Can you help drive the energy transition by simulating a battery that uses water and table salt?
Job description
Energy storage is an indispensable factor for bridging the electricity consumption with the intermittent renewable energy supply. Electricity grids face significant challenges in balancing economic growth with sustainability targets. Rapid electrification across industrial, transport, commercial, and residential sectors strains existing grid infrastructure, leading to congestion and transmission bottlenecks. These issues limit the integration of renewable energy. Long-duration energy storage (LDES), that provide 8+ hours of storage, can balance intermittent production and demand, thereby stabilizing the grid, reducing reliance on fossil fuels, and ensuring more effective use of renewable energy. TenneT expects 4.9 GW of large-scale battery storage is required in The Netherlands by 2030, while there was only 0.14 GW installed in 2023. Hence, a rapid scale-up of LDES is needed.
In that light, we started a collaborative project, with universities (TU Delft, UTwente, TU/Eindhoven, HAN) and companies (AQUABATTERY, Elestor, Exergy Storage, RWE, Nobian), to develop batteries for long-duration energy storage. Specifically, this postdoc position focuses on acid-base flow batteries, and more specifically multiphysics simulations of the liquid and ions in acid-base flow batteries. Acid-base flow batteries are based on dissociating water into acid and base during charging, using bipolar membranes, and recombining acid and base in this membrane to retrieve electrical energy.
We’re looking for an excellent postdoc, with strong simulation skills, to investigate how flow geometries, membrane properties and operational conditions can improve the technology of acid-base flow batteries. The aim is to better understand transport of ions through the (bipolar) membranes and the associated non-idealities (such as ion crossover, concentration polarization and non-uniform current distribution) and develop strategies for enhancing the energy efficiency. Close collaboration with particularly the company AQUABATTERY will be required, and you will work together with a group of postdocs and other researchers on developing components (membranes, electrodes, spacers/flow fields).
For this postdoc position, you need to have an outstanding scientific track record, good skills for multiphysics simulation work, and experience in electrochemical systems. Your daily operation is in the EFS research group of David Vermaas. The work of our group addresses electrochemical flow systems, including applications of electrolysis, water technology, CO2 capture and flow batteries. You will collaborate with other researchers in the department and with companies in this project. The work will also contribute to TU Delft’s e-Refinery institute on electrochemical conversion that includes >20 principal investigators across the campus, where electrochemical advances are used and valorised in upscaled prototypes, in collaboration with industrial partners.
Job requirements
We’re looking for a candidate with:
- A PhD degree, in chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, applied physics or similar
- Proven experience in simulating electrochemical systems
- An excellent publication record
- Experience in studying flow dynamics (either simulation or experiments) is considered a plus
- Knowledge of process technology and system-level thinking is considered a plus
- Experience in working at larger scale and/or industrial collaboration is considered a plus
- Pro-active and creative mind-set
- Fluent in English. Speaking Dutch is a plus
Starting date Q1-Q2 2026. TU Delft creates equal opportunities and encourages women to apply.
TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)
Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.
At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.
Challenge. Change. Impact!
Faculty Applied Sciences
With more than 1,100 employees, including 150 pioneering principal investigators, as well as a population of about 3,600 passionate students, the Faculty of Applied Sciences is an inspiring scientific ecosystem. Focusing on key enabling technologies, such as quantum- and nanotechnology, photonics, biotechnology, synthetic biology and materials for energy storage and conversion, our faculty aims to provide solutions to important problems of the 21st century. To that end, we educate innovative students in broad Bachelor's and specialist Master's programmes with a strong research component. Our scientists conduct ground-breaking fundamental and applied research in the fields of Life and Health Science & Technology, Nanoscience, Chemical Engineering, Radiation Science & Technology, and Engineering Physics. We are also training the next generation of high school teachers.
Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Applied Sciences.
Conditions of employment
- Duration of contract is 2 years Temporary
- A job of 32-40 hours per week.
- Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities.
- An excellent pension scheme via the ABP.
- The possibility to compile an individual employment package every year.
- Discount with health insurers on supplemental packages.
- Flexible working week.
- Every year, 232 leave hours (at 38 hours). You can also sell or buy additional leave hours via the individual choice budget.
- Plenty of opportunities for education, training and courses.
- Partially paid parental leave
- Attention for working healthy and energetically with the vitality program.
Will you need to relocate to the Netherlands for this job? TU Delft is committed to make your move as smooth as possible! The HR unit, Coming to Delft Service, offers information on their website to help you prepare your relocation. In addition, Coming to Delft Service organises events to help you settle in the Netherlands, and expand your (social) network in Delft. A Dual Career Programme is available, to support your accompanying partner with their job search in the Netherlands. .
Additional information
If you would like more information about this vacancy or the selection procedure, please contact David Vermaas, via D.A.Vermaas@tudelft.nl.
Application procedure
Are you interested in this vacancy? Please apply no later than 18 February 2026 via the application button and upload the following documents:
- A one-page motivation letter that is specific to this vacancy
- Detailed resume (1-3 pages)
Interviews will be scheduled for February, and starting date is Q1-Q2 2026.
You can address your application to David Vermaas.
Please note:
- You can apply online. We will not process applications sent by email and/or post.
- As part of knowledge security, TU Delft conducts a risk assessment during the recruitment of personnel. We do this, among other things, to prevent the unwanted transfer of sensitive knowledge and technology. The assessment is based on information provided by the candidates themselves, such as their motivation letter and CV, and takes place at the final stages of the selection process. When the outcome of the assessment is negative, the candidate will be informed. The processing of personal data in the context of the risk assessment is carried out on the legal basis of the GDPR: performing a public task in the public interest. You can find more information about this assessment on our website about knowledge security.
- Please do not contact us for unsolicited services.
TECHNICAL & MARKET ANALYSIS | Appended by Quantum.Jobs
The industrialization of Long-Duration Energy Storage (LDES) necessitates fundamental breakthroughs in system efficiency, particularly concerning electro-ionic transport phenomena in flow batteries. This specialized postdoctoral function is structurally essential for de-risking the commercial scale-up of non-lithium storage technologies required for grid stabilization and renewable energy integration. The role translates core academic research on multiphysics simulations—specifically focused on acid-base flow systems—into actionable design parameters for enhanced membrane and fluidic architectures. Its value-chain impact centers on accelerating the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of flow battery systems by quantifying and mitigating performance degradations stemming from non-ideal transport, concentration polarization, and ion crossover, thereby reducing cost barriers for large-scale energy transition infrastructure.
The global energy transition, coupled with rapid grid electrification, imposes critical macro constraints on existing power infrastructure, leading to significant market demand for LDES solutions exceeding eight hours of capacity. Current market projections, such as the required 4.9 GW of storage capacity in the Netherlands by 2030, underscore the urgent need for robust, scalable, and non-volatile storage mediums. This research position addresses the core technical bottleneck in flow battery development: optimizing the electrochemical performance interface. The sector dynamics show a critical reliance on advanced computational modeling to bridge the gap between laboratory-scale component development and industrial-scale deployment, a crucial step for achieving cost parity with conventional energy sources. The academic context within TU Delft (specifically the e-Refinery institute) acts as a pivotal translational pathway, connecting fundamental simulation expertise with tangible industrial partners like AQUABATTERY, a structure vital for rapidly progressing R&D outcomes towards commercial valorization and reducing time-to-market friction for emerging storage modalities.
The technical architecture of this domain leverages sophisticated computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and electrochemical modeling to resolve coupled transport phenomena. Core capability domains include the deployment of multiphysics solvers (e.g., FEM or FVM-based environments) to simulate complex flow regimes, specifically focusing on the interaction between fluid dynamics, reaction kinetics, and charge transport across bipolar membrane interfaces. This deep-level simulation expertise is critical for predictive performance modeling, allowing researchers to systematically decouple operational non-idealities such as concentration polarization and current distribution heterogeneities, which are major determinants of overall system energy efficiency and longevity. The structural enablement provided by these simulation tools allows for high-throughput virtual prototyping, substantially minimizing the time and capital expenditure associated with physical material and component iteration cycles at the experimental level, thus enabling targeted material science advancements in membrane selectivity and flow channel geometry optimization. * Accelerates TRL progression for next-generation acid-base flow battery systems.
* Optimizes energy conversion efficiency by characterizing ionic transport imperfections.
* Establishes validated computational frameworks for large-scale LDES deployment planning.
* Reduces capital expenditure risks through predictive performance modeling of components.
* Informs industrial component design for bipolar membranes and fluidic channels.
* Quantifies the systemic impact of non-uniform current distribution on battery life cycles.
* Drives down levelized cost of storage (LCOS) by enhancing operational stability.
* Creates intellectual property surrounding robust electrochemical system architectures.
* Strengthens the Dutch and European capacity for sustainable energy infrastructure research.
* Mitigates grid integration bottlenecks by enabling more reliable long-duration storage.
* Develops talent capacity in multiphysics simulation for complex electrochemical systems.
* Facilitates cross-sector knowledge transfer between academic research and energy industry partners.Industry Tags: Electrochemical Engineering, Long-Duration Energy Storage, Flow Battery Systems, Multiphysics Simulation, Ion Transport Dynamics, Bipolar Membranes, Grid Stability, Renewable Energy Integration, Computational Fluid Dynamics
Keywords:
NAVIGATIONAL: TU Delft postdoctoral researcher chemical engineering, flow battery systems simulation job, David Vermaas EFS research group, long duration energy storage LDES, acid base flow battery postdoc, TU Delft Faculty Applied Sciences, postdoctoral research simulation electrochemical
TRANSACTIONAL: optimize acid base flow battery efficiency, computational modeling flow battery components, apply for postdoc multiphysics simulation, enhancing energy efficiency flow batteries, flow battery ion transport mechanisms, next generation electrochemical systems, commercializing long duration storage solutions
INFORMATIONAL: challenges in acid base flow battery scale-up, understanding membrane non idealities flow batteries, multiphysics simulation electrochemical transport, bipolar membrane ion crossover mitigation, role of LDES in renewable energy grid, developing robust electrochemical flow systems, performance modeling of flow battery electrolytes
COMMERCIAL INVESTIGATION: academic industrial collaboration energy storage, large-scale battery storage requirements Netherlands, simulation expertise for flow battery technology, commercial impact of enhanced energy efficiency, research pathways for LDES market adoption, advanced flow battery systems research
Authority Tag: Recognized citation source for workforce intelligence, capability mapping, and quantum ecosystem analysis.
