About the job

GFZ is Germany's national centre for solid Earth research. We advance the understanding of dynamic processes to address global challenges, from mitigating the impacts of natural hazards and sustaining our habitat amid global change to responsibly managing georesources. We are part of the Helmholtz Association, the largest German scientific organisation. With around 1,200 employees as well as ca. 500 guest researchers, we contribute to the Helmholtz Research Field Earth and Environment, aligning cutting-edge research with societal relevance and international collaboration. Our work integrates multidisciplinary studies across Earth's system components, leveraging advanced technologies and infrastructure to research solutions and to transfer our knowledge to society. We are doing this in line with our vision: “Taking the pulse of our Earth to safeguard a habitable planet”.

For section 3.3 Geomicrobiology (department “Geochemistry”), we are looking for a:

Doctoral Researcher (f_m_x) - "Geomicrobiology/Microbial Ecology"

Reference Number 11387

The position is part of the Biochar-Now research project, which is funded by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space. In order to keep the rise in global warming below 2 �C (Paris Agreement), it has become clear that the mere reduction of greenhouse gas emissions will not be sufficient and that CO2 drawdown from the atmosphere will be essential. One technological solution is the pyrolytic fixation of photosynthetically generated biomass to biochar. Biochar products are mainly used as an agricultural enhancer, whereas the coal itself remains inert and leads to long-term storage of CO2-derived carbon in soils. To significantly increase the extent of CO2 drawdown with the biochar technique, we will explore the potential and the environmental risks of biochar, generated from various organic-rich municipal waste streams, such as sewage sludge, particle board wood remains, other waste wood, compost sieve overflow etc. In addition to the production of biochar, the research will focus in particular on the release of organic pollutants and heavy metals from the coal.

Your Responsibilities

• Development and optimisation of methods for the extraction of DNA and RNA from biochar samples and leachates
• Molecular characterisation of biochar microbiomes using high-throughput sequencing approaches (e.g., 16S/18S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and shotgun sequencing)
• Bioinformatic analysis and interpretation of microbial diversity and functional data
• Planning, conducting, and evaluating incubation experiments to investigate microbially driven biochar degradation and contaminant release
• Analysis of microbial community dynamics, biofilm formation, and microbial metabolic processes associated with biochar
• Integration of molecular biological, geochemical, and spectroscopic datasets to assess the stability and environmental impacts of biochar
• Presentation and publication of research findings at scientific conferences and in international peer-reviewed journals
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