Chemical Processing and Testing Lead

An advanced materials venture in Maryland is developing a proprietary carbon conversion process designed to establish a domestic supply of high-performance synthetic graphite and related carbon materials. The company currently operates an active R&D wet lab in Gaithersburg and will be commissioning manufacturing facilities at TBD sites.

This role owns the front end of that process, from incoming feedstock slurry preparation through the chemical purification step that produces the company's core carbon intermediate, and stands up and runs the company's new in-house characterization lab. The front end sets the material properties every downstream product line inherits, and the characterization lab is the measurement authority the company depends on to know whether a process change actually worked.

This is not a shared, generalist scale-up role. You will own a defined process segment end to end, and your characterization data will be the standard the rest of the technical organization measures against.

What You Will Do

In this hands-on ownership role, you will:

•Own incoming feedstock specifications, including lot-to-lot variability characterization, supplier qualification, and the acceptance criteria that govern what enters the process

•Own the slurry creation and chemical purification process step, including process parameters, yield, impurity removal, and reproducibility, and define the operating window for the resulting purified intermediate

•Construct a prototypic-scale carbon intermediate production system 

•Design, install, and qualify instrumentation for a new in-house characterization lab, and develop the analytical methods it will run

•Build the characterization lab's sample throughput, data integrity, and reporting processes to serve all of the company's product lines

•Serve as the internal measurement authority: when another technical team needs to know whether a process change moved the material, your data is the answer

•Cross-support scale-up, commissioning, and troubleshooting alongside the Graphite and Graphene technical leads and the Director of Operations, without ceding ownership of your own segment's data or process parameters

•Develop and execute structured test plans to improve feedstock and purification yield, consistency, and repeatability

•Interpret material characterization data using techniques such as XRD, Raman, SEM, ICP-OES/GDMS, and particle size analysis

•Develop SOPs, technical documentation, safe operating practices, and repeatable workflows for both the process segment and the characterization lab

•Analyze process and material data to identify variability, root causes, and optimization opportunities

What You Bring

We are targeting technical talent with 4–8 years of relevant experience, including graduate research, postdoctoral work, and slurry system design and installation who are ready to take ownership of a defined process segment and a new analytical function within a pilot-scale, high-growth environment. Time spent in graduate school conducting relevant research counts fully toward this range.

We are primarily targeting recent PhD graduates and postdoctoral researchers coming out of relevant graduate programs. Candidates with equivalent industry experience will also be considered, and may currently hold titles such as:

Research Scientist • Analytical Chemist • Characterization Scientist • R&D Scientist • Materials Scientist • Process Development Engineer • Process Engineer • Chemical Engineer • Postdoctoral Researcher

Experience in graphite is welcome but not required. Of particular value is experience with:

•Coal cleaning, demineralization, or beneficiation, including froth flotation or related mineral-processing techniques

•Slurry formation, incoming material specification, or supplier quality programs

•Acid leaching, chemical purification, or mineral extraction circuits

•Analytical characterization method development and instrument qualification (XRD, Raman, SEM, ICP-OES/GDMS, particle size analysis, or similar)

•Laboratory quality systems, data integrity practices, or sample management for a multi-stakeholder organization

•Rare earth chemical separation and slurry-based processing

•Powder handling, particle processing, and purification systems

Candidates whose carbon-related experience comes from solid (coke, coal) or liquid (pitch) feedstocks are preferred over those working primarily with gas-phase carbon precursors (e.g., acetylene, CO2).

The strongest candidates will demonstrate:

•Experience owning a defined process step or analytical function end to end, including in early-stage environments

•Technical depth paired with prior hands-on system construction and operation

•Experience standing up new lab instrumentation and developing or validating analytical methods

•Experience defining process parameters and troubleshooting material or process variability

•Ownership mindset with long-term growth orientation

•The ability to receive mentorship while contributing independently within a small technical team

Experience supporting the startup, commissioning, or scale-up of a new process or pilot system is highly valuable but not required.

Education

We are primarily targeting recent PhD graduates or postdoctoral researchers in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Analytical Chemistry, Fuel Science, or a related discipline. Candidates with a Bachelor's or Master's degree will also be considered, provided they bring relevant industry experience in carbon materials, chemical purification, analytical characterization, or process development.

Operating Environment

This is an early-stage pilot-scale operation. Success requires:

•Comfort operating in a small team, fast-moving build environment while helping establish and refine core systems

•A willingness to work hands-on in both laboratory and pilot-facility environments

•Sound technical decision-making in a small, high-accountability team

•Comfort serving as the data authority other technical teams rely on, including when the data does not confirm what they hoped to see

•Adaptability as equipment, priorities, and operating procedures evolve

•Strong collaboration with technical leadership, operations, vendors, and external partners

Travel

Minimal expected travel; primarily facility-based in Maryland, supporting both the Gaithersburg lab and Walkersville pilot facility.

Compensation & Benefits

•Base Salary: $130,000–$150,000, commensurate with experience

•Bonus: 10% annual performance bonus

•Eligible for Long-Term Incentive plan

•Medical, dental, and vision insurance

•Retirement plan

•Paid time off and additional company-sponsored benefits

Work Authorization

Candidates must qualify as a U.S. Person under applicable U.S. export control regulations. This generally includes U.S. citizens, U.S. permanent residents, and certain protected individuals. Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Our client is an equal opportunity employer committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce. All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.