Chemist I - Functionalization Scale-Up

Kunin Technologies•Chattanooga, TN

About The Position

Kunin Technologies is hiring a Chemist I to scale the functionalization chemistry that converts base polymers into ion-exchange media, moving proven bench-scale recipes to kilogram batches and a mini-pilot. The role focuses on maintaining capacity and uniformity as production rates and batch sizes increase. The Chemist will run the functionalization scale-up program, study how reagent concentration, temperature, residence time, bath age, and pickup affect capacity, conversion, and uniformity, and establish operating windows for larger batches and longer bath life. The role also develops post-reaction conversion, washing, and drying processes to meet residual-reagent and moisture specifications; establishes bath-life, reagent make-up, and recycle limits; and builds and validates quality-control methods for media release. Working with laboratory technicians and an analytical chemist, the Chemist will conduct bench and mini-pilot campaigns and close reagent, water, and waste mass balances. The role will document recipes, operating windows, standard operating procedures, QC methods, and hazard reviews for handoff to the Polymer Process Engineer for the demonstration line. It reports to the Lead Organic Chemist and is part of the Ion-Exchange Manufacturing team in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The stated goal is to have functionalization recipes locked at kilogram scale and validated QC methods in use by the end of 2027.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in chemistry or chemical engineering.
1–3 years of hands-on laboratory experience.
Good foundation in organic and polymer chemistry and comfort running multi-step reactions on solid polymers.
Experience handling aggressive chemistry, such as acids, bases, reactive reagents, organic solvents, or inert-atmosphere work.
Experience with designed experiments and measured control of concentration, temperature, residence time, and pickup.
Competence with titration, ion-exchange capacity measurement, moisture analysis, and clear experimental write-ups.
Comfort with Excel or Python for data analysis.
Must be a U.S. citizen.
Extended hours and weekends are frequently required to support critical project milestones.

Responsibilities

Scale functionalization reactions from bench scale to kilogram batches and the mini-pilot, defining reagent concentration, temperature, residence time, bath age, and pickup windows.
Run designed experiments on capacity, conversion, and uniformity; identify controlling variables and operating windows that hold at scale.
Develop post-reaction conversion, washing, and drying steps, including conversion kinetics, rinse-water quality, residual-reagent limits, and drying profiles.
Establish bath-life, reagent make-up, and recycle limits for continuous operation.
Run bench and mini-pilot campaigns with laboratory technicians and the analytical chemist, and close reagent, water, and waste mass balances.
Build and validate QC methods for degree of functionalization, ion-exchange capacity, within- and between-batch uniformity, and release testing.
Write recipes, operating windows, SOPs, and hazard reviews, and hand the package to the Polymer Process Engineer for the demonstration line.