PhD Position Natural Building Skins for Heat Resilience

Join us in developing the next generation of climate-resilient building envelopes.

Job description

As a PhD candidate at TU Delft, you will explore how nature-based building skins can transform existing homes into healthier, cooler and more sustainable living environments. Working at the intersection of building physics, architecture, ecology and user-centered design, you will develop innovative façade solutions that combine vegetation, circular materials and smart ventilation strategies to improve indoor comfort without relying on energy-intensive cooling systems.

This is a unique opportunity to contribute to one of the most pressing challenges facing cities today: adapting existing housing to climate change while enhancing biodiversity and quality of life. Your work will move beyond theory. Through co-creation with residents and industry partners, full-scale prototyping and real-world testing, you will help bring innovative solutions from concept to demonstration.

While green façades and other nature-based solutions have demonstrated their potential to reduce surface temperatures and improve urban microclimates, limited knowledge exists on how integrated nature-based building skins can simultaneously deliver indoor heat resilience, ventilation performance, biodiversity enhancement, circularity and long-term user acceptance within affordable retrofit solutions for existing housing. As a PhD candidate at TU Delft, you will conduct research within the NWO-funded Nature 4 Homes project. Your research will focus on developing and demonstrating natural building skins for the heat-resilient retrofit of existing dwellings. The ambition is to create an affordable and easy-to-install building-envelope solution that integrates nature-based solutions and passive cooling strategies to mitigate overheating and regulate indoor conditions, while supporting biodiversity and circular renovation.

We are looking for a curious and motivated researcher who is excited to combine experimentation, design and stakeholder engagement. In return, you will join a collaborative and supportive research environment where independent thinking, creativity and interdisciplinary collaboration are encouraged.

At TU Delft, you will have access to world-class research facilities, international networks and the opportunity to work on solutions with direct relevance to society and the built environment sector.

Your research will combine co-creation, prototyping, experimental testing and modelling. Together with residents, manufacturers and other stakeholders, you will identify user-acceptance, maintenance and practical barriers affecting the design, installation and operation of natural building skins and translate these into design requirements. Successive prototypes will be developed and tested at MATELab, TU Delft’s outdoor full-scale façade testing facility, under real weather conditions to assess heat resilience, ventilation, heat and moisture transfer, and indoor environmental performance. The developed prototype systems will be evaluated through circular-design principles, considering material efficiency, adaptability, reuse potential and life-cycle environmental impacts. Experiments may also involve users to investigate comfort, interaction and acceptance, while numerical simulations will extend the experimental findings across different building and climate conditions.

You will join the Architectural Engineering + Technology (AE&T) Department at the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment and the Department of Materials, Mechanics, Management and Design, at the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, TU Delft. You will work under the supervision of Marc Ottelé, Alessandra Luna-Navarro, and Atze Boerstra. You will collaborate closely with a postdoctoral researcher and three other PhD candidates, as well as research, industry and public-sector partners. We foster an open and collaborative environment where independent thinking, knowledge sharing and interdisciplinary research are encouraged.

Job requirements

• You hold an MSc in architecture, architectural engineering, civil engineering or a related field.
• You have a strong interest in human perception, building physics, building design and climate change.
• You are motivated to conduct a combination of experimental research, prototyping and environmental assessments.
• You have an affinity with measuring and modelling and analysing indoor and outdoor environmental conditions.
• You are interested in developing new façade design methods following circular principles.
• You enjoy interdisciplinary research and collaborating with academic, industry and public-sector partners.
• You have excellent oral and written communication skills in English. For more details, please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements.

TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)

For over 180 years, we have been training engineers who make an impact worldwide in companies, government bodies, or as entrepreneurs. Our alumni turn knowledge into concrete solutions for the challenges of today and tomorrow. 

These challenges are changing rapidly. That is why we focus on themes such as energy, climate, digitalisation, artificial intelligence (AI), and smart mobility every day. Our education and research are directly aligned with what society needs now and in the future. 

At TU Delft, our people make the difference. With their knowledge and curiosity, our staff provide a high-quality education and conduct pioneering research that extends beyond the campus. You will have the opportunity to take the initiative, work with others, and grow as a professional. 

Working at TU Delft means join an international community of professionals and students. Together, we create knowledge, innovations, and solutions that help move the world forward.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

Faculty Architecture & the Built Environment
The Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment has a leading role in education and research worldwide. The driving force behind the faculty’s success is its robust research profile combined with the energy and creativity of its student body and academic community. It is buzzing with energy, with four thousand people enthusiastically studying, working, designing, conducting research and acquiring and disseminating knowledge. Our faculty has a strong focus on 'design-oriented research’, which has given it a top position in world rankings.

Staff and students are working to improve the built environment with the help of a broad set of disciplines, including architectural design, urban planning, building technology, social sciences, process management, and geo-information science. The faculty works closely with other faculties, universities, private parties, and the public sector, and has an extensive network in the Netherlands as well as internationally.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment.

Conditions of employment 
Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1,5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2,5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met. 

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from €3204 - €4051 gross per month, from the first year to the fourth year based on a fulltime contract (38 hours), plus 8% holiday allowance and an end-of-year bonus of 8.3%.  

As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills. 

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.  

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
For more information about the application procedure, please contact paulien Stastra, HR Advisor, 
e-mail: recruitment-bk@tudelft.nl.  

The start date of this position is on March 1st 2027.   

Application procedure
Please apply no later than Nobember 11, 2026 (local Dutch time + 2 hrs) via the application button and upload the following five items:

• Your CV - highlighting examples of projects and/or achievements that demonstrate skills relevant to the advertised position.
• Your motivation letter (no more than 600 words) addressing your interests and describing how your experience and plans fit with the position.
• Copies of your BSc and MSc degrees and transcipts.
• Names and contact information of at least three relevant references (letters not required at this stage).

Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure that the candidate is able to communicate and interact well, participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, and write scientific articles and a final thesis. For more details please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements. 

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.