) Bench and pilot scale experiments covering relevant process parameters and identification of optimal parameters for wastewater treatment; 2) Investigation of OH radical yield and organic degradation kinetics; 3) Determination of efficiency and effluent water quality during degradation of three dominant and highly persistent pollutants, such as diclofenac and estrogen. The hybrid technique HC/cold Plasma will be applied for the more recalcitrant molecules. The key expected results are: 1) First demonstration of removal of highly persistent pollutants from wastewater with continuous or semi-continuous processes; 2) Optimal process parameters based on systematic design of experiments (DOE); 3) Proof of higher removal efficiency (including downstream transformation products) at lower power input compared to conventional methods.