Gary Schenk

Research Fellow in Biomass Conversion and Bioprocess Engineering at The University of Queensland’s Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, based at the St Lucia campus. This fixed-term research position sits within the ARC Industrial Transformation Research Hub Engineering Plants to Replace Fossil Carbon , a multi-institutional program focused on sustainable technologies for converting plant biomass into renewable fuels and high-value chemicals. The successful candidate will contribute to the Hub’s one-pot biomass-to-product platform , helping establish, optimise and integrate biomass conversion workflows that connect pretreatment, enzymatic conversion and downstream processing into scalable processes. The role is strongly experimental and collaborative. You will work closely with academic researchers, postgraduate students and industry partners including Novonesis , Sugar Research Australia and Praj Industries . Day-to-day work will involve laboratory activities, process development, data-driven optimisation and active engagement with collaborators across academia and industry. Research activities include designing and running bioprocess experiments under industrially relevant conditions, evaluating multi-enzyme and biocatalytic systems, advancing reactor and process integration strategies, and contributing to techno-economic evaluation and research outputs for academic and industry audiences. The position also involves supervision and mentoring of Honours and Higher Degree by Research students and participation in Hub activities and laboratory operations within a supportive, interdisciplinary research environment.