The Department of Process Engineering boasts a thriving postgraduate research environment with approximately 130 registered postgraduate candidates, including researchers from across Africa and the globe. Our department is also proud of an active Postgraduate Student Council (PGSC), which leads and serves the postgraduate cohort with academic and social support, as well as community engagement. Meet them below!
Meet our Postgraduate Student Council
I am a fun-loving person, but I enjoy music more than a lot of things in life. My hobbies reflect that: guitar playing and songwriting.
Kudzai Chiodza
Before living in Stellenbosch, I grew up and went to school in Gaborone, Botswana. Attending an international school exposed me to many people from different places and backgrounds, which I feel has made me very welcoming and friendly.
Darné Nunes
I have a love-hate relationship with coffee. I like to laugh and like to think I have a sharp sense of humour, but my jokes are mostly lame. I also have a lowkey obsession with anything Korean. Shame.
Veronica Lourens
I am an outgoing person always willing to be of help and create a welcoming atmosphere around me. I like to smile and find the bright side to every situation I find myself in. Call me an optimist!
Mensah Brobbey
I have been at the faculty since 2016 now and it has become a special place to me. I hope through my effort and dedication as an engineer I can make 2022 an extra fun year to be a postgraduate. Also, I like woodworking, camping, and most socials interactions in general.
Roelof Maritz
I am from East London, in the Eastern Cape. I enjoy console and tabletop games and a bit of music. I play the guitar, bagpipes and trumpet, although I haven’t actually touched a
trumpet in years…
Izak Schlebusch
I grew up on a dairy farm near George. I completed my BEng in Chemical Engineering at SU. During my final year project, I developed a deep interest in bioprocessing, especially anaerobic digestion. As a hobby, I enjoy playing the clarinet. I see myself as a person with a high standard of work ethics, who values honesty and pays attention to detail.
Judi Kuyler
Meet our Postgraduate Candidates
Research Topic
Development of Bioprocess and Bioreactor System for Alkane Activation
Supervisor(s) / Promotor(s)
Prof Robbie Pott
Professional Summary
Ayman Abufalgha was born in 1988 in Tripoli, Libya. He received his B.Sc. degree in Chemical Engineering in 2011 from the University of Elmergib, Libya where he was employed as an Undergraduate Teaching Assistant. He moved to Stellenbosch University in 2016 to do his M.Sc. degree in Chemical Engineering which was obtained in 2018 under the supervision of Prof K. Clarke and Prof R. Pott. In 2016, he also joined the Centre of Excellence in Catalysis (C* change), Department of Chemical Engineering, the University of Cape Town as a postgraduate researcher working on a paraffine activation project. In 2019, he started his PhD, again under the supervision of Prof R. Pott at the Department of Process Engineering, Stellenbosch University. In 2021, he was awarded a fellowship from the Vice-Chancellor’s Global Challenges the Research Fellowships, to work with Prof Lea-smith on the modification of hydrocarbon-degrading organisms at the School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, UK.
