H2020 MARIE SKŁODOWSKA CURIE ACTIONSINDIVIDUAL FELLOWSHIP CALL 2020

BOOST YOUR CAREER WITH MSCA INDIVIDUAL FELLOWSHIPAT NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CHEMISTRY, SLOVENIA

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THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CHEMISTRY (NIC)

WHAT DO THE NIC OFFER YOU WITHIN MSCA IF 2020?

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• Prestigious career opportunities• Excellent working conditions: employment

contracts, full social security etc.• Very competitive salaries• Opportunities to work and train with the best

researchers in Europe and worldwide• Whole career training: complementary skills• Access to top level conferences, professional

associations & Marie Curie Alumni

Individual Fellowships

IFexperiencedresearchers(> 4 years)

Support for experienced researchers to undertake international and inter-sector mobility, incl. career restart and reintegration

• Individual trans-national post-doctoral fellowships for the best and most promising experienced researchers

• Two types depending on the mobility of the researcher

• Within or into Europe -European Fellowships

• Outside Europe - Global Fellowships

• MOBILITY: Applicants must not have resided or carried out their main activity in the country of the host organisation for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to the call deadline

• SCIENTIFIC DOMAIN: Chemistry (CHE), Information Science and Engineering (ENG), Environment and Geosciences (ENV), Life Sciences (LIF)

TIMELINE

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Individual Fellowships

IFexperiencedresearchers(> 4 years)

Support for experienced researchers to undertake international and inter-sector mobility, incl. career restart and reintegration

Call Opens Closes

MSCA IF 2020 8 APRIL 2020 9 SEPTEMBER2020

APPLICATION AT NIC:Reach an agreement on the Supervisor and the Topic

WHO?Fellow appy to project.office@ki.si

DEADLINE22 MAY 2020

5 SEPTEMBER 2020Submission deadlinefor NIC IndividualResearchers

1 JUNE – 1 SEPTEMBER 2020Proposal preparation by researcher with the support of Supervisor and Project Management Office

31 MAY 2020Eligibility Assessment at NICNotification of selection

22 MAY 2020Closure NIC MSCA IF Call Submit the application to the National Institute of Chemistry

PROPOSED RESEARCH TOPICS AT THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CHEMISTRY

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Prof. dr. Roman JERALA Prof. dr. Albin PINTAR

Visible light assistedphotocatalysis for watertreatment

Designed bionanostructures(protein origami)

Cancer immunotherapy

Synthetic biology of mammaliancells – design of signalingpathways

Materials used as photocatalysts in theprocess of heterogeneous photocatalyticoxidation must be significantly improved inorder to make this process economicallyattractive. In this respect, novelnanostructured and nanoshapedphotocatalysts (including nanoplasmonicsolids) will be developed that will allowefficient harvesting of visible light

spectrum.

Direct biogas to liquid fuelconversionBiogas (i.e. a mixture of methane and carbondioxide) is produced by anaerobic darkfermentation of solid wastes andrenewables. Multifunctional heterogeneouscatalysts will be developed that will enableefficient and direct transformation of biogasto either dimethylether or methanol in asingle reactor unit.

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Prof. dr. Blaž LIKOZAR

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Prof. dr. Miran GABERŠČEK

Application of chemical reaction /reactor engineering/multi-scale process modelling to new emerging challenges• chemical (process) engineering,

reactor and unit operation design andconstruction, as well as multi-scaleprocess modelling.

• carbon dioxide conversion: reversewater–gas shift (RWGS), methanol,formaldehyde, dimethyl ether (DME),carboxylation, etc.

• natural gas conversion: non-oxidative/oxidative methaneconversion to ethane, ethylene andothers, dehydrogenations, etc.

• electro-catalysis with fuel celltechnologies: novel catalystfabrication, characterisation andapplication (ORR, HER, CO2RR, etc.).

• biomass valorisation to bio-basedcompounds: lignin, cellulose,hemicellulose, aromatics, hydroxyl-methyl furfural, furfural, etc.

• (bio)pharmaceutical processes:particle engineering development (e.g.crystallisation), metabolic network modelling, etc.

Synthesis and advancedelectrochemical characterisation oflow-cost and sustainableelectrocatalysts for FuelCells/Electrolysers

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PROPOSED RESEARCH TOPICS AT THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CHEMISTRY

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Prof. dr. Ivan JERMAN Prof. dr. Gregor ANDERLUH / dr. Marjetka PODOBNIK

• Structural and functional studies ofproteins involved in pathogenesis ofintracellular bacteria (e.g. Listeriamonocytogenesis)

• Membrane interactions andmechanism of action of pore formingtoxins from all kingdoms of life

• Studies of interactions betweenproteins and membranes at thestructural and functional level

• Evolution of small tightly foldedbinding modules and ligand bindingsites

• Synthetic biology of nanopores• Structural and functional studies of

plant viruses

Concentrated Solar Nano Coatingsfor Electricity production

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Prof.dr. Gregor MALI

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Prof.dr. Nataša ZABUKOVEC LOGAR

Development and application ofsolid-state NMR methods for theinvestigations of formation, forstructure determination and forin-situ studies of theperformance of porous catalystsand adsorbents.

Expertise required by the applicant: basicprogramming skills (e.g. C, Matlab orsimilar; familiarity with Linux is anadvantage).

Development of nanoporousmaterials for heat storage/transformation applications, including design of new poroussolids and post-synthesismodification of sorbentsTailoring of hydrophilic properties ofinorganic and metal-organic sorptionmaterials.

Development of nanoporousmaterials for carbon capture andutilization (CCSU) technologiesProviding more compact configurations(composite materials, porous monoliths,etc.) to improve the energy and productioncosts in gas separation and conversion.Expertise required by the applicant:Laboratory synthesis skills,Understanding/use of characterisationmethods (XRD, TG/DSC, SEM, gas sorption).

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PROPOSED RESEARCH TOPICS AT THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CHEMISTRY

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Prof. dr. Nataša NOVAK TUŠAR Prof. dr. Robert DOMINKO

Artificial SEI on metal lithium

Li-ion batteries are most promising portablestorage devices and their energy density canbe further improved by replacement ofnegative electrode by metallic lithium. Thelatter needs to be protected if we want toavoid formation of dendrites and constantpassivation. Protection layers can be basedon polymers or alloys.

Development of multimetalfunctionalized porous materialsfor catalytic air and waterpurification

Metals on porous supports, metals on mixed oxides photocatalyst TiO2/SiO2, double layered hydroxides on porous supports.

Expertise required by the applicant: Laboratory synthesis skills, Understanding/use of characterisation methods (XRD, TG/DSC, SEM, gas sorption).

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Prof. dr. Simona GOLIČ GRDADOLNIK

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Prof. dr. Franci MERZEL

The role of protein dynamics at the ligand-protein bindingprocess

The aim of these studies is a site specificcharacterization of protein dynamicprocesses in ligand-protein complexes ona wide range time scale at atomic levelusing spectroscopic methods andmolecular dynamics simulations. This isrequired for the proper understanding ofligand-protein binding mechanisms. Ingeneral, the anticipated results will inspirefuture research of the poorly explored roleof dynamics and molecular flexibility inbiological processes and can have directimpact on the development of noveltherapeutic agents.

Computational characterization ofstructural dynamics underlyingfunction in proteinsMolecular dynamics simulations and freeenergy calculations are powerful biophysicaltools offering spatial and temporalresolutions that can effectively complementexperimental methodologies in studyingmolecular basis of protein function:• How hydration water assists protein

function?• How does water pass through

membrane transporters (SGLT)?

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Prof. dr. Jože GRDADOLNIK Prof. dr. Samo HOČEVAR

Electrochemical Sensors• Development of (micro)electrodes and electrochemical

(gas)sensors.• Development of sensing materials and study of electrode

processes at nano-scale and in real-time.• Development of electrochemical methodologies and

application studies.

Elemental (Bio)Imaging and Chemical Characterization• Development of 2D/3D elemental (bio)imaging using laser

ablation hyphenated with elemental mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS).

• Development of methodologies for the analysis of trace elements and organic species in environmental, biological/biomedical and material research (ICP-OES, ICP-MS, LC-MS/MS).

Atmospheric Chemistry• Study of chemical processes in atmospheric aerosols• Physico-chemical characterization of size-segregated

atmospheric (nano)aerosols.• Development of novel methods for (outdoor & indoor)

nanoparticle characterization and study of their transformations.

Protein aggregation monitored byvibrational spectroscopyInfrared, micro Raman, VCD, NMR andadvanced theoretical methods will be usedto study the structural phase transitions ofpoly-L-lysine and polyglutamate induced bytemperature and/or by changing the pH.The stability of peptide structure andintermediates will be tested in the presenceof various types of cosolvents. Acquiredknowledge from model systems will beapplied in the study of amyloidalaggregation of insulin, which is related totype I diabetes mellitus.

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ELIGIBILITY RULES

THERE ARE THREE MAIN REQUIREMENTS OF ELIGIBILITY:

1. RESEARCHER MUST HAVE A PhD (OR EQUIVALENT RESEARCH EXPERIENCE OF AT LEAST FOUR YEARS’ FULL TIME RESEARCH EXPERIENCE BY THE TIME OF THE CALL DEADLINE: SEPTEMBER 9TH 2020).

2. RESEARCHER CAN BE OF ANY NATIONALITY BUT MUST NOT HAVE LIVED OR WORKED IN SLOVENIA FOR MORE THAN 12 MONTHS DURING THE THREE YEARS UP TO THE CLOSING DATE OF THE CALL (MOBILITY RULE).

3. THE APPLICANTS MUST CHOOSE THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CHEMISTRY, SLOVENIA AS THEIR HOST INSTITUTION.

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HOW TO APPLY?

WE WELCOME APPLICATIONS OF HIGHLY MOTIVATED EXPERIENCED RESEARCHERS (WITH A DOCTORALDEGREE OR AT LEAST FOUR YEARS OF FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT RESEARCH EXPERIENCE) OF ANYNATIONALITY.

NIC CALL CLOSING DATE: 22 MAY 2020

In order to apply the applicants must choose one of the “Supervisors project proposals” and send the following three forms as pdf files to: project.office@ki.si with the subject: MSCA-IF2020-Application1. Curriculum vitae and publications list2. Letter of motivation and research statement (provided template)3. Eligibility Self-declaration (provided template)

All forms are compulsory. Applications lacking any document will not be considered.

Fluent knowledge of English language is necessary. Knowledge of Slovenian is notrequired.

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National Institute of Chemistry

Hajdrihova 191001 Ljubljana, Slovenia

Webpage: www.ki.sie-mail: project.office@ki.siPhone: 00386 (1) 476 0498

Fax: 00386 (1) 476 03 00

YOUR SUPPORT