Associate Research Scientist (Internship)

We are looking for:

A student in pursuit of a science degree to safety procedures in the Syensqo environment and to develop good safety habits. He/she is also expected to carefully record and summarize generated data for the project. The candidate will work under the direct supervision of a senior scientist on the related project.

We count on you for:

• The candidate will use novel biomaterials to design biodegradable reticulated systems for encapsulation or barrier film formation that are key for personal care and agrochemical applications. Current technologies of crosslinked polymers for encapsulation of actives or for barrier films are plastics derived from petrochemicals. With increased understanding of the hazards of microplastics and looming regulatory pressure phasing out of such materials, there is a critical need for sustainable alternatives.
• The overall goal of this research at the PhysChem Cell is to explore novel biosourced molecular architectures. This will entail fundamental investigations of designing biodegradable crosslinked microcapsules and films with polysaccharides, proteins/peptides and explore green-crosslinking strategies.
• The challenge is to crosslink structures or durable associative molecular networks while retaining the inherent biodegradability. The candidate will have the opportunity to learn and utilize different physical chemistry techniques and tools; such as optical microscopy, confocal, atomic force microscopy, spectroscopy, zeta potential, light scattering, ellipsometry, quartz microbalance and/or rheology.

You can count on us:

• To carry out guided research where observation, independent deduction and directional input will be encouraged.
• To support and train you on the lab work and safety associated with it
• To give you the opportunity to interact with the different research teams in several scientific domains (e.g., microbiology, analytical, process safety,...)
• To develop your scientific, project management skills and knowledge on methodology.

You will bring:

• In pursuit of of Bachelor or Master degree in Chemistry, Polymer science, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science
• Hands on lab experience
• Interest in laboratory work
• Proactivity, multitasking and open-mindedness
• Data processing (such as Excel, Google Sheets)
• Ability to communicate clearly orally and in writing in English

You will get:

• Competitive internship salary
• Industry experience
• Great working environment & collaboration