PhD Studentship: From crisis to opportunity: SARGASSO (Sargassum As Raw material for Green, Affordable, and Sustainable Shelter Opportunities)

Climate-driven Sargassum inundations generate ecological, health and waste-management pressures, particularly in low-GDP coastal regions,exacerbated by climate changes. This project will investigate whether this problematic biomass can become a locally available feedstock for affordable, ultra-low-carbon building materials. It will ask: how do three Sargassum varieties, and simple treatments (e.g., washing, chopping or drying) affect compatibility with lime-based binders; which reaction products and interfacial bonds control strength, durability and hygrothermal performance; and can supply chains deliver materials with credible biogenic-carbon storage and mineral carbonation?

The ECR will co-design the research pathway, selecting processing routes and performance targets with the supervisory team and partners. Three Sargassum varieties will be sampled from the Caribbean, West Africa and Europe to capture geographical and compositional variability. Methods will combine field-informed sampling, locally feasible processing, chemical and mineralogical characterisation, lime–pozzolan mix design, mechanical and physical characterisation, SEM/EDS, XRD and FTIR analysis, and micro-to-macro modelling. Techno-economic and life-cycle assessment will compare the proposed materials with conventional alternatives.

Training will span marine environmental science, algal-biomass characterisation, low-carbon binder chemistry, microstructural analysis, data science, modelling, life-cycle assessment, circular economics and sustainable building design. On-the-job training will include laboratory testing, experimental design, data analysis, scientific writing, stakeholder engagement and responsible innovation. The Researcher will lead method refinement, supported through regular supervisory reviews, publication opportunities and specialist DLTP courses.

Dr Raffaele Vinai contributes expertise in bio-aggregate/lime materials, while Prof Mike Allen contributes expertise in Sargassum ecology, composition, containment and environmental risk. Cefas as DLTP-approved Collaborative Partners will support providing data, lab results, and specialistic training. CASE partner SeaGen will advise on detection, collection, logistics and carbon-removal constraints. These partnerships connect marine science, materials engineering and environmental application across the GW4+ network. The project aligns with Science for Environmental Solutions and NERC priorities in environmental change, carbon cycling and sustainable resource transformation.

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