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CYPRUS UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science and Engineering Archimedes Solar Energy Laboratory (ASEL)
Research Fellow (doctoral candidate) Position -Postgraduate Associate / Assistant Researcher A – R1**
Applications are invited from candidates who possess the necessary qualifications in order to fill one (1) Full-time Research Fellow (doctoral candidate) position - Postgraduate Associate / Assistant Researcher A – R1** at the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science and Engineering - Archimedes Solar Energy Laboratory (ASEL) in the field of “Mechanical Engineering, Thermal Sciences, Energy Systems, or similar”, within the framework of the project “Grid-scale Energy Storage: Imperatives for Accelerating the Green Transition (RESTORATIVE)”, funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe’s Research and Innovation Programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Grant Agreement No. 101227219.
** According to the European Framework for Research Careers
Applicants should have:
- Candidates must have a two-year master's degree (120 ECTS points) or a similar degree with an academic level equivalent to a two-year master's degree in mechanical engineering, thermal sciences, or similar.
- Very good knowledge of English (spoken and written)
An important requirement is that the applicant must not have lived in Cyprus for more than 12 months in the 36 months prior to the starting date of the position (i.e., September 2026).
The following will be considered as an advantage:
- Experience with research on thermo-mechanical energy storage systems, programming in dynamic modeling software and of energy systems in TRNSYS is a plus.
- Mobility experience/International and professional mobility.
Further obligations
The Research Fellow (Doctoral Candidate - DC) is expected to visit the network partners during secondments for a total duration of 9 months (6 months in University of Lleida, Spain, and 3 months at B2Z in Spain). Due to the mobility rules of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie program, the applicant must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Cyprus for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before their recruitment date.
RESTORATIVE consists of 17 PhD positions at 7 universities and 4 companies. The project has a total of 16 beneficiaries and associated partners from 10 different European countries. All 17 PhD projects fall within the overall theme of grid-scale energy storage technologies, but investigate the topic from different perspectives, including technological development, reliability and security, integration and coupling, socioeconomic and environmental assessment, and policy and regulation.
This PhD project will take place at CUT - ASEL. Apart from the time at CUT there will be two secondments for the position, i.e. one academic secondment of approx. 6 months at University of LIeida, Spain, and one industrial secondment for 3 months at B2Z in Spain.
In addition, there will also be common gatherings and trainings with the other 16 PhD students in the doctoral network, including 3 summer/winter schools in Denmark and Italy and 2 online workshops.
As a participant in the project, the Research Fellow (doctoral candidate) student will become part of the Archimedes Solar Energy Laboratory team at CUT with expertise in solar thermal and other renewable energy systems. The activities within the project will benefit from synergies with other projects in the group as well as with other activities at the department. The main supervisor will be Professor Soteris Kalogirou, and the co-supervisor will be Ass. Professor Melita Menelaou.
We offer
CUT is a leading technical university based in Limassol-Cyprus, globally recognized for its excellence in research, education, innovation and scientific advice. We offer a rewarding and challenging job in an international environment. We strive for academic excellence in an environment characterized by collegial respect and academic freedom tempered by responsibility.
Responsibilities and tasks
The overall aim is to develop models and approaches (mainly TRNSYS, and EES) for design, optimization, and dynamic modeling of high temperature thermal storage suitable for concentrating solar power (CSP) systems. The key tasks include:
- Develop, optimize, and validate through experimental studies a new concrete-based material for high-temperature sensible heat storage going beyond today’s limit of safe sensible heat storage temperature without corrosion and material degradation issues (700oC) with cheap and abundantly available materials.
- The work includes laboratory work for the material synthesis of the PCM and material screening for the concrete. Injecting the PCM into the raw concrete materials (cement, aggregates, water), and the developed hybrid material will be stored under controlled conditions for testing.
- Optimization of the material composition to improve the material’s performance, stability, and thermophysical properties for the desired temperature level.
- Carry out charging/discharging experiments of the material and also designing the TES unit filled with the developed concrete-based material.
- Develop a model of the newly developed TES in the TRNSYS library to allow for a long-term simulation of the system to drive dynamic performance results.
- Dynamic modeling of the system to provide detailed insight into effectiveness during part-load operation, startup/shutdown, and load-changing states.
- Techno-economic assessment of the system and benchmarking against other competing technologies.
As part of this work for sensible high-temperature heat storage, various material combinations will be tested in small modules to identify additive PCMs that enhance concrete’s heat storage capacity at high temperatures. Maximum temperature differences will also be examined to prevent cracking. A lab-scale setup will be constructed, tested, and modelled in simulation software (e.g., TRNSYS) to evaluate its effectiveness in Carnot Batteries and solar thermal systems.
Τhe appointment will be for a period of 36 months. Monthly gross salary for the position will be € 2458,33. From this amount employer and employee contributions to the Cyprus government funds will be deducted (Note: the monthly gross salary after the deduction of employer contributions amounts to €2130,26 until 31.12.28 and €2121,07 from 1.1.29 for 143,33 hours/month full time employment, based on the legislation currently in effect. From this amount, employee contributions will be deducted, according to current legislation). It is noted that there is provision for 13th salary (the cost of the 13th salary has been proportionally incorporated in the monthly remuneration as analyzed above).
Mobility Allowance
Recruited research fellows (doctoral candidates) under Horizon Europe receive a mobility allowance (€600/month), a fixed monthly contribution provided via the European Commission. It supports costs related to transnational mobility, including relocation and travel, and is granted to all research fellows (doctoral candidates) regardless of family status.
Family Allowance
A family allowance is provided under Horizon Europe as a fixed monthly contribution to research fellows (doctoral candidates) who, at the time of recruitment, have a spouse, a recognized partnership equivalent to marriage, and/or dependent children. It supports additional costs arising from family obligations during the fellowship.
Applicants are requested to submit the following:
1. A letter in which they express their interest and which clearly shows the date on which they can assume duties in case of selection
2. Complete Curriculum Vitae (CV)
2. Proof of their qualifications
3. The names and contact information of two people who are willing to provide references
4. Complete contact information
All the above must be combined in a single PDF document.
Applications must be submitted electronically at Application 2026CODE8_RF_MEM no later than Friday 12 June 2026 (23:59 GMT+2), which is the deadline for the submission of the applications.
Candidates applying for the position “Research Fellow (Doctoral Candidate) – Postgraduate Associate / Assistant Researcher A – R1” under the RESTORATIVE Doctoral Network call, are also required to submit an application through the corresponding Doctoral Vacancy Announcement procedure of the Cyprus University of Technology (link: https://www.cut.ac.cy/studies/phd/phd-posts/mem-pg/).
All interested candidates irrespective of age, gender, disability, race, religion or ethnic background are encouraged to apply. As CUT works with research in critical technology, which is subject to special rules for security and export control, open-source background checks may be conducted on qualified candidates for the position.
For further information visit the University’s webpage www.cut.ac.cy or contact Professor Soteris Kalogirou at soteris.kalogirou@cut.ac.cy.
Candidates who fulfil the requirements of the position may be invited for a personal interview by the Selection Committee. All candidates will be informed of the outcome of their application, once the procedure is completed. It is estimated that the procedure will be completed within 1 to 2 months from the deadline for the submission of applications
It is noted that:
- The University adopts an equal opportunity policy at recruitment and the subsequent career stages and encourages all genders to submit an application for all levels of Academic and Administrative Staff.
- The University does not discriminate in any way on the basis of gender, religion or belief, ethnic, national or social origin, age, physical ability, marital status and sexual orientation.
Information on the Equality Policies, as well as opportunities for Research/Mobility and Professional Development can be found at the following link: DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND EQUALITY POLICIES
The OTM-R (Open - Transparent - Merit Recruitment Policy) for Researchers of the University can be found at: OTM-R
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The University has been granted by the European Commission the ‘HR Excellence in Research’ award, which recognises the University’s commitment for the continuous improvement of the working and research environment of its researchers. More information can be found at https://www.cut.ac.cy/strategy_for_researchers/
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