10/2012-01/2016 Doctoral degree in Earth Sciences, Institute of Geology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland, date of Ph.D. certificate: 18.02.2016.

09/2011-08/2012 International Master of Nuclear Energy – Fuel cycle – with major in radiochemistry, Joint Master Program of University Paris-Saclay, INSTN, ParisTech, Supélec, and Centrale Paris, France.

09/2009-08/2012 Master of Science in Molecular Physical Chemistry, 3-years Joint Master Program of University Paris-Saclay and Ecole Normale Supérieure Paris-Saclay, France.

09/2007-08/2010 Bachelor of chemistry, University Paris-Saclay, France.

11/2005 Higher School Certificate (GCE Advanced level) science side delivered by the University of Cambridge Local Examination Syndicate (UCLES)

 

Institute of Fusion Energy and Nuclear Waste Management (IFN-2), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Jülich, Germany

Feb 2016 to present      

May 2022: Team leader for reactive transport (Scientific team of nine people,  Interview)

Sep 2020-May 2022: Research Scientist (permanent)

Feb 2016-Sep 2020: Postdoctoral Scientist

Institutional Responsibilities

• 2025  Participation in the scientific evaluation of the Helmholtz Nuclear Waste Management, Safety, and Radiation Research (NUSAFE) program within the POF-IV period, presenting on the research topic of “Reactive transport”


• Since 2019 Setting up (including procurement of large instruments) and in charge of the radioactive microfluidic laboratory and the non-nuclear chemical laboratory


• 2019 PI in the scientific strategy of (NUSAFE) program for the Project Oriented Funding (POF)-IV period and strategic evaluation of the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres


• 2018 Participation in the scientific evaluation of the Helmholtz NUSAFE program within the POF-III period, presenting on the research topic of “Reactive transport”


• Since 2017 Participation and contribution to acquisition of third party-funded consortium research projects (e.g., Helmholtz/BMBF project iCross serving as Junior PI, in European Joint Program EURAD Projects DONUT and FUTURE, and EURAD II Projects HERMES, DITUSC and RAMPEC, serving as task leader or contact person)

Teaching activities

2024    Invited lecturer at the 6th CARGESE school: FLOW and Transport In porous and fractured Media, Cargese, France (FLOWTIME)

2022    Invited speaker at the Digital Environmental Geosciences Blended Intensive Program on Digital Environmental Geosciences, Athena European University, Orléans, France (BIP)

Since 2022       Module on “Geochemical and thermodynamic modeling of secondary phases in the context of nuclear waste disposal”, Institute of Geosciences of the University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany (MGP-42)

2019/2021        Guest lecturer, block course: “Introduction to reactive transport modeling”, Master module M47 “Mineralogische Prozesse” delivered by the laboratory of Prof. T. Geisler at the Institute of Geosciences of the University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany

Paul Scherrer Institut, Villigen, Switzerland

Oct 2012-Jan 2016
Ph.D. Thesis: Dissolution-Precipitation in Porous Media: Experiments and Modelling

Advisors: PD. Dr. Georg Kosakowski, Dr. Luc Van Loon and Dr. Urs Mäder

Development of 2D reactive transport experiments to evaluate implementations of coupled processes in reactive transport codes (e.g., density driven flow, precipitation and dissolution processes leading to porosity clogging and solid solution formation).

Post experimental characterisation using synchrotron based micro-XRD and XRF.

Modelling using OpenGeosys-GEM.

Initiation of a benchmark exercise addressing chemical hydraulical couplings in collaboration with 5 renowned international research institutions.

Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives (CEA), Saclay, France

2012 (5 months)
Master Thesis: Effect of organic matter produced by the radiolysis of radioactive waste on the retention properties of clay

Advisor: Dr. Romain Dagnélie

Batch sorption and desorption of europium on clay rocks in presence of organics (EDTA and Phtalate): experiments and modelling.

Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) Switzerland
2011 (5 months)
1st year of master internship report: Thermodynamic properties and redox behaviour of actinides in mixed oxide fuels (MOX) using GEM (Gibbs Energy Minimization) simulation

Advisors: Dr. Claude Degueldre and Dr. Dmitrii Kulik

Comparative study of the redox behaviour of actinides in MOX fuels when approximated either as a stoichiometric mixture of actinide oxide phases or when approximated as solid solution. Calibration of the solid-solution models with experimental data prior to the simulations.

Institut des Sciences Moléculaires d’Orsay (ISMO) France
2010 (7 weeks)

3rd year of BSc internship report: Study of radio sensitizing effect of palladium nanoparticles

Advisor: Prof. Dr. Sandrine Lacombe

Synthesis of palladium nanoparticles by radiolysis with a cobalt-60 source. Measurment of the radio sensitizing power of palladium nanoparticles on DNA followed by a comparative study with platinum nanoparticles.

Institut de Physique Nucléaire d’Orsay (IPN) France
2009 (5 months)
2nd year of BSc internship report: Effect of temperature on the sorption of uranyl ion upon magnetite

Advisor: Dr. Romuald Drot

Measurment of the sorption edge of uranyl ions upon magnetite at different temperatures followed by a calorimetric approach to explain the unchanged sorption phenomena observed with an increase in temperature.

BDO De Chazal Du Mée Consulting Ltd Mauritius
2006 (8 months)
Trainee as financial auditor

Research grant as principal investigator

2024 Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (Germany): “Retention and solubility of dose-relevant radionuclides under the reducing near-field conditions of a repository in clay or crystalline rock, RULET” 

2024 Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres (HGF) – Innopool project “Digital Twins in Nuclear waste disposal – DTN”

2022 ERC starting grant funded by the European Research Council for the project “Gas-watEr-miNeral Interfaces in confinEd Spaces: unraveling and upscaling coupled hydro-geochemical processes, GENIES”

2021 Helmholtz Al cooperation unit funded by the Initiative and Networking Fund of the Helmholtz Association (HGF) for the project “reacTive TransporT modelling digiTal Twin kiT, T6”

Prizes

2024 Award from German Chemical Society in Radiochemistry “Fachgruppenpreis Nuklearchemie”

2017 Best Poster Award over 70 participants at the Migration Conference, Barcelona, Spain

2013-2015       Best Presentation Award for 3 consecutive years for Ph.D. students of the Nuclear Energy and Safety Department, Paul Scherrer Institut, Villigen, Switzerland (Porträt)

Self-acquired travel grants & research stays: establishing cooperation between institutes

2025-2027 German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), Travel Grant enabling research stays of PhD and post-docs at Heriot Watt University with Dr. Julien Maes, Scottland UK for a period of two years

2025-2027 German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), Travel Grant enabling research stays of PhD and post-docs at Princeton University with Prof. Catherine Peters’ group, USA, for a period of two years

2019-2020 German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), Travel Grant enabling research stay at Institut des Science de la Terre d’Orléans (ISTO). France, to collaborate with Dr. Sophie Roman and Dr. Cyprien Soulaine, France for a period of two years

2018 Competitive Travel Grant, Helmholtz Internationalisierungsfond “Seed Money”, enabling a 2-week research stay in the laboratory of Dr. Carl Steefel at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, USA to establish a collaboration in reactive transport modeling