PhD Studentship - Process Industries: Net Zero - Predictive Modelling of Powder Blending in Continuous Pharmaceutical Manufacturing

Award Summary

100% fees (UK home only), a minimum tax-free annual living allowance of £21,805 (2026/27 UKRI rate), and a research training support grant of £20,000.

Overview

Are you ready to accelerate the delivery of life-saving medicines and support global Quality by Design (QbD) in pharmaceutical manufacturing?

Continuous Direct Compression (CDC) is rapidly emerging as a preferred method for pharmaceutical tablet production. A central challenge is powder blending, where active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) must be uniformly mixed with excipients to ensure precise, consistent dosage and product quality. Blender performance is highly sensitive to process parameters (fill level, rotation speed, blade configuration) and powder properties (particle size, shape, and surface energy). Predicting blending performance from small-scale laboratory mixers remains a major barrier to rapid CDC adoption.

In this research, you will combine particle-scale simulation with targeted experiments to develop a predictive scaling methodology linking lab-scale mixing to full CDC performance across process conditions and material properties. This work will enable faster process development, reduced material usage, and provide a quantitative foundation for predictive QbD strategies in pharmaceutical manufacturing.

This project is part of the EPSRC CDT in Process Industries: Net Zero. The successful PhD student will be co-supervised by academics from the Process Intensification Group at Newcastle University. This project is supported by Astra Zeneca, who will co-supervise the project, provide access to high power computing facilities and supply relevant data where necessary.

This advert will close on 1.7.2026 but may close earlier if strong applications are received. Early submission is encouraged.

Number Of Awards

1

Start Date

1 October 2026

Award Duration

4 years

Application Closing Date

1 July 2026 [The advert will close at midnight on 1 July 2026, but may close earlier if strong applications are received. Early submission is encouraged.]

Sponsor

EPSRC

Supervisors

Dr Colin Hare (colin.hare@newcastle.ac.uk)

Eligibility Criteria

You must have, or expect to gain, a minimum 2:1 Honours degree or international equivalent in a subject relevant to the proposed PhD project (usually chemical engineering or chemistry, but please get in touch if you think your qualification may be relevant). Enthusiasm for research, the ability to think and work independently, excellent analytical skills and strong verbal and written communication skills are also essential requirements 

This studentship is available to home students only.

How To Apply

You must apply through the University’s Apply to Newcastle Portal. Once registered select ‘Create a Postgraduate Application’. 

Identify your programme of study via ‘Course Search’

• Search for the ‘Course Title’ using the programme code: 8856F
• Leave the 'Research Area' field blank
• Select ‘PhD in Process Industries; Net Zero (PINZ)' as the programme of study

You will then need to provide the following information in the ‘Further Details’ section:  

• A ‘Personal Statement’ (this is mandatory) - upload a document or write a statement directly into the application form
• The studentship code PINZ11-26 in the ‘Studentship/Partnership Reference’ field
• ‘Research Proposal’ - when asked how you are providing your research proposal, select ‘Write Proposal’, and enter the title of the research project from this advert. You do not need to upload a separate proposal.
• Upload your CV 

You must submit one application per studentship; you cannot apply for multiple studentships in one application.

Contact Details

pinz.cdt@ncl.ac.uk

Advert information