Chemist
About The Position
ChemFinity Technologies is building critical mineral recovery systems to produce over 30 minerals from waste and mining feedstocks at low cost, using our proprietary, high-performance, high-durability sorbent filters. Up to a 6x increase in critical mineral demand may be expected by 2040, to meet the supplies needed for clean energy, defense, manufacturing, and other technology sectors. However, 80% of U.S. critical minerals already come from foreign sources, and 7% of greenhouse gas emissions come from mining. Our team’s mission is to produce these minerals in ways that are cheaper, cleaner, and more accessible than existing methods such as high-temperature smelting. Spun out of UC Berkeley in late 2022 and based in New York City, ChemFinity is backed by top-tier investor firms and over 10 top government and grant agencies, such as Bill Gates’s Breakthrough Energy Fellows, the U.S. Department of Energy, ARPA-E, and the U.S. EPA. ChemFinity has been recognized as top innovators in the critical minerals sector by the World Economic Forum, Forbes, and Conservation X Labs.
Requirements
- PhD degree in chemistry, materials science, mineral processing, or a related field, or a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree with at least 4+ years of directly relevant industrial chemistry or mineral processing experience.
- Strong fundamental understanding of organometallic and/or inorganic chemistry, as relevant to metal bonding.
- Hands-on experience in chemical synthesis, sorbent development, metal recovery processes, and/or industrial manufacturing.
- Desire to own projects, communicate effectively, and proactively use critical thinking and team collaboration to solve difficult but impactful challenges in a dynamic startup environment.
- Unwavering commitment to high safety standards and supportive work behavior.
Nice To Haves
- Experience in startups and/or scaling technologies from the lab to full-scale commercialization.
- Experience in precious or critical mineral processing, liquid-phase separations, sorbent technologies, water pollutant removal, and/or resource recovery.
- Proven leadership in chemical safety, SOP development, and/or laboratory management.
- Experience in writing grant applications and detailed technical reports.
- Experience in project management.
Responsibilities
- Synthesize and test new porous materials using various techniques (e.g., organic and/or inorganic synthesis methods).
- Iterate and improve material design and process conditions for critical mineral recovery from varied feedstock sources (e.g., electronic waste).
- Support rapid applied R&D and piloting efforts across the team on proprietary sorbent materials, solid-liquid separation, and mineral leaching.
- Assist scale-up efforts in sorbent synthesis and mineral production.
- Maintain accurate and detailed lab documentation and sample logs.
- Perform full-time hands-on work on-site at our Brooklyn facility.
Benefits
- Competitive compensation including equity options
- Health, dental, vision, and life insurance benefits
- 401(k) benefits with company matching
- Flexible paid time off and holidays
- Health/fitness stipend
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
Education Level
Ph.D. or professional degree
