On 10 October 2016 the official recruitment event took place in Leuven for the MSCA-ETN “COSMIC – European Training Network for Continuous Sonication and Microwave Reactors” within the Horizon 2020 Programme of the European Commission. From an initial list of 96 eligible COSMIC candidates, 23 were preselected for the Recruitment Event where they were interviewed by the COSMIC supervisors. Eventually, 13 candidates were recruited during the recruitment event and two positions were left over. One of this positions was filled last week and final interviews are still running for the remaining position. The winning candidates will start their research before the official kick-off meeting in March 2017.
Public Abstract COSMIC: The European chemical industry faces some very serious challenges if it is to retain its competitive position in the global economy. The new industries setting up in Asia and the Near East are based on novel process-intensification concepts, leaving Europe desperately searching for a competitive edge. The transition from batch to continuous micro- and milliflow processing is essential to ensure a future for the European fine-chemicals and pharmaceuticals industries. However, despite the huge interest shown by both academia and industrial R&D, many challenges remain, such as the problems of reaction activation, channel clogging due to solids formation and the scaling up of these technologies to match the required throughput. COSMIC, the European Training Network for Continuous Sonication and Microwave Reactors, takes on these challenges by developing material- and energy-efficient continuous chemical processes for the synthesis of organic molecules and nanoparticles. The intersectoral and interdisciplinary COSMIC training network consists of leading universities and industry participants and trains 15 ESRs in the areas of flow technology, millifluidics and external energy fields (ultrasound and microwaves). These energy fields can be applied in structured, continuous milli-reactors for producing high-value-added chemicals with excellent yield efficiencies – in terms of throughput, waste minimization and product quality – that simply cannot be achieved with traditional batch-type chemical reactors. The chemical processes that are at the heart of COSMIC’s game-changing research are catalytic reactions and solids-forming reactions. COSMIC’s success, which is based on integrating chemistry, physics and process technology, will re-establish European leadership in this crucial field and provide it with highly trained young experts ready for dynamic careers in the European chemical industry.
Beneficiaries: KU Leuven, University of Cordoba, University of Göttingen, University of Zaragoza, UCL, University of Turin, Microinnova, Arkema France
Partner Organisations: Smart Material GmbH, Weber Ultrasonics, Universitat Politécnica de Valéncia, MEAM
General contact persons for COSMIC
Prof. Tom Van Gerven – General Coordinator MSCA-ETN COSMIC
Department of Chemical Engineering | KU Leuven
Celestijnenlaan 200F, bus 2424 | BE-3001 Leuven | Belgium
Tel (+32-)16-32.23.42| tom.vangerven@kuleuven.be
URL: http://cit.kuleuven.be/process
Dr. Jeroen Jordens – Project Manager MSCA-ETN COSMIC
Department of Chemical Engineering | KU Leuven
Celestijnenlaan 200F, bus 2424 | BE-3001 Leuven | Belgium
Tel (+32-)16-32.06.86| jeroen.jordens@kuleuven.be
URL: http://cit.kuleuven.be/process
October 20th, 2016
