Chemistry Specialist

Details • Blacksburg, VA

1d

About The Position

The Department of Mining & Minerals Engineering at Virginia Tech seeks a qualified, highly motivated individual for a unique research position in chemical separations of rare earth elements. The successful candidate will work closely with faculty, staff, graduate students, undergraduate students, and outside collaborators and is expected to play an active role in the research conducted in Dr. Aaron Noble’s group, which focuses on critical material recovery from unconventional sources. The Chemical Specialist will be responsible for developing and performing rare earth separation tests utilizing standard procedures and methods. The successful candidate will maintain a detailed experimental notebook and perform quality assurance and quality control testing to verify the suitability of various procedures. The Chemical Specialist will develop standard operating procedures for new testing protocols and train new users as needed. The successful candidate will also have the opportunity to co-author products that emerge from these efforts including sponsor reports and peer reviewed manuscripts.

Requirements

• BS in chemistry, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience working in a chemical or mineral processing testing laboratory.
• Demonstrated organizational, communication, and collaborative research skills.
• Experience working independently with little direct supervision.
• A demonstrated commitment to safe work practices in the laboratory.
• Ability to obtain and maintain work approval from the research sponsor.

Nice To Haves

• Previous research/university experience.
• Prior experience with hydrometallurgical processes, including leaching, liquid-liquid extraction, adsorption, and/or related methods.
• Prior experience in rare earth element or critical mineral processing.
• Prior experience with mineral digestions, including strong acid digestions, fusions, and/or microwave-assisted digestions.

Responsibilities

• Developing and performing rare earth separation tests utilizing standard procedures and methods.
• Maintaining a detailed experimental notebook.
• Performing quality assurance and quality control testing to verify the suitability of various procedures.
• Developing standard operating procedures for new testing protocols.
• Training new users as needed.
• Co-authoring products that emerge from these efforts including sponsor reports and peer reviewed manuscripts.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees