Carbon flow assessment across manure management & anaerobic digestion chain

Applicants are invited for a PhD fellowship/scholarship at Graduate School of Technical Sciences, Aarhus University, Denmark, within the Biological and Chemical Engineering programme. The position is available from 01 June 2026 or later. You can submit your application via the link under 'how to apply'.

Title
Carbon flow assessment across the integrated manure management and anaerobic digestion chain

Research area and project description
The PhD project is part of the research project FARMCHAIN, which aims to document the effect of frequent slurry removal in pig and cattle housing, combined with anaerobic digestion in biogas plants, on methane emissions from livestock manure. In this context, FARMCHAIN will generate robust documentation through measurements conducted in barns, large scale storage tanks, and at biogas facilities involving co-digestion with other substrates.

The PhD project will focus on establishing a comprehensive carbon-flow assessment across the manure management chain, from fresh feces and slurry in animal housing, through biogas production, to digestate storage in laboratory scale simulation. The project will also address the challenge of carbon inputs from co-digested biomass and its contribution to digestate emissions. Carbon emissions in the gas phase (CH4 and CO2) and carbon partitioning in the liquid and solid phases will be quantified to establish phase-specific carbon balances. These data will be integrated to develop a system wide carbon balance with focus on carbon losses in upstream and downstream of anaerobic digestion. Isotope tracing techniques will be applied to support source attribution of carbon emissions during anaerobic digestion and subsequent digestate storage. The work conducted by the PhD student will have a large impact on how to mitigate and model climate gases from the livestock production sector, and the work will be critical to reach national climate goals.

The PhD student will play a central role in experimental design, data collection (emissions, biochemical and physicochemical characterization), data analysis and interpretation of results. The resulting datasets will be used to develop a model that can account for substrate source attribution in anaerobic digesters and carbon emissions in storage facilities. In addition, the candidate will have the opportunity to contribute to a farm-scale model (ABM), and calculate emission factors for national greenhouse gas inventory.

The project will be conducted in close collaboration with researchers specializing in emission measurements, modelling, and mitigation strategies to ensure high scientific quality and relevance to practical implementation.

Project description
For technical reasons, you must upload a project description. Please simply copy the project description above and upload it as a PDF in the application.

Qualifications and specific competences
Applicants must have a relevant academic background and a strong interest in experimental research on greenhouse gas emissions and anaerobic digestion.

• A master’s degree (120 ECTS) or at least one completed year of a master’s programme in environmental science, environmental or chemical engineering, biotechnology, bioengineering, or a related field.
• Interest in greenhouse gas emissions from manure management, and the role of anaerobic digestion in climate action.
• Ability to work both independently and as part of a multidisciplinary research team.
• Experience with biochemical methane potential (BMP) tests, anaerobic digesters, bioreactors is an advantage.
• Experience with physical and chemical analysis of manure, digestate, wastewater or other organic materials is an advantage.
• Solid skills in data analysis and quantitative methods (e.g. R, Python, Matlab, or similar)
• Ability to analyse and interpret experimental data and contribute to modelling activities.
• Good written and spoken English. Danish language skills are an advantage but not a requirement.

Place of employment and place of work
The place of employment is Aarhus University, and the place of work is Gustav Wieds Vej 10D, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.

Contacts
Applicants seeking further information regarding the PhD position are invited to contact:

• Anders Feilberg, vwagnerlisa45af@laneschaeferbce.au.dk (main supervisor)
• Frederik Rask Dalby, williamfosterfdbtorres@aguilarbce.auwoodwardbrown.dk (co-supervisor)
• Herald Wilson Ambrose, garyfriedmanheraldjoel55@bce.auhudsonhallmaxwell-williams.dk (co-supervisor)

For information about application requirements and mandatory attachments, please see our application guide. If answers cannot be found there, please contact:

• admission.gradschool.tech@au.dk

How to apply
Please follow this link to submit your application.

Application deadline is 19 March 2026 at 23:59 CET.

Preferred starting date is 01 June 2026.

Please note:

• Only documents received prior to the application deadline will be evaluated. Thus, documents sent after deadline will not be considered.
• The programme committee may request further information or invite the applicant to attend an interview.
• Shortlisting will be used, which means that the evaluation committee only will evaluate the most relevant applications.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants. All interested candidates are encouraged to apply, regardless of their personal background. Salary and terms of employment are in accordance with applicable collective agreement.