Mobility experience with a research focus
PhD sandwich; Post Doc
University of Pisa - Department of Energy, Systems, Territory and Construction Engineering
The Circular Economy (CE) aims to reduce pollutant emissions and prevent waste by recovering and intensifying the exploitation of energy flows and end-of- life products and materials. This objective is particularly significant in the Construction sector due to its considerable environmental impact and energy consumption. For instance, buildings are responsible for approximately 40% of energy consumption and 36% of CO2 emissions in the EU. Understanding the effectiveness of CE practices in reducing pollutant emissions in the construction sector is crucial for policymakers. This understanding will help address pathways for climate mitigation, such as identifying technologies, processes, and CE practices to promote or discourage. In addition, managers can benefit from these insights to reshape their CE strategies accordingly. However, current tools (e.g., energy-climate mitigation models) used to evaluate the future environmental impact of specific practices and technologies are more suitable for representing linear patterns of economic activity. These tools model Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions by economic sector but often fail to adequately consider direct emissions from upstream and downstream value chains, indirect emissions from cross-sector externalities, and potential emission savings from CE measures such as product lifetime extension, sharing models, and feedback loops. Consequently, current mitigation models struggle to account for materials' circularity and assess the CE impacts. Therefore, to achieve the emission reduction targets set by policymakers and to evaluate the CE impact on GHG abatement, it is urgent to augment such models with CE measures. Doing so will enhance the capability of current climate mitigation models to generate and assess circular climate mitigation options. The postdoc/PhD candidate will engage with these topics within the framework of CO2NSTRUCT, an EU-funded project involving UNIPI and six other universities and research centres. Specifically, the postdoc/PhD candidate will join an international team and will be involved in various research activities, such as:
• Mapping the supply chain for selected carbon-intensive
construction materials.
• Reviewing and analysing pertinent CE practices.
• Mapping the corresponding closed-loop supply chains.
• Interacting with EU partners and members of the user
board, including leading companies and international
organizations.
• Attending project meetings regularly with international
partners.
English
Eligible Backgrounds (in no particular order):
Architectural or Building Engineering, with a focus
on construction materials (e.g., cement, flat glass,
wood, steel, insulation materials; clay-based
materials)
Chemistry, with particular focus on construction
materials
Management Engineering or Industrial
Engineering, with a good understanding Supply
Chain and Value Chain Management
Environmental Science and Climate mitigation
PhD sandwich: 9-12
Post Doc: 9-12