Research Supervisor Connect
Our group combines chemistry, physics, materials science and engineering to solve important problems, ranging from exploring lightning and the chemical origin of life, to developing electrified chemical processes and mitigating climate change.
We work on plasma (air gap)-electrochemical synthesis, magneto-electrochemistry, and zero-carbon polymers as three innovations for a lower carbon future.
What are the early steps in the chemical origin of life on Earth, prior to the existence of complex organic molecules and biology? Could Earth have relied on fallen meteorites carrying alien species, or could lightning storms have turned an inorganic Earth and its inert atmosphere into chemically reactive building blocks for early life to emerge, survive, and evolve? Our group tests the “Frankenstein” scenario, experimentally simulating lightning strikes under a prebiotic Earth-like environment on the bench top. We explore reaction pathways uniquely enabled by plasma- and radical- chemistry, as well as the role of reactive interfaces (e.g., mineral surfaces or volcanic aerosols) in electrochemical synthesis, under geologically plausible conditions.
The emergence, survival, and evolution of biology requires dependable sources of nitrogen and carbon. Lightning could have been a consistent provider of nutrients during a significant part of Earth’s (and perhaps other planets') history, when deliveries of organic compounds from space were rare and enzymes may have not yet formed in significant populations. This experimental study will demonstrate how cloud-to-ground lightning storms (and other high-energy sources) could have driven radical and electrochemical reactions across interfaces that connect gas (i.e., the atmosphere), liquid (i.e., oceans, lakes and ponds), and solid (i.e., sediments, rocks, and land) phases on the early Earth, and under plausible conditions of other planets. Expected outcome includes experimental demonstrations and scaling analysis of how lightning induced plasma electrochemistry could have generated high concentrations of nitrogen- and carbon-containing feedstocks locally, and produced a range of reagents globally that were relevant (and crucial) to emergent life.
For both PhD and MPhil. Associates with scholarship opportunities.
Requirements:
- a major in Chemistry / Physics / Astronomy / Materials Science / Chemical Engineering or a related field
- a 4-year undergraduate degree (awarded First Class Honours or equivalent), or a Masters Degree (research-focused)
- prior research experience (with at least 1 high-quality publication, preferably first-author)
- excellent communication skills in English (e.g., IELTS >6.5 across all sections; or TOFEL >90 overall, with >22 across all section)
- an overall GPA of above 3.3/4.0 (or >83%, top 15% in your class)
- from one of the top 200 (preferably top 100) universities worldwide
Interested applicants can forward their CVs to joy.jiang@sydney.edu.au
Project Keywords:
Abiotic chemistry, electrochemistry, minerals, electrocatalysis, geochemistry, organic synthesis, physical chemistry, environmental science, analytical chemistry, atmospheric radical reactions, climate change, CO2 reduction, nitrogen fixation, plasma chemistry, plasma physics, green chemistry, electrification, electrical discharge, energy, nanotechnology, nanomaterials, materials science, chemical engineering.
The opportunity ID for this research opportunity is 3574