Development of a novel Enantioselective Crystal Floatation (ECF) Process for the separation of industrially relevant chiral compounds
Supervisors: Prof Klaus Hellgardt (Imperial College London), Dr Christian Holtze (BASF)
Home Department: Department of Chemical Engineering at Imperial College London (South Kensington Campus)
Funding and Deadline: To be eligible for support, applicants must be “UK Residents” as defined by the EPSRC. The studentship is for 4 years starting as soon as possible and will provide full coverage of standard tuition fees and an annual tax-free stipend of approximately £21,240. Applicants should hold or expect to obtain a First-Class Honours or a high 2:1 degree at master's level (or equivalent) in any relevant chemical engineering or science subject.Funding is co-funded through Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and BASF.
Project summary
The Industry Case (IDLA) PhD student will join an interdisciplinary cohort of students working under the umbrella of the IConIC Prosperity Partnership An internship of min. 3 months will be facilitated and sponsored by BASF for the utilization of specific infrastructure and technology transfer.
Chiral separation is crucial in the pharmaceutical and agrochemical industries, making high-purity separation essential. Innovative technologies that enhance efficiency, scalability, and versatility for diverse chiral compounds are necessary. This PhD project will focus on a novel Enantioselective Crystal Floatation process first conceived in collaboration with BASF SE, aiming to evaluate and extend its application to other chiral systems. This separation is based on the remarkable discovery that the racemic crystals and enantiopure crystals of chiral compounds have different surface energies due to the arrangement of enantiomers within the crystal lattice. A significant challenge of this technique is that it can only separate pre-enriched enantiomer solutions near the eutectic point of the ternary mixture. To address this, a Continuous Annular Chromatography (CAC) system will serve as the pre-enrichment step for partial enrichment, facilitating the initial separation of enantiomers before crystallization. A key objective is to merge the novel ECF process with known CAC technology to create a unified process for complete chiral separation of racemic mixtures.
Key questions to be addressed during the PhD will be:
The main limitation of ECF technology is its requirement for a pre-enantiomer-enriched solution, necessitating an additional enrichment step that restricts its applicability. While chromatography can provide this pre-enrichment, High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) can be costly and complex. A cost-benefit analysis reveals diminishing returns at >90% enrichment, as similar construction is needed for final purification and polishing. In contrast, Continuous Annular Chromatography can manage higher throughput and be adapted for partial enrichment without the high costs of HPLC. However, integrating this with the ECF process presents challenges due to differing unit operations and conditions. The floatation process must be further developed to become more adaptable to other chiral systems. Understanding how these two systems can be optimized and integrated, including effective solvent exchange and recovery, is crucial. Efficient solvent management is essential for maintaining system performance, and a complete unit can be designed to incorporate both techniques, ultimately enhancing the efficiency of chiral compound purification.
Utilisation of captured CO2 as a sustainable feedstock for chemicals production using microwave-assisted plasmolysis coupled with downstream gas separation
The global chemicals industry currently embeds ~450 MT of carbon (C) in its products (the majority from fossil feedstocks) compared to ~37 GT C emitted worldwide as CO2. Captured CO2 can be split into CO and O2 using electrically-driven plasmas, which are well-suited to the intermittent availability of renewable energy (e.g. wind and solar). In this project you will investigate experimentally the production of high purity CO by the dissociation of CO2 (with realistic impurities) in a microwave-assisted plasma, focusing on reaction engineering, process safety, and the challenging separation of O2 from CO.
The post is funded by the EPSRC Prosperity Partnership programme ‘IConIC’ (Grant Ref: EP/X025292/1) and will be based at Imperial College London with significant interaction with BASF and partners related to the programme.
The primary objective of this Prosperity Partnership (IConIC) is aimed at addressing the current bottlenecks in the implementation of flow chemistry in along the entire value chain of chemical manufacturing: this includes the development of novel manufacturing routes and practices that are not only industrially viable and scalable, but also meet regulatory and environmental standards. The programme will also develop new ways of identifying and mitigate the risks and uncertainties that can hinder investment in continuous flow manufacturing.
You will join a highly collaborative and multidisciplinary team, which includes PhD students and postdocs associated with this new project.
Research Assistant or Associate in Sustainable & Scalable Industrial Biocatalysis
About the role
In collaboration with EPSRC, Imperial and the world’s leading Chemical Engineering Company, we are seeking a Research Assistant or Associate to join the Innovative Continuous Manufacturing of Industrial Chemicals (IConIC) consortium. The main aim of this Prosperity Partnership is to translate the UK’s scientific leadership in Flow Chemistry into industrial leadership and commercial value; to realise a step change in the implementation of continuous flow processing for the manufacture of high-value chemicals.
What you would be doing
Previously, work in our research team has led to the development of a Flash Thermal Racemization process which can significantly increase the productivity of dynamic kinetic resolution of chiral amines (M. J. Takle, B. J. Deadman, K. Hellgardt, J. Dickhaut, A. Weija, K. K. Hii, ACS Catal. 2023, 13, 10541-6. DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.3c02859).
In this project, you will be involved in the further development of the concept into a sustainable and scale process for the manufacture of chiral active pharmaceutical ingredients. This project involves a close working relationships with one of the IConIC industrial partners (ALMAC) and may involve a short industrial placement at their Northern Ireland R&D laboratory.
What we are looking for
Research Associate:Hold a PhD in chemistry, chemical engineering or a closely related discipline, or equivalent research, industrial or commercial experience Research Assistant:A first / masters degree (or equivalent) in chemistry chemical engineering or a closely related discipline
Practical experience in asymmetric synthesis, kinetic experiments and flow chemistry
Knowledge in one or more of the following areas: Asymmetric synthesis, catalysis, flow chemistry
Knowledge of research methods and best practices, particularly continuous flow
What we can offer you
Work and collaborate with Industry Partners
The opportunity to continue your career at a world-leading institution and be part of our mission to continue science for humanity
Sector-leading salary and remuneration package (including 39 days off a year and generous pension schemes).
Benefit from a sector-leading salary and remuneration package (including 39 days’ annual leave and generous pension schemes)
Access to a range of workplace benefits including a flexible working policy from day one, generous family leave packages, on-site leisure facilities and cycle-to-work scheme
Interest-free season ticket loan schemes for travel
Be part of a diverse, inclusive and collaborative work culture with variousstaff networksand resources to support your personal and professionalwellbeing
Further information
Candidates who have not yet been officially awarded their PhD will be appointed as a Research Assistant.
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