Interested in a traineeship?
The Faculty of Bioengineering welcomes student trainees, funded by an ERASMUS+ or other grant, from other educational institutions (whether or not they are partners via an exchange agreement). These internships vary in length and are unpaid.
Which steps do I need to take?
First of all, you need to get in touch and find a professor who could welcome you into their laboratory team.
Consult the list of professors in the Faculty and their specialities; you'll find their coordinates in our directory: please click here.
Then, to draw up an internship agreement, your home university will have to inform us of:
- The duration of the internship
- Whether or not the internship is being credited?
- If so, how it will be evaluated.
Once you have found a promoter, you will come back to us to sign the internship agreement with you and your university at least one month before your arrival in Belgium.
Please note that internships at the Faculty are unpaid.
Here are some examples of the subjects offered by the Faculty of Bioengineering
Title : Biomass biorefinery to green chemicals: microbial electrosynthesis integrated with carboxylate fermentation
Description : We aim at establishing a microbial electrosynthesis process (= modification of microbial metabolism by supplying reducing equivalents using a cathode) in order to ensure the elongation of short chain carboxylic acids to longer chains. The research will focus on the conditions required to induce the elongation of acetic (C2) and butyric (C4) acids to higher caproic acid (C6). The experimental research includes the design and operation of the experimental device (electrochemical and biological reactor), chemical analyzes to control the process, and investigation of the influence of operating conditions (potential, current, etc.) on the conversion efficiency, with the prospect of optimizing the process.
Keywords : Biomass, biorefinery, carboxylates, green chemistry
Professor : Patrick Gerin
Title : Mastering the fermentation of complex substrates by natural microbial communities, to enable the biorefining of biomass and its valorisation in green chemistry and energy
Description : Several fermentations make it possible to convert biomass (agricultural and agro-industrial products and residues, livestock manure, sewage sludge, etc.) into renewable chemicals (green chemistry) or biofuels. We are interested in acidogenic fermentation to produce molecules such as ethanol, short-chain (C2-C4) carboxylic acids, lactic acid, from complex substrates and natural microbial communities themselves. The general objective of the research is to optimize the design and control of the fermentation process to specifically desired products.
Keywords : Biomass, biorefinery, carboxylates, green chemistry, pretreatments, dowstream processing
Professor : Patrick Gerin
Title : Development of egg yolk with dedicated health promoting effects
Description : We have been able to design a new feed formula for laying hens that allows the production of egg yolk with unconventional lipid profile. These eggs may contribute to delaying the onset of chronic diseases or even to act in disease treatment in a synergic way with drugs. At present stage, the project comprises different complementary approaches including (1) optimization of the feed formula, (2) development of an UPC² analytical method for the analysis of nutrients in egg yolk, (3) effect of yolk storage and industrial processing on nutrient stability, (4) effect of culinary use on yolk lipid profile, (5) evaluation of biological effects on human cell lines, (6) evaluation of health-promoting effects in different animal models (zebrafish, mouse), (7) acceptance tests in humans, (8) bioavailability tests in human volunteers, (9) evaluation of impact on a targeted chronic disease in human volunteers.
Keywords : Laying hen, lipid feeding, egg yolk, chronic disease, UPC², cell culture, animal test, exploratory evaluation in human volunteers
Professor : Yvan Larondelle
