Postdoctoral Researcher

• Full-time, 3 years fixed-term position at our Hawthorn campus
• Academic Level A or B salary + 17% super and staff benefits

About the Role
We have an exciting opportunity available for a Postdoctoral Researcher to join our Department of Engineering Technologies to conduct research on marine corrosion and biofouling. This position is suitable for candidates from a wide range of engineering and scientific disciplines, such as materials engineering, marine science, chemistry, chemical engineering, physics or microbiology.

The research will involve Marine Growth Protection Systems (MGPS) which are used in marine infrastructure to prevent fouling that otherwise can cause damage to, and failure of, critical components. The proposed study will investigate the efficacy of MGPS against a range of performance indicators including biofouling, abiotic corrosion and microbiologically influenced corrosion and how the operational parameters and environmental conditions affect performance.

As the Postdoctoral Researcher, you will lead the design and execution of the research project with guidance from the Chief Investigator and partner investigators at the Defence Science and Technology Group. The project is funded through the ARC Training Centre for Biofilm Research and Innovation, which brings together local and international expertise to mentor and train the next generation of interdisciplinary scientists and engineers to develop solutions to improve efficiency in the maritime and defence industries and in water quality monitoring, and health and safety issues related to biofilms.

About You
To be suitable for this role you will need to have experience in the below key accountabilities:

• Demonstrated experience in performing laboratory tests relevant to marine corrosion.
• Experience in performing field tests relevant to marine corrosion is preferred.
• Experience with analytical techniques relevant to corrosion studies (e.g. SEM, XRD, optical microscopy, 3D optical profiling, water chemistry, etc.).
• Demonstrated ability to lead and manage research projects.
• Demonstrated commitment to research in the university context, a capacity in the use of a variety of research methods and a track record of publishing in discipline relevant quality academic journals.
• Demonstrated ability to apply, adapt and develop methods relevant to the study of marine biofilms, including environmental microbiology techniques or the demonstrated ability to acquire this expertise in the short-term is preferred.
• Industry or consulting experience including established links with relevant industries and organisations is desirable.

• A PhD in a relevant area of metallurgy, corrosion, chemical engineering, chemistry, marine science/biology, microbiology, physics or other associated discipline.
• Eligible and suitable to gain an Australian Government security clearance and meet International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR).