Job Type
Teaching/Education
Research
Activities
PhD Research Activity – Universidade Estadual de Maringá (UEM), Brazil
As a PhD student at the Universidade Estadual de Maringá (UEM), my research focuses on the development of sustainable, high-performance activated carbons from waste polyurethane foam for the removal of microplastics and emerging organic contaminants from wastewater.
Skills
Technical Skills
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Synthesis of activated carbon from waste polyurethane foam
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Pyrolysis and chemical activation (KOH and H₃PO₄)
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Adsorbent design and optimization
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Adsorption of microplastics, nanoplastics, and emerging organic contaminants
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Wastewater treatment and environmental remediation
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Experimental design (Design of Experiments, DOE) and Response Surface Methodology (RSM)
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Adsorption kinetics, isotherms, and thermodynamic modeling
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Materials characterization and physicochemical analysis
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Preparation of polymer contaminant solutions and adsorption experiments
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Regeneration and reusability evaluation of adsorbent materials
Laboratory Skills
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Sample preparation and chemical handling
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Batch adsorption experiments
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Pyrolysis and thermal treatment of carbon materials
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Preparation of standard solutions and calibration curves
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Centrifugation, filtration, drying, and washing techniques
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Laboratory safety and good laboratory practices (GLP)
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Data collection, documentation, and quality control
Instrumentation
Experience with or knowledge of:
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Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM)
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Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR)
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BET surface area and pore size analysis
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Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA)
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X-ray Diffraction (XRD)
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Raman Spectroscopy
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UV–Visible Spectrophotometry
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Elemental Analysis (CHNS)
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Zeta Potential Analysis
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Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry (GC–MS) (for material and degradation studies)
