Lynas-MRIWA – MPhil International Scholarship at Curtin University

This Master of Philosophy (MPhil) scholarship is available for an outstanding candidate to conduct research on water treatment methods suitable for flotation of rare earth minerals.

The need to purify water using expensive methods such as Reverse Osmosis (RO) for mineral processing unit operations could cost mining companies millions of dollars annually. Water treatment is particularly costly when the objective is to remove high concentrations of small ions such as Na+, Ca2+ and Mg2+ by methods such as reverse osmosis. Given the large volume of processing water required in techniques such as flotation, it becomes financially unviable when considering expansion of existing plants. Thus, the possibility of using process water that had undergone minimal treatment would have significant economic benefits in many mineral processing operations, and minimizes impact on the local community and the ecosystem.

Eligible courses

The student must meet the academic entry requirement for admission into the Master of Philosophy program including the English
proficiency levels set by Curtin University https://study.curtin.edu.au/higher-degree-by-research/

Eligibility criteria

The successful candidate will have:

• A BEng (Hons), BSc (Hons) in chemistry, metallurgy, metallurgical engineering, chemical engineering.
  A Bachelor with First Class Honours or Second Class Honours includes the completion of a supervised research dissertation project carrying the equivalent credit of at least 25 percent of an annual full-time load.
• Demonstrated ability to conduct scientific research through either refereed journal publications or excellent project marks.
• Strong oral and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and to meet deadlines during the course of the project.
• Academic professional referees and/or previous supervisors’ contact details.

• This scholarship provides a living stipend of $28,597p.a. pro-rata indexed annually.
• The duration of the MPhil scholarship is a maximum of two (2) years full-time equivalent study.
• In addition, this scholarship would include a tuition fee waiver for a successful international student.
• Please note for international students' medical insurance, this is an additional cost which is not covered by the scholarship (self funded by the candidate).

Please email Dr Bogale Tadesse (bogale.tadesse@curtin.edu.au) an expression of interest with:

1. Curriculum vitae.
2. Academic transcripts.
3. A brief cover letter explaining your skills and experience to demonstrate your suitability.